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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

‘Be slow to anger’
09 OCTOBER 2020

‘A wrathful man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger allays contention.’
Proverbs 15:18 NKJV

Solomon repeatedly advises us to be ‘slow to anger’ (Proverbs 14:29; 15:18; 16:32). Take your Bible and read those Scriptures slowly, thoughtfully, and prayerfully.
Pay close attention to the occasions in Scripture when Jesus got angry (which are few), and something will immediately jump out at you.

He never became angry over what someone did to Him. He never retaliated or lashed out at people who wronged Him.

Even as His executioners nailed Him to the cross, He prayed, ‘Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do’ (Luke 23:34 KJV). Pretty amazing, isn’t it? So if you’re serious about following Jesus, you must learn to follow suit! The Bible says, ‘A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger’ (Proverbs 15:1 NKJV).

Have you ever noticed how professional firefighters almost never fight fire with fire? Most times water is a much better tool. In the same way, a soft reply to an angry comment is like pouring the cool water of calmness on the fire of a hot temper.

A Kenyon college speech research unit confirmed through a series of experiments that when people are yelled at, they almost always yell back.

The research also proved that you can control another person’s tone of voice, depending on the tone you adopt.

If you keep your voice soft, not only will you avoid becoming angry, but most likely you will prevent the other person from getting upset too.

Do you want to be more Christlike and more successful in dealing with others? Then the word for today is – ‘Be slow to anger.’

Jeremiah 9-11, 2 Thessalonians 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Use your talents
10 OCTOBER 2020

‘Do not neglect the gift you have.’
1 Timothy 4:14 RSV

Luigi Tarisio was born in Italy in 1796. A collector of violins, he took great pride in scouting out rare finds, and purchasing only instruments of the finest quality.

No one really knew about Tarisio’s passion, however, until after he died. It was while his estate was being appraised that some 246 valuable violins were discovered in his attic!

One of the most expensive, hidden in the drawer of an old dresser, was a Stradivarius he’d purchased from someone who had also bought it solely as a collector’s item.

Commenting on the matter, Dr W. Y. Fullerton, the gifted Baptist preacher, noted that in preserving the instrument Tarisio ‘had robbed the world of all that music’. And others before him had done the same.

In fact, by the time the greatest Stradivarius in his collection was finally played, 147 years had elapsed! One psychologist said, ‘Don’t die with your music still inside you…Don’t get to the end of your life and say, “What if my whole life has been wrong?”’ God gave you gifts and He expects you to use them.


If you wait until you can do it perfectly, you’ll never do it at all. Jesus said: ‘You are the world’s seasoning, to make it tolerable.

If you lose your flavour, what will happen to the world? And you yourselves will be thrown out and trampled underfoot as worthless.

You are the world’s light – a city on a hill, glowing in the night for all to see’ (Matthew 5:13-14 TLB). Understand this: God will hold you accountable for discovering your talents, developing them to the fullest, and using them to glorify Him and bless others.

Jeremiah 12-14, 2 Thessalonians 3

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY
Avoid ‘whelks’
11 OCTOBER 2020

‘Don’t befriend angry people.’
Proverbs 22:24 NLT

Ever seen an oyster shell without an oyster inside, and wondered how the oyster got out? Look for a small hole in the top of the shell made by a whelk. This little ocean creature has an appendage that works like an auger.

With it the whelk bores into the shell and sucks the oyster out through the hole, little by little, until it has devoured it. Don’t allow somebody’s angry outbursts or critical remarks to bore a hole in your good nature and rob you of your sunny disposition.

If you aren’t careful, you can become irritated to the point where anger and bitterness begin to seethe in you. And that can be dangerous to your health.

There’s a mountain of medical evidence to support the fact that certain kinds of depression are simply anger turned inward. Remember the old adage, ‘It’s not what you’re eating, but what’s eating you that’s making you ill.’ The Bible says, ‘Don’t befriend angry people or associate with hot-tempered people, or you will learn to be like them and endanger your soul [emotions]’ (vv. 24-25 NLT).

