The Friendly Accountant

There are relatively few things the Bible associates with putting people in danger of the devil. But if the Bible says that certain things can invite the devil to mess with your life, you really ought to sit up and take notice. One of those things is letting the sun go down on your wrath. 

“Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil” (Eph. 4:26-27).

Remember that Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. He doesn’t show up dressed for Halloween. He shows up justifying your anger. The devil is the friendly accountant who doesn’t mind going over the offenses again, adding up your good deeds in one column and their thoughtless words and actions in the other. The devil is a friend with a cup of tea willing to sit up late listening to you going over what he said, what he did, asking you to repeat the particularly painful parts one more time.

Going to bed angry is like going to bed with your front door wide open like an open invitation to thieves. It’s like leaving raw meat out on the counter all night long. It’s not safe; it’s inviting trouble. Remember in the parable of the field, the enemy came while the man slept and sowed tares among the wheat. And the next morning you wouldn’t notice right away. Bitterness takes root before anything obvious has happened, like rot in the meat, like cancer in the bones. 

It’s not always possible to agree on something, and sometimes there really is something that needs addressing. But when you have done everything you can today, you need to put the matter in the Lord’s keeping. Put your grievances and hurt in the Lord’s strongbox. If you keep the matter with you, you’re inviting the devil in, but if you let the Lord keep it, the Lord will keep it and keep the devil out. 

So, is it something your dad or mom did or said? Your husband, your wife? Your boss? Did a deal go south with someone in this room, a friendship go sour? Surrender it to the Lord now. He knows exactly what happened. Let Him take it from here.

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