Howdy, and Happy New Year! Thanks for joining me on this journey through the Bible day by day. This year’s daily devotionals will be based on the Bible Project’s Biblical Storyline reading plan in the YouVersion Bible app. Read with me, and let’s seek to hear what God says to us each day. I am using the New Living Translation (NLT) of the Bible as my primary translation for our journey this year. I will compare interesting and important texts with the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), the New International Version (NIV), the New English Translation (NET), and The Message paraphrase.

Feel free to share these devotionals with family members and friends. You can do so confidently, knowing there is nothing for sale now or ever on these pages. If you have suggestions or questions, send them my way! My email is david@davidgbowman.com. There is a sign-up link on my soon-to-be-renovated website (davidgbowman.com).

Let’s engage together in the practice of hearing and obeying God, the most important lesson of Christian discipleship. May he speak his words of truth and life to our hearts every day.

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Genesis 4:6, 7  “Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” (NLT)

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It is possible to get good and angry. Most folks settle for retributive anger that makes things worse rather than providing necessary measures of justice. 

How can we process anger appropriately and helpfully to prevent it from becoming destructive? 

A prayer acrostic helps me focus on what to pray when I pray for the people in my life. The acrostic is ASPIRE. This stands for the different aspects of life, including our Assets, Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Relational, and Emotional areas. 

_Emotional Intelligence 2.0_ is one of the best books I’ve read. The Introduction alone is worth the price of the book. 

Psychology Today provides a nice summary and explanation of Emotional Intelligence, or EQ.

Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to identify and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is generally said to include a few skills: namely emotional awareness, or the ability to identify and name one’s own emotions; the ability to harness those emotions and apply them to tasks like thinking and problem solving; and the ability to manage emotions, which includes both regulating one’s own emotions when necessary and helping others to do the same.

The bottom line is that if we don’t master our emotions, they will master us. We see this has been an issue for humans since the dawn of time. God warned Cain about mastering his anger. He told him, “watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.”

Anger can be a good tool when applied appropriately to relieve injustice. Appropriate application relieves injustice without creating more injustice. Anger is helpful only when employed within limits. Under control and directed in the right manner toward the right result, anger benefits all concerned. 

Anger out of control and wielded in the wrong manner never leads to the right result for anyone involved. 

What is true about anger in today’s Bible passage is true also for other emotions. What emotional issue provides you the most trouble? How can you think about this issue from God’s perspective? How can you cooperate with God to become more emotionally intelligent and responsible? 

How can we pray well about emotional intelligence for ourselves and others? Something like this may prove fruitful: Our Father, please empower me to master my emotions. Make me ever-more emotionally intelligent. Give me the right emotional response in every circumstance. Strengthen me to master my moods rather than allowing them to master me.

Like many of God’s good gifts, emotional intelligence is a lovely box with a bow on top we can give ourselves and others. Today is a good day to take the next best step toward mastering our moods.

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I will live a life of emotional intelligence.

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Our Father, please empower me to master my emotions. Make me ever-more emotionally intelligent. Give me the right emotional response in every circumstance. Strengthen me to master my moods rather than allowing them to master me. Make my emotional intelligence a gift to everyone I meet. Amen.