Meanwhile, one of the marks of wisdom is a growing humility that knows you are worse than you think. Whatever wrong you see in someone else, you know you can top it somewhere in your life.

The problem is that you expect everyone else to have the same abilities you do. They don’t. If you forget this, you will be angry—often.

To be patient, you must remember: your child is not you.

It is worth your meditation: the wrath of God was poured out on Jesus rather than on you.

You could not meet God’s standard and you do not have to meet it because it has already been met in Jesus. If you are with him, you enjoy his successes on your behalf. God’s standard is now this: believe in Jesus, trust him. Whose standard do you live under?

God’s response was simply, “Is it right for you to be angry?” (4:4 NIV). This is the pinnacle of understated patience. “Do you have a right to be angry?”

This human instinct to hide, point, and shoot is why Jesus taught us to stop the process and look first at our own sin (Matthew 7:3–5).

Despite intense, undeserved suffering, Jesus endured it without anger, without seeking retribution. In other words, the occasions that would normally bring out our anger are the perfect tests for our soul. They are gifts to help us follow Christ. Will we follow the Lord when life is inconvenient and we are not treated well? We see our hearts most

What do you treasure above all else? Is Jesus not enough for you (Matthew 6:19)? What or whom is your master? What you fear is what you serve (Matthew 6:24). Take a risk. Speak your reflections on these questions to God and to another person.