If you’re wise, you’ll try to avoid people you find continually negative or habitually angry at life, as well as those who seem to delight in needling you. In other words – avoid whelks! John Mason writes: ‘One way to be free of unwanted baggage is to take your mind off the things that seem to be against you.

Thinking about negative factors simply builds them into a power they truly don’t possess. Talking about your grievances merely adds to those grievances.

Attach yourself to God’s forgiveness, plan, and Word. Then watch yourself become loosed from former “sticky” situations.’

Luke 19:28-48, Psalms 105-106

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY
Doling out God’s grace (1)
12 OCTOBER 2020

‘You would be asking me for a drink.’
John 4:10 MSG

When the woman at the well offered Jesus a drink of water, He replied, ‘If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you…living water.’ Jesus routinely showed mercy to the people who least deserved it, and this woman was no exception.

How do you measure up when it comes to extending God’s grace to others? Are you generous, or do you take it upon yourself to dole it out sparingly? Jon Walker says: ‘Grace allows people to make choices…it’s free…flowing…unencumbered by guilt or shame.

It says, “I know all about you, and I still love you”…Most of us, if we’re honest, function as if God were stingy with His grace.

We fear His punishment…we think He is like the school head teacher walking the corridors, taking down names…but God already knows who did what and who’s to blame, and He loves us anyway. His interest is in redeeming us, not in keeping us on the hook for our sins.

Unfortunately, many of us Christians live our lives as if we’re still on the hook…therefore we have to keep everyone else on the hook.

We use weapons of the flesh – the sarcastic comment, the angry stare – to get people to straighten up and live right. By contrast, when the woman at the well went back to her village, she said, “Come see a man…who knows me inside and out” (John 4:29 MSG).

Nothing was hidden from Jesus, yet He communicated in such a fashion that she left feeling loved and accepted. That’s God’s grace!’

Jeremiah 15-17, 1 Timothy 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Doling out God’s grace (2)
13 OCTOBER 2020
‘Do not nullify…grace.’

Galatians 2:21 NASB
Chuck Swindoll says as believers we’re often intolerant ‘of those who don’t fit our mould – an attitude that reveals itself in the stoic stare or caustic comment. Such reactions will thin the church ranks faster than fire in the basement or flu in the pew.

Paul rebuked the Galatians for “deserting Christ” (see 1:6), “nullifying the grace of God” (see 2:21), and becoming “bewitched by legalism” (see 3:1)…Sure, there are limits to freedom.

Grace does not condone licence…The opposite of legalism isn’t “do as you please”. But the limitations are broader than most of us realise. I can’t believe, for example, the only music God smiles on is highbrow or hymns…Nor do I believe the necessary garment for entering the Veil is a suit and tie…Let’s remember who gets wrought up over outward appearances. It’s not God! He “looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 16:7 NASB)…Jesus reserved His strongest and longest sermon…for…legalists – present-day Pharisees.


When it came to self-righteous showing off, Jesus pulled no punches. He found it was the only way to deal with those who hung around places of worship distaining and despising others.


No less than seven times He pronounced “Woe to you”, because that’s the only language a Pharisee understands…Two final comments: 1) If you tend towards Phariseeism in any form, stop it! If you’re the type who bullies and looks down on others…you’re a twentieth-century Pharisee. 2) When modern-day Pharisees try to control your life, stop them.

Remind those religious phonies that the splinter in your eye is between you and God, and they should pay attention to the tree trunk in their own eye.’

Jeremiah 18-19, 1 Timothy 2

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Stay calm!
14 OCTOBER 2020

‘Keep your head in all situations.’
2 Timothy 4:5 NIV

A woman was sitting in her lounge when a small black snake suddenly appeared, slithered across the floor, and made its way under the sofa. Being deathly afraid of snakes, she ran to the bathroom to get her husband, who was taking a shower.

He came running from the shower with just a towel around his waist, grabbed an old broom handle from the cupboard, and began poking under the sofa. At this point the family dog awakened.

