If you have read the story of Joseph, you realise he had every reason to be angry, bitter, and vindictive for the despicable way in which his brothers treated him. But what does he do? He doesn’t get enraged and he doesn’t even get even. He helps Egypt, the land that enslaved and falsely imprisoned him, to survive famine. He feeds his family when they come begging for food. He forgives, and in doing so, he is freed from his negative emotions. He resolves the issues of the past, does not allow them to deter his destiny, and stays in the favour of God. As second-in-command in Egypt, Joseph held the power of life and death over those who had hurt him. Yet he told them: ‘Ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive. Now therefore fear ye not: I will nourish you and your little ones. And he comforted them, and spake kindly unto them’ (vv. 20-21). We all have emotional reactions in our relationships; the problem isn’t the anger or the disappointment – unless you are controlled by your emotions. Whenever anger causes you to damage the things God has given you charge over, your emotions are being mismanaged. You give territory to the devil when you fail to manage your anger. ‘“Don’t sin by letting anger control you.” Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil’ (Ephesians 4:26-27 NLT). So the word for today is – learn to manage your emotions.
