Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: fret not thyself in any wise to do evil. — Psalm 37:8
There are many times in life when we may want to become angry at someone for doing something. I think back on September 11, 2001. In the wake of the events of that day, many people became angry at anyone who appeared that they were of Middle Eastern descent. They were heavily scrutinized, watched, and even judged for everyday activities, whether they were Muslim or not.
There are many other actions in our world that can cause us to become angry as well. When we see senseless violence around us, it can be easy to become angry at those who committed the act. Whether they were involved or not, they may be judged for what took place and treated differently. Perhaps someone becomes angry and acts out against them in return.
Anger is in our human nature. We often don’t have to work up the feeling of anger. It comes naturally when we find ourselves in a heightened state of emotion. If we are passionate about something or feel passionate about it, we can often become angry with little warning. But David warns in this Psalm about that.
He says to cease from anger and forsake wrath. Why? Because David himself had experienced the patience and grace of God. God is the ultimate judge, and David knew that he had witnessed the patient and loving hand of God in his life. Not only that, David knew that the ultimate response should be from God, not us.
So, rather than being angry, we should let God handle it. Rather than being quick to act and respond, we should trust that God sees and knows all that happens. We should realize that we have all sinned and are beneficiaries of the grace of God. That doesn’t mean we should accept sin. Instead, we should realize that apart from the grace of God, we may have been in the same situation ourselves.
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