–1 Peter 4:10

What’s your gift? Everybody has gifts ready to share and give. All you need is earnest desire to really give, offer, and share not only during times where you feel you have to give. It’s time to seek every opportunity to give, share, and offer whatever you have. Remember, it’s no accident that you are residing in your town, living on the street you live, and with the neighbors you see everyday. Even your circle of friends is not just coincidence, especially your family. God has placed you together on earth at this time and in this place.

So what’s your gift? Before you give me a shrug of the shoulder, let me share with you two stories I’ve found that keep on encouraging me these days.  First, let me share with you about two little boy’s close encounter with then US President Wilson’s wife. On a tour of the United States by train, President Wilson one day stopped at Billings, Montana to make a short speech from the observation platform of the car. Beside him stood Mrs. Wilson and some of the most important men of the nation at that time. Somehow two little boys wriggled through the police lines and came out on the track to stand immediately behind the coach. They looked up into the face of the president, and one of them extended a small American flag he had been waving. Mrs. Wilson reached down and took the flag from the child’s hand, thanking him warmly for the gift. The other little boy stood there dismayed. He had no flag to give. Then suddenly he began to struggle with something in the pocket of his trousers. At last he found it and held it up. It was a dime. Straining upward, he offered the coin to the President of the United States. Mr. Wilson leaned down and accepted the dime. Then kindly he expressed his thanks. But the story does not end there. Five years later President Wilson died, and as Mrs. Wilson was going through his effects, she opened his billfold. There, in a separate compartment and carefully wrapped in a piece of paper, was the little boy’s dime. For five years that dime had been with the President every single day. It had gone where he had gone. He had treasured it enough to keep it on his personal billfold for the rest of his life. Somehow this suggests the attitude of God. How rich God is! Yet when his children offer him their gifts, He accepts them, treasures them, and remembers and blesses them.

Here’s another story about a six-year-old little girl. Her daddy serves as a pastor. Daddy was busy studying at the dining room table for a sermon the next morning on the fourth chapter of 1Peter. He looked up to see Bethany watching him with a smile.

“What are you doing, Daddy?”

“I’m studying for tomorrow’s sermon.”

“Well, when you get done, I’ll give you a big hug.”

With that, Bethany wrapped her arms around her father and squeezed the biggest hug she could muster. “Why did you do that? Her daddy responded, “I’m not finished yet.” “I know,” said Bethany, “I just wanted you to know what it would feel like when you do get done.”

What a wonderful picture this little girl provided for her father’s sermon the next day. “Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others.” The pastor was employing his gift when he sat down to study and stood up to preach. We also see the employment of yet another gift when Bethany put her arms to work and exhorted her father with comfort and the promise of reward.

We only have one life to live here on earth and our time here is so short, but there are too many people who need a touch from the Lord through our genuine concern for them. Start loving your neighbor today. Your nearest neighbor is your family and people in your workplace. Give them your 100% love and support. Employ whatever gifts you may have to bless them and also bless other people around you.

Our chances to put our gifts to work are fleeing fast. The question of the day is not how to find your gift. It’s where and when you use it. It’s also good that we always look for opportunities where we could use our gifts and bless others. Only in that way will we be “faithfully ministering God’s grace.”

True, God appreciates our gifts of serving others especially those who are close to His heart. “He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing” (Deuteronomy 10:18). But first, He wants you to accept the gift He is offering you. The gift that doesn’t only last a lifetime, it’s the gift of salvation – eternal life for those who believe.

What is anger? Ephesians 4:26 shows us that it is possible to “be angry, yet do not sin.” It is evident from this passage that there are two kinds of anger. The first is righteous anger which does not lead to sin. Righteous anger is being angry and unhappy when sin is present. In the Old Testament, God was often angry at the Israelites because they kept committing sin. We should feel the same righteous anger about our sins. In 1Samuel 17:43-47, David was angry at Goliath for defying and mocking God. Righteous anger is anger that leads us to hate sin and do something about it.  The second kind of anger is the anger of man which leads us to sin. As James, 1:20 says, “The anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” This kind of anger leads us to hurt other people, often the people we love. To prevent ourselves from hurting others in our anger, Ephesians 4:26 tells us, “Do not let the sun go down on your anger.” When we are angry at someone, we should tell him: “You know I love you,” “You are not the enemy,” “Let’s settle this” and “Let’s agree to disagree”. With these words, we can control our temper and avoid the destruction of relationships that surely results from our anger.

How do we overcome anger? As Christians, we are to be radically different – we are to overcome anger. It is impossible to do this on our own, without God’s grace. The book of Ephesians shows us three God-given ways to do it:

1. Guard Your Tongue. When we are angry, we must not speak. Ephesians 4:29 commands, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification…” We must stop saying unpleasant words and start speaking only words that build up people.  We must process every situation that induces our anger. We should not judge other people’s motives nor jump into conclusions but choose to believe the best about everyone. We need to guard our hearts from anger because whatever is in our hearts comes out through our words. For every word we speak, we will be accountable on Judgment Day (Matthew 12:34).
2. Grieve Not the Holy Spirit. When we received Jesus, God gave us the Holy Spirit to empower us to do what is right. As true Christians, we cannot stay angry and stay in sin because the Holy Spirit is in our hearts (Romans 8:9). Ephesians 4:30 tells us, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit…” When we get angry and allow sin in our lives, we grieve the Holy Spirit. To overcome anger, we must listen to the Holy Spirit and surrender every bitterness, wrath, clamor, slander and malice (Ephesians 4:31) to our big God who causes everything to work together for good.
3. Give Grace. Forgive. To overcome anger, Ephesians 4:32 tells us to “be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.” When we forgive, we give grace to somebody who does not deserve it. How and why do we forgive? Let us look at our sins and realize that God has forgiven us all. Jesus taught us to forgive other people “seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:22). The mark of a true Christian is forgiveness. We must forgive as God has forgiven us. Do not forget that we were once a sinner, and even now, we still hurt and disappoint our Lord Jesus. Suppose right now, your eyes met the Lord’s. What would you see? Compassion and tenderness, yes. But suppose if, in a thoughtless moment of self-centered sin, you slapped the Lord? In that instant, what would you read in His eyes? This once actually happened. Peter angrily denied Jesus. At that instant, Scripture says the Lord looked straight at Peter. It’s impossible to say what was in the Lord’s eyes. I choose to believe that He gave a look of hurt and disappointment, a sad yet tender expression in His eyes.  Jesus always loves. That’s why it’s safe to say that the Lord was probably more concerned for Peter’s pain and anguish than He was for His own plight. Like Peter, who wept bitterly, that fact alone should make us grieve all the more over our sins and offenses.

Now that you know and understand the three God-given ways to overcome anger, apply these steps and be victorious over anger.