Curious to see what was happening, the dog came up behind the husband and touched his cold nose to the back of the man’s heel. The man, thinking the snake had bitten him on the heel, fainted.

The wife concluded that her husband had collapsed with a heart attack, so she ran from the house to a hospital just a street away. The ambulance drivers promptly came to her house and placed him on a stretcher. But as they were carrying him out, the snake reappeared from underneath the sofa.


One of the drivers got so frightened that he dropped his end of the stretcher and broke the man’s leg. Seeing her husband’s twisted leg, the wife collapsed on the spot. Meanwhile, the snake slithered quietly away! An old African proverb says, ‘There are forty kinds of lunacy, but only one kind of common sense.’ Acting impulsively usually means things will get worse before they get better.

So before you panic, calm yourself and ask God for wisdom and help, even in the simplest things.

Jeremiah 20-21, 1 Timothy 3


TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Try bird watching!
15 OCTOBER 2020

‘Look at the birds.’
Matthew 6:26 NLT

You may not like the political party that’s in power, but you’re much better off than the Jewish people Jesus was speaking to here. Their country was occupied by the Romans, and they paid extortionate taxes to keep them in power.

They lived as slaves so they worried a lot. Then Jesus came along and said: ‘Look at the birds. They don’t plant…harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them.

And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? Can all your worries add a single moment to your life?’ (vv. 26-27 NLT). In other words, if you worry a lot – try bird watching!

Birds don’t know where their next meal is coming from, yet you never see one sitting on a branch having an anxiety attack. So here’s the question: ‘Aren’t you far more valuable to God than they are?’ A man who was out of work, despondent, and worried about feeding his family noticed some birds eating strawberry shortcake from a bin.

All at once it dawned on him – ‘If God can feed the birds strawberry shortcake, surely He can take care of me too!’ Even if you suffer from a poor self-image and think you’re not worth taking care of, aren’t you still more valuable than a bird?

So look at how well your heavenly Father takes care of them, and remind yourself that He will take care of you too. If anxiety is robbing you of happiness during the day and sleep at night, make up your mind to live by this Scripture: ‘Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about you’ (1 Peter 5:7 NLT).

Jeremiah 22-23, 1 Timothy 4


TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Stop ‘awfulising’!
16 OCTOBER 2020

‘Do not worry.’
Matthew 6:31 NIV

No matter what happens in life, try to keep things in perspective. When you don’t, you end up viewing minor problems as major ones. Or you do the opposite, treating significant situations as ‘no big deal’. Either tendency – ‘awfulising’ or ‘minimising’ – leads to problems.

So do your best to see things as they really are and don’t let them get blown out of proportion. Develop the habit of looking at the big picture, instead of dwelling on the one issue that’s upsetting you.

Thinking excessively about your problems makes them appear larger than they really are. When you run up against a situation that upsets you, deal with the panic before you try to deal with the problem.

Sit down quietly, calm yourself, and take time to purposely recall the good things you enjoy also. The truth is, worry never goes away.

When you resolve one issue, another one is waiting to take its place. It’s a fact of life; you can’t change it. So what should you do? Change your perspective! Instead of focusing on your worries, factor God into the equation.

Has He ever failed you? No, and He never will! The grace of God that sustained and brought you through the last worrisome situation will be with you in this one – and the next one! Notice what Jesus said about the things we worry over most: ‘Do not worry, saying, “What shall we eat?” or “What shall we drink?” or “What shall we wear?”…For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you’ (vv. 31-33 NKJV).

Jeremiah 24-26, 1 Timothy 5

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Laugh more!
17 OCTOBER 2020
‘We were filled with laughter, and…sang for joy.’
Psalm 126:2 NLT

God created every human emotion you feel. He designed you to cry when you are sad and laugh when you are happy: ‘For everything there is a season…A time to cry and a time to laugh’ (Ecclesiastes 3:1, 4 NLT). Jesus said, ‘These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full’ (John 15:11 KJV).

Question: how often do you laugh? Doctors say laughter has incredible healing effects on your body. It also has incredible healing effects on your mind and soul.

