Stay Away From Hot Tempered People

JUNE 25

 ARE YOU LETTING AN UNHAPPY PERSON MAKE YOU UNHAPPY?

 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared. —PROVERBS 22:24–25 

I advise not getting into deep personal relationships with hot-tempered, angry people, but if you already are in one and can’t get out of it, you can learn not to let the unhappy person make you unhappy. The angry person could be your boss, your spouse, one of your children, a parent, or someone else. In our world today, there is no shortage of angry people. You cannot control what others do, but you can learn, with God’s help, not to let them control you. As a matter of fact, the worst thing you can do for an angry person is to allow them to control you because that will keep them stuck in the same place. When Dave and I married, I was an angry woman due to the abuse I suffered during my childhood. Of course, Dave never saw my anger while we were dating because I hid it, but eventually it did reveal itself. He tried for a while to make me happy and finally decided that, no matter what he did, I was not going to be happy, so he told me he was finished trying. He said that he was going to be happy and enjoy his life and hoped that I would decide to join him. But if I didn’t, he continued, he was not going to let it affect him. Of course, what he said to me made me even angrier than I already was for a while, but eventually it gave me the desire to get to the root of my problem and let God help me change. Dave always loved me, but he didn’t let me control him. If you are dealing with an angry person, I recommend that you do likewise. “Father, give me the strength to remain peaceful and joyful, no matter how the people around me behave. Help me show them Your love without letting them affect my joy with their bad attitudes. Thank You. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”