Daily Hope with Rick Warren

Don’t Let Your Emotions Give Satan a Foothold - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - November 23, 2020

My Crosswalk Follow devo

rick warrens daily hope new banner may 2022

Don’t Let Your Emotions Give Satan a Foothold
By Rick Warren

"Anger gives a foothold to the devil." Ephesians 4:27 (NLT)

In every quarrel, an unseen spiritual war is going on behind the scenes.

At the surface, a quarrel may seem minor. You may think you're arguing about who didn’t take out the garbage or who left their clothes on the floor. But at a deeper level, Satan is trying to create chaos, distractions, and destruction in your relationships. He is behind the scenes, taking every opportunity to produce conflict in your life.

You won’t have peace in your life if you think you’re fighting only with another person. You are fighting against spiritual forces. Satan is not seen, but he is real. He is the source behind all conflict.

Ephesians 4:27 says, "Anger gives a foothold to the devil" (NLT). Anger gives Satan something to hold on to in your life. Any time you get angry and use hurtful words, you open the door for Satan to get a foothold in your emotions and create chaos. You can’t have healthy relationships if you have uncontrolled and chaotic emotions.

When you become angry, Satan is at the ready with an arsenal of hurtful words that he plants in your mind. He stokes your pride. He makes you think you must be right or have the last word. He keeps you from seeing or caring about the hurt you’re causing.

How do you fight against that kind of power? You’ve got to resist the devil.

When you realize you’re about to get into a quarrel with someone, be aware that Satan has a plan to upset you. He wants you to be stressed, angry, and hurt. Satan will use any negative emotion in your life to destroy your peace. But you don’t have to let him do that!

"We don’t want to unwittingly give Satan an opening for yet more mischief—we’re not oblivious to his sly ways!" (2 Corinthians 2:11 The Message)

If you don't know how Satan schemes, then you will be outwitted time and time again. But now you know that—when you get angry and use hurtful words—you're giving Satan a foothold in your life and your relationships. So you’ll be able to stop the quarrel before it starts.

The next time you’re tempted to respond in anger, make the choice to speak life and love instead.

PLAY today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick

For more Daily Hope with Rick Warren, please visit pastorrick.com!


The Purpose Driven Life bookYour Gift Brings Hope to the World

Discover God’s purpose for your life—and help someone else do the same.

Pastor Rick Warren’s book The Purpose Driven Life has transformed millions of lives—and this expanded edition makes it even easier to grow spiritually.

Here’s what you’ll discover inside:

  • Video teaching from Pastor Rick at the start and end of every chapter.

  • End-of-chapter prompts to help you think more deeply about your purpose.

  • Two powerful bonus chapters addressing the biggest barriers to living a purpose driven life.

This book is an incredible resource for your own spiritual growth—and gifting it to someone is a powerful and effective way to introduce someone you love to Jesus.

So request your copy today, for yourself or someone you care about, as our thanks for your gift. And thank you for your partnership.

*The USA IRS code permits you to deduct the amount of your financial gift to Daily Hope that exceeds the fair market value of “current offer” materials you received from Daily Hope.

This devotional © 2018 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.

My Crosswalk Follow devo

SHARE