Visible Signs of an Angry Spirit

Good people, as you read the following list, consider your own life and discern if you often demonstrate a wrathful spirit.

1. Irritability– Anger causes a person to become irritated with situations and circumstances that would not bother him otherwise.
2. Impatience– Anger reduces tolerance for the weaknesses and limitations of others. An angry person often demands an instant response to his instructions, and he becomes upset if his instructions are not understood and applied.
3. Raised Voice– Angry impatience is usually expressed by a harsh, loud voice.
4. Glaring Eyes-Anger affects the facial features and empowers a penetrating glare, pronounced frown, furrowed brows, tense facial muscles, flushed complexion, prominent veins, and enlarged pupils.
6. Hurtful Words-An angry heart will spew out unkind words of complaint, hatred, ridicule, and rejection.
7. Explosive Actions– Anger puts extra force into simple actions like closing a door or setting something down. Haphazardly throwing things or pushing things around often indicates unresolved anger.
8. Relational Breakdown-An angry person will usually close his heart to those who offend or hurt him. This rejection is demonstrated by silence, poor eye contact, or avoidance.
9. Attitudes of Superiority– Wounded pride can stir up contentious anger that motivates a person to challenge the opinions, ideas, or instructions of others, especially of those in authority.
10. Physical Tension-Anger causes the jaw muscles to tighten, which brings great pressure on the teeth when they come together and leads to clenching or grinding one’s teeth.

Wrath and bitterness are not pleasing to God, and the presence of anger should serve as an alarm that something is wrong. Feelings of anger should lead us to respond to a situation or offense with wisdom and forgiveness, so that we do not develop an angry, vengeful spirit.

Scripture states: “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil. . . . Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.

Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamor, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: and be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you” (Ephesians 4:26–27, 30–32).

NOW YOU KNOW