A productive and effective year begins with controlling your emotions. Choose your emotional responses. Master your moods. God has been telling us this since the beginning of time, literally. 

A simple summary of the verses above tells us to 

• Do the right thing.
• Master your moods. 

Simple is not the same as easy. 

Life goes so much better when we always lead by doing the right thing, no matter how repetitive and monotonous it feels. Do the right thing even when it’s hard, especially when it’s hard. Live the kind of life God can bless. 

Life goes so much better when we are in control of our emotions rather than allowing them to control us. Choosing our emotional responses empowers us to speak softly and directly during challenging moments. It is the person who keeps his or her head when everyone else is losing their minds who truly leads and most often wins. 

You and I can win over sin. Avoid anger. Choose self-discipline. 

God gives us a refresher course on anger throughout the pages of the Bible. Psalm 2 asks a profound and always timely question: “Why are the nations so angry?” It then talks about how anger leads to preparation for war. The battle is with anger, not with God, and not with each other. A peaceful life is a life where we choose a disciplined approach to every stimulus.

What other Bible stories and verses come to your mind about anger and its consequences?

Ease into this day and this year knowing you can choose your emotions and your responses in each and every circumstance. You can with the moments, the days, and the year with a disciplined approach to your moods. 

You can be assured you will lose if you do not.

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I will master my emotions.

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Our Father, thank you for warning us about mastering our emotions. Thank you for empowering us to do so. Thank you for your instructions to flee from temptation and to only use anger to drive us toward righteous outcomes that bless everyone concerned. Redirect our reflexes. Shape our responses. Bless us with peace and productivity. Amen.