Corona Devo 3073

Oooooo, I was SO mad!  

I like to believe that my feathers don't ruffle over just any old thing, and I really do try and see both sides of an argument...even when I am in the argument.  

I also like to believe that my faith keeps my feathers unruffled.  I know that God is in control of all things, even "my thing" that I might be struggling with.

He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.  ~Colossians 1:17

But sometimes...  In certain situations...  With some people...

My feathers get ruffled!  And oooooo!  I get SO mad!


Such was the case last night.  The specific situation doesn't matter, only because then it relegates the feelings of explosiveness to me, and I know that we all get to this point once in a while, and each of our causes are different.  

Have you been there?  (So mad?)

Injustice, unfair treatment, persecution, secular-world , prejudice, darkness-seeking-to-snuff-the-light.  Intolerance.  No compromising--just belittling.

I was really upset.  And (in this case), my feathers were ruffled because someone I love was being mistreated.  One of my special possessions was being harmed--not physically, but on multiple other levels...and I wanted judgement and justice to be done.

Oooooo, my feathers were ruffled and I was SO mad!  

But I know better than to react in anger.  And I know better than to react in superiority or condescension (it always bites you back!).  And I even know what God tells us to do with our anger:

  • Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret—it leads only to evil.  ~Psalm 37:8
  • A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.  ~Proverbs 15:1
  • A fool gives full vent to his spirit, but a wise man quietly holds it back.  ~Proverbs 29:11

I know!!

But still: oooooo, I was SO mad!  It colored my mood all evening, and I was troubled going to bed.  Prayers...and then rants ran through my busy mind.  
Who was going to fix this?  Me?  

I wanted someone to care!  Someone to fix this.  Someone to judge those that were ruffling my feathers.

That's what I wanted!  And I really wanted it.  

Oooooo, I was SO mad!  
Have you been there? 

God met me the next morning in my feathers-still-ruffled state.  I turned to His Word because I needed to hear His voice because oooooo, I was SO mad.

He met me alright.  And He smoothed my feathers with His soothing words of authority over all.  

In my tizzy I had forgotten that our Holy God sits on the throne of Heaven and that He has dominion, and judgment...is His (not mine), no matter how mad I get, or how ruffled my feathers may be.

He is in charge, and our Lord will take charge of all things and all injustices one day.  
He reminded me of that today.  And more importantly, He made it clear to my heart that judgment is His job, not mine.

God will do it, and we do not have to.  We can trust Him that He will.

“At the time of those events,” says the Lord, “when I restore the prosperity of Judah and Jerusalem, (2) I will gather the armies of the world into the valley of Jehoshaphat.  

There I will judge them for harming my people, my special possession, for scattering my people among the nations, and for dividing up my land.  ~Joel 3:1-2

Oooooo, I was SO mad, but the Lord calmed my heart with His Word and also His warning; to others and to me.  

My feathers were ruffled because one of my people (my special possessions!) had been harmed.  But the Lord is aware of it.  And my people and special possession loved ones are also God's people and His special possession too, if they know Him.

And so are we.  
We are God's people and His special possession.  He will judge them for harming His people, His special possession, for scattering His people.... (Joel 3:2).

When we (or our loved ones) are harmed, it is only natural for us to get mad and even oooooo, SO mad sometimes.  But God unruffles our feathers with these verses.  
Judgment is His jurisdiction, and it is rooted in His love for us.  

He sees all, and nothing escapes the eye and heart of our Heavenly Father.  If something or someone or this world have gotten us SO mad...we can be calmed by the truth of God's word and the sovereignty of our Savior.  

We are His people, His special possession.

“At the time of those events,” says the Lord, “when I restore the prosperity of Judah and Jerusalem, (2) I will gather the armies of the world into the valley of Jehoshaphat.  

There I will judge them for harming my people, my special possession, for scattering my people among the nations, and for dividing up my land.  ~Joel 3:1-2


Blessings,

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