Spirit of anger manifest during a bible study

Spirit of dissension during our Bible study

It was a nice sunny day when we started our family devotion. Everyone was settled as I discussed Psalm 34, which was about “pursuing peace” and “restraining the tongue.” I used my son as a good example. Delighted, he recorded what I was saying on his iPhone.

Suddenly, his sister accused him of recording it to embarrass her with his friends. Where did that come from? It was not my son’s intention. If anything, he was being silly.

Sprit of anger and hopelessness

Soon enough, my son went berzerk because he hates being accused. The two viciously fought anger with more anger. He threw the Bible; it was mayhem.

Then the “spirit of depression” came through “silent whispers,” and I found myself in despair. How could this happen (again) in the middle of a Bible study?

How could this happen?

Teens fighting over trivial things are common; their brains are still maturing. However, the fact is, we all have a sinful nature that Satan wants to trigger so we can sin. Unfortunately, both of them struggle with unrestrained tongues and bad tempers.

Being angry is not a sin, but when we act it out, it becomes one

Ephesians 4:26-27
Be angry, and yet do not sin.

1 Peter 5:8
Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

Self-control: A fruit of the Spirit

Satan is always ready to tempt us, waiting for someone to devour. Ex-Satanist John Ramirez knows it well. They also “pray” to the devil but for families to be destroyed.

My son could have resisted his bursts of anger through self-control. Likewise, my daughter would not have heard Satan’s lies if she had listened intently to the Word. The point is, we all have a blind spot – “The enemy within,” which is our sinfulness.

Satan doesn’t have anything to do with our sinful nature. After all, we were born sinners, and man is not good; only God is good! Satan will do everything to trigger our bad temper, especially if we are doing God’s work.

The only way to win this battle, whether young or old, is to have the mind of Christ by obeying Him and loving others. Thus we can bear fruit. One of these fruits is self-control.

Controlling spirit: One of my kids is short-fused that when triggered by difficult homework, bad weather, or simply bad hair, everyone has to adjust to her mood. Otherwise, she’ll shriek and holler to vent her frustration. My authority as a father was frequently and heavily challenged. It was a familiar spirit. Fasting and spiritual warfare was our breakthrough.