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DAY 16 OF 28

When the Black Panther finally came face to face with the man who had killed his father, he wanted to take revenge. Who wouldn't? When someone hurts us or treats us unfairly, it's only natural to want to make them feel the same way. In fact, that can start to feel like the only way we'll ever be able to get over what they've done: to make them feel the same way we felt.

But in the movie Captain America: Civil War, Black Panther eventually chooses to let his hatred go. "Vengeance has consumed you," he tells his father's killer. "I am done letting it consume me."

We all get angry. A lot of times, we have a good reason to be angry. Maybe we're mad at a friend for betraying us. Maybe we're mad at a teacher for treating us unfairly. These sorts of things do happen, and it's only natural to be angry about them. The Bible warns us against letting that anger turn into hatred.

There's a difference . . . Anger is how you feel when something bad happens. Hatred is wanting something bad to happen to someone else.

When you feel your anger start to escalate, take a few minutes to slow down. Remember, whatever your own personal feelings about someone are, God loves them and wants you to love them too. Once you start hating, it's difficult to stop — but with God's help, we don't have to let it consume us.

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About this Plan

Justified

For the next four weeks, we’ll explore four passages of Scripture from both the Old and New Testaments that might challenge our view on anger. We’ll learn practical skills like when we feel angry, pause to ask God why. We’ll see how, when we’re angry, Jesus shows us how to respond. And in our anger, we'll be challenged to show grace and not get hurtful.

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