February 25: Choosing Love Over Anger

Choosing Love Over Anger

Scripture: “Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:” James 1:19 KJV

If we are honest as women, if we were to place hearing, speaking, and wrath in order, it might not look like this Scripture.

Sometimes speaking comes first.

Sharon Campbell-Danvers

Sometimes wrath comes first.
And often… hearing comes last.

We react before we reflect. We respond before we understand. We speak before we truly listen.

James gives us a divine order:
Swift to hear.
Slow to speak.
Slow to wrath.

Notice the positioning. Hearing is first. Wrath is last.

But many times, we reverse it.

I have had moments where I became upset and addressed the matter immediately, without first listening to understand. Not listening to learn. Not listening to gain context. Listening only long enough to defend my position.

And after the full story unfolded, after clarity came, I have felt that sinking feeling.

I wish I had listened more. Spoken less. Paused longer.

Those moments make you want to disappear.

But here is the grace.

Conviction is not condemnation. It is correction.

Jesus does not expose our impulsive reactions to shame us. He reveals them to refine us.

He wants our emotions in perspective.
Anger itself is not the enemy. Scripture never says never feel anger. It says be slow to wrath.

Slow means measured.  Intentional. Submitted to the Spirit.

Choosing love over anger does not mean suppressing your feelings. It means processing them before projecting them.

It means asking:

• Have I heard fully?
• Have I understood clearly?
• Am I responding in love or reacting in pride?

Maturity is not the absence of emotion. It is the discipline of restraint.

And the beautiful truth is this:
Every time we pause before reacting, we grow.

Prayer

Father, teach us to be swift to hear and slow to speak. Help us to pause before reacting and to listen with understanding. Guard our emotions from leading us where Your wisdom would not. Refine our responses and mature our hearts. May our love be stronger than our anger and our patience louder than our pride. In Jesus’ name, Amen.