Proverbs 25:28Like a city that is broken down and without a wall, so is a person who cannot control his temper.Proverbs Daily is a reader and listener supported program. Every post is free, but if you’d like to help spread the message and make the sacred positively contagious consider being a free or paid subscriber. Just look for the word upgrade or subscribe and click on that. Thanks in advance!Temper. Temper. You ever have someone say that to you when you’ve lost your junk? Or have you ever thought to yourself, man my ‘temper’ is faulty…I need to handle pressure better.Well, the word temper comes from the Latin temperare—which means to mix, to moderate, or to restrain. And over time, it evolved into the idea of tempering metal: heating, striking, testing, cooling…then heating, and striking, and testing, and cooling—over and over—until the metal gains strength and resilience.Think about that, going through something–over and over–until you gain strength and resilience. Could that be what you’re going through right now?Temper, in its root meaning, is about refinement through fire. Metal is strongest not when it is untouched, but when it has been stressed to its breaking point and then reforged.Now think about that: How many of us want to be left alone, unchallenged, untriggered, “Don’t push me cause I’m close to the edge!” Right…But building “temperance” means letting ourselves be tested, heated, struck, cooled…tested, heated, struck, cooled—over and over, until we gain strength and resilience.I know this because I’ve been there—heck, I live there. Times I’ve lost my temper felt like watching myself unravel, like I couldn’t stop the moment from unfolding, like a movie I couldn’t pause, shards of myself breaking all around me. One moment I'll never forget, it was Easter Sunday morning. The kids were still little and we were all running late and trying to get ready for church and you know, do our Easter Sunday best.I was low key upset cause’ we we’re running late but I was still holding it together, trying to keep it all under control. We finally get in the car, drive about half a mile, and someone says, “Oh, I forgot something—we need to turn around.” And boom, I lost it. I'm talking. Hulk smash me in the steering wheel, poor steering wheel.I'm yelling at the top of my voice, beating the steering wheel about how tired I am of being late and how we're all supposed to be leaders and, and how it's Easter and, and, and what's expecting of us. And, I stop and look around and see my family staring at me like, who is this person?I felt small, embarrassed, ashamed. I Lost my temper. Trying to show perfection, I exposed my real brokenness: which is my obsession with performance.Man, you talking about having to pick up the pieces, acknowledge the cracks in my wall, apologize–and still walk inside that church that morning knowing that my family saw and knew the real side of me that was unrefined— But that's the tempering process that's helped me go back into the fire to rebuild Restrengthen and patch these old walls. So the next time I'd be stronger and more resilient. This is what Proverbs is really saying, that self-control isn't natural. It is a process. It's fire–hammer–fire–hammer. Growth is acknowledging where your walls are weak and patching them, reinforcing your temper with reflection and practice. So when the next assault comes, you don't crumble–you withstand. When self-control is absent, insults, provocations, temptations, anything can snatch your balance away and leave you exposed. Proverbs 25 : 28 says it plain without a wall, a city falls. Without temper, so do we. So patch the wall, temper your reactions. When the next assault comes, you don't crumble.🙏🏽 PrayerGod temper my heart, temper my walls, steady my reactions.💡 Today’s Challenge:Spend 5 minutes actively listening—to a person, a podcast, or even your own thoughts. Don’t just hear, lean in. Take one insight and apply it in the next hour. Train your ears, and your heart will follow.About the AuthorFred Lynch is a creative communicator, author, and Christian Hip Hop pioneer. To learn more about Fred and what he’s up to now…click here or you can find him in all the socials by searching the handle: heyfredlynch📱Experience Proverbs Daily by Subscribing!Ready to receive daily wisdom directly on your phone?Go to proverbsdaily.org for the app or just click that Subscribe button right now!Be Wise and Be Well...peace.Thanks for reading Proverbs Daily! This post is public so feel free to share it.
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