I’m happy to say that Florida, the state in which I live, is mostly free from smog and other industrial pollutants.  However, pixie dust has occasionally been detected in the Orlando area (due to several Disney attractions just down the road)!

The pollen count is another matter.  Because of the lush, semi-tropical foliage that Florida is famous for year round, the pollen count can become uncomfortably high.  But, then, there have to be some sacrifices for living in one of the world’s preferred destinations!

You can imagine our surprise several years ago when we woke up to a strong, acrid smell that made our eyes water.  We peered out the window to see the sun shining weakly through a yellowish haze.  The morning newspaper carried the headline, “Flames Out of Control.”  Incredibly, Florida was on fire.

We were currently experiencing a serious drought, and the parched trees and grass had somehow burst into flames.  There were literally hundreds of hot spots all over the state.  We coughed and dabbed our stinging eyes for weeks before most of the fires were out and we could breathe deeply again.

But some fires were stubborn, especially in the mucky, swampy areas.  Firefighters walking through the palmettos would kick at the blackened stubble and often discover red coals deep beneath the surface, ready to spring to life again at the first whiff of oxygen.

You and I are capable of harboring fires deep inside us that are also destructive.  I’m not talking about the feeling in our stomach when we’ve eaten pizza with chili at midnight.  I’m talking about an emotion that may be seething one minute and suddenly violent the next.  I’m talking about anger.

Fire is a good word to describe anger.  The Bible writers often used that comparison, speaking of anger as being kindled (Genesis 30:2, Numbers 22:27).  Sometimes the Bible calls anger hot displeasure(Psalm 6:1).  Anger can make us feel hot inside and out, even make us sweat.

Anger may begin small and deep inside us, like a swamp fire.  But sooner or later it will flare to the surface in a blaze.  The result can be the destruction of everything we hold dear—love, joy, health, happiness, relationships, family harmony, success, and prosperity.  I once counseled with a young man who sadly told me that he had lost his job, his marriage, and his family because of his terrible temper.

Are you fighting fires of anger in your life?  If you are, you’re not alone.  We’re in this together, because we all fight the same battles.  So let’s fight smart.  First, we must decide that we want to be cured of anger once and for all.  This means no holding back some anger for a rainy day—it must all go.

Then we must recognize that anger is not a disease, it’s a symptom.   We’re angry not because of something we have, rather because of something we don’t have--we don’t have peace.  The peace we need does not come in a bottle.  It does not come from a vacation, or from winning the lottery. 

Peace comes from the Lord, and He wants to give it to you.  He said in John 14:27, “PeaceIleavewithyou, My peaceI give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you.  Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” 

We can ask Him for peace anytime and often.  We don’t need to wait until we’re troubled or afraid or we feel the anger rising.  The peace the Lord gives us is like an ocean of water that will thoroughly put out the fire of anger.  As the words of the hymn by W. D. Cornell say:

Peace, peace, wonderful peace

Coming down from the Father above;

Sweep over my spirit forever, I pray,

In fathomless billows of love.

Why not ask God just now to fill you with His