Stop and think about the days you laughed, even though you really didn’t have anything to laugh about. You were far from God and bound by sinful habits, but He set you free, didn’t He? In the Old Testament we read: ‘When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream! We were filled with laughter…sang for joy…And the other nations said, “What amazing things the Lord has done for them.” Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us! What joy!’ (Psalm 126:1-3 NLT).

If God has set you free, then you truly have something to laugh about. Stop being so ‘heavy’ about everything! Expecting perfection from yourself; your slow growth in God; your deficient prayer life; your failure to memorise more Scripture verses; your fear of sharing your faith with others, etc.

We carry around such heavy burdens. If you’re ‘laughter impaired’ you may have to work at it. It’s easy to find plenty to worry about, but to be happy, you sometimes need to work at it a little. So the word for today is – laugh more!

Jeremiah 27-29, 1 Timothy 6

TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Learn to think ‘right’
18 OCTOBER 2020

‘The thoughts of the righteous are right.’
Proverbs 12:5 NKJV

Your mind can work for you or against you. When it works for you, it helps you to stay positive, reach your goals, and enjoy each day.

But when it works against you, it can make you negative and discouraged, hold you back, and cause you to think thoughts that result in self-sabotage. So teach your mind to work for you instead of against you.

An important way to do this is to make an intentional decision that you’ll begin to think positively – in terms of faith and not fear. Now, your brain won’t be able to fulfil this new role overnight. You may be asking it to undergo a radical transformation, and that takes time.

But determine that with your diligence and God’s help, instead of working against you, your brain will go to work for you and become a positive force in your life. Dr Caroline Leaf, a cognitive neuroscientist, points out that the brain takes eighteen years to grow, and a lifetime to mature.

Don’t miss this point! While every organ in your body was fully formed when you were born and got bigger as your body grew, your brain actually takes a full twenty-five years to grow.

And once it’s fully formed, it continues to mature until the day you die. That means no matter how old you are, your brain is still growing. This is great news, because it means you don’t have to stay stuck in old or wrong thought patterns.

Your brain is still maturing, which means you can still improve in your thinking. As the Bible says, ‘The thoughts of the righteous are right.’

Luke 20:1-26, Psalms 107-109


TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Always carry a book with you
19 OCTOBER 2020

‘Give attention to reading.’
1 Timothy 4:13 NKJV

What you read and study is what you become. When you carry the right books with you, you maintain a continuous flow of truth and information into your heart and mind. 1) Reading discourages unproductive conversation. You should always be ready to share your faith and minister to the needs of others.

But have you ever sat beside someone who couldn’t stop talking? Many times people who love to talk don’t require anything significant to energise them.

They talk just to avoid silence; when you keep a book handy, it solves that problem. 2) Keep a list of books you want to read each month. This prevents unwise selections in moments of boredom, temptation, or fatigue.

At the beginning of each year, select fifty-two books you’d like to read by the end of the year – one per week. Reading twenty pages a day will take you through a 140-page book every week. 3) Carry books when you travel. When you’re away from the busyness of your daily schedule, you can withdraw into your own private world: you can dream, focus, and plan. In mentoring Timothy, Paul wrote: ‘Give attention to reading…Do not neglect the gift that is in you…Meditate on these things; give yourself entirely to them, that your progress may be evident to all’ (vv. 13-15 NKJV).

The first book you should read is your Bible – and it’s also the one you should read most. But read other books too, because God is the source of all true wisdom and knowledge.

To quote Solomon: ‘Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom. And in all your getting, get understanding’ (Proverbs 4:7 NKJV).

Jeremiah 30-31, 2 Timothy 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY
Love what you do
20 OCTOBER 2020

‘Do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men.’
Colossians 3:23 NASB
You will know that your job is your ‘calling’ when you do what you love, and love what you do. Philanthropist and industrialist Andrew Carnegie said: ‘The average person puts only 25 per cent of their energy and ability into their work.

The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50 per cent, and stands on its head for those few and far-between souls who devote 100 per cent.’ Thomas Edison loved work. In his latter years he established Menlo Park, the world’s first factory for making nothing but inventions.

It was a forerunner to the private research laboratories now maintained by so many large companies. At Menlo Park Edison promised to turn out ‘a minor invention every ten days, and a big thing every six months or so’. At one point he was working on forty-seven things at once.


Other inventors may have been richer, but no inventor has ever been more enthusiastic or successful. When you believe that what you do makes a difference, you have a different feeling about what you do.

When you believe your job has worth in God’s eyes, you’re no longer vulnerable to the critics or dependent upon the cheerleaders.


Paul said, ‘I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me’ (Acts 20:24 NIV). One of the last prayers Jesus prayed was, ‘I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do’ (John 17:4 NIV). If you are serious about pleasing God, make that your prayer too.

Jeremiah 32-33, 2 Timothy 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Be careful who you listen to
21 OCTOBER 2020

‘The LORD gives wisdom.’
Proverbs 2:6 NKJV
What are the people in your life telling you? Are they increasing your self-doubt or strengthening your faith? Just because people tell you something doesn’t make it so. In 1492 the people surrounding Columbus thought the earth was flat. The ‘experts’ examined his travel plans and said his idea was impossible.

But Columbus didn’t fall off the end of the earth as they predicted – instead, he discovered America! Along the same lines, Thomas Edison tried to persuade Henry Ford to abandon his fledgling idea of a motor car because he was convinced it would never work.

He told Ford, ‘Come work for me and do something worthwhile.’ Although Edison was a great inventor, it sounds like he was only positive about what he could do and rather pessimistic about what others could do.

So the next time you get in your car to go somewhere, be glad Ford didn’t share Edison’s negative outlook about cars. Don’t let someone else’s limited thinking limit you.

Negativity is contagious; you have to pay attention if you don’t want to catch it! Even if you’re the only positive person in your family, be the one with an optimistic outlook in every situation.


What we call ‘common knowledge’ often is commonly wrong! ‘The Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding.’ Have the people who are telling you ‘it can’t be done’ factored God into the equation? If not, pay no attention.

Instead of listening to people who increase your doubts, listen to the people to whom God has given wisdom, knowledge, and understanding.

Jeremiah 34-36, 2 Timothy 3

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY
Leave the judging to the judge (1)
22 OCTOBER 2020

‘Judge nothing before the appointed time.’
1 Corinthians 4:5 NIV

Judging others is like breathing – it comes naturally. And sometimes the worst critics are Christians who use Scripture as their weapon of choice. So if you’re the one being judged, try to remember these four things: 1) Show humility.

If you’re guilty, admit it to God, yourself, and the appropriate others. Confession brings honesty and spiritual growth (see 1 John 1:9). 2) Know your Bible. Satan took Scriptures out of context to try to trap Jesus, but Jesus knew the context so He didn’t fall for it (see Luke 4:1-13).


When the Bible is taken out of context, remember God isn’t aiming at you. And when you’re rightly judged by God’s Word, don’t despair; it doesn’t mean He’s mad at you.

He loves you – just as you love your children even when they disobey, and use their actions as ‘teaching moments’ to develop them. ‘The Lord disciplines the one he loves, and…chastens everyone he accepts as his son’ (Hebrews 12:6 NIV). 3) Don’t be goaded into trying to defend yourself.


Judgmental people aren’t interested in facts – they just want to feel good by making you feel bad. Pick your battles wisely, and don’t waste time on the unimportant. Here’s how Paul responded to his critics: ‘I care very little if I am judged by you or…any human court’ (1 Corinthians 4:3 NIV). 4) Don’t volunteer for the jury. If God doesn’t find you guilty, don’t judge yourself.

Follow Paul’s example: ‘Indeed, I do not even judge myself’ (v. 3 NIV). If you’re wrong, confess it, and by God’s grace correct it. Then make up your mind to live your life free from condemnation.

Jeremiah 37-39, 2 Timothy 4

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Leave the judging to the judge (2)
23 OCTOBER 2020
‘In the same way you judge others, you will be judged.’
Matthew 7:2 NIV

If you’re the one doing the judging, remember this timeless principle: what goes around comes around. Jesus said, ‘Do not judge…For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you’ (vv. 1-2 NIV).


It’s called the law of reciprocity, and it guarantees you will get back what you give. It’s not a threat; it’s an immutable law, just like the law of gravity. You say, ‘I’m honest; I just tell it like it is.

Besides, that person’s sin needs to be exposed!’ It’s not about your honesty or their sin, it’s about God’s Word that forbids judging. You may be right and they may be wrong, but judging puts you in violation of Scripture. Plus it sets you up to be judged.


Question: what if the other person has already repented, confessed their sin, and received God’s forgiveness? Think about it: the worst kind of judging is judging sins God has already forgiven and forgotten (see Isaiah 43:25). When we judge others, we’re looking in the wrong direction.


We’re avoiding what we don’t want to see – our own shortcomings. Jesus said, ‘Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?’ (Matthew 7:3 NIV). Whatever their ‘speck’ is, it’s God’s business – not yours. Your ‘plank’ is your business! Jesus also said, ‘They are blessed who show mercy to others, for God will show mercy to them’ (Matthew 5:7 NCV).

Instead of judging others, start investing in your own ‘mercy account’. You’ll need it soon enough.

Jeremiah 40-42, Titus 1

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Learning from Moses (1)
24 OCTOBER 2020

‘Moses…refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.’
Hebrews 11:24 NIV

The life of Moses reveals four issues you must come to grips with in order to succeed in life. First: you must know who you are. ‘Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter.’ Moses was born a Hebrew, but he was raised as an Egyptian by Pharaoh’s daughter.

Even though he was being groomed to be second-in-command in Pharaoh’s kingdom, Moses knew God had called him to free his people and lead them out of Egypt.


So, he had to make a choice: ‘What am I going to do with my life? I’m not who these people think I am.’ Moses had every comfort he could wish for in the palace, and he could have stayed there.

What would you have done? Moses made the right decision, but it meant spending the next eighty years of his life in the desert.

Every one of us must come to grips with our identity. We all have a deep need and desire to accept who we are. Trying to be who we’re not is a quick way to get an ulcer, because it puts us under so much pressure.

Moses recognised this tension, and decided to stop pretending. It’s liberating when we stop trying to be somebody we’re not, and accept God’s plan for our life. How would we remember Moses today if he had stayed in Pharaoh’s court? Maybe as an Egyptian mummy in some museum – or maybe not at all. But he made the hard decision, and in the light of eternity it was the best one. Learn from him!

Jeremiah 43-45, Titus 2

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TODAY'S WORD FOR TODAY

Learning from Moses (2)
25 OCTOBER 2020
‘He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God.’
Hebrews 11:25 NIV

Second: you must take responsibility for your life. ‘Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin’ (vv. 24-25 NIV). First,

Moses refused to be anyone but himself. Next, he chose to go God’s way. The principle here is that you can always replace a negative with a positive. You don’t just stop doing something – you start doing something else.


The Christian life isn’t a matter of negative rules and regulations. It’s a matter of relationships – with God, with other people, and with yourself. Notice, Moses made his decision ‘when he had grown up’. It’s a mark of maturity when you can settle the issue of personal responsibility.


When Moses was a baby, it was okay to postpone the decision about who he was. But when he became an adult he had to make a choice, assume responsibility for his own life, and move ahead.

It’s always easy to blame others: ‘I’d go God’s way if my boyfriend or girlfriend, mother or father, husband or wife, would do it too.’ Or, ‘I’d be a better person today if I had better parents.’ You can’t choose all the circumstances that come into your life, but you can choose whether those things will make you a bitter person or a better person.
Ultimately no one can ruin your life except you! The devil can’t, because he doesn’t have enough power – and God won’t, because He loves you. So choose to go God’s way!

Luke 20:27-47, Psalms 110-112