What Anger Leaves Behind

There was a little boy who had a bad temper. His father gave him a bag of nails and told him that every time he lost his temper, he must hammer a nail into the back of the fence.

 

 The first day the boy had driven 37 nails into the fence. Over the next few weeks, as he learned to control his anger, the number of nails hammered daily gradually dwindled down. He discovered it was easier to hold his temper than to drive those nails into the fence.

 Finally the day came when the boy didn't lose his temper at all. He told his father about it and the father suggested that the boy now pull out one nail for each day that he was able to hold his temper. The days passed and the young boy was finally able to tell his father that all the nails were gone.

 The father took his son by the hand and led him to the fence. He said, "You have done well, my son, but look at the holes in the fence. The fence will never be the same. When you say things in anger, they leave a scar just like this one. You can put a knife in a man and draw it out. It won't matter how many times you say I'm sorry, the wound is still there."

 The little boy then understood how powerful his words were. He looked up at his father and said "I hope you can forgive me father for the holes I put in you."

"Of course I can," said the father.

 It's not always anger, it is your actions in general. There are no "fresh starts" in life. There is no new beginning. Forgiveness comes easy for many people but the scars of the past, they never go away. Watch what you do today, because sometimes the price isn't worth the reward (or more explicitly stated: what you gain through your anger isn't worth the damage left behind).

Thoughts 

. God’s faithfulness extends to all generations.

. The keys to effective relationships are gentleness and humility.

. The Spirit develops in us the clear image of Christ.

. God is always accessible in our time of need.

. When once you have seen Jesus, you can never be the same. 

Romans 3:23-24

.. for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. 

Thoughts on This Verse....

No matter how hard we try, how good we are, and how much we work, we can never measure up to the only standard that matters — the glory of Almighty God. Thankfully, God doesn't require us to pretend to be what we are not — perfect, spotless, and holy. Instead, God makes us to be these (cf. Colossians 1:21-23) by grace, through the gift of his Son who purchased our pardon and gave us his righteousness (2 Corinthians 5:21). Praise God. Praise our Savior, Christ Jesus. Now let's live with Jesus as our Lord; not to earn or secure our salvation, but to thank him for what he has so freely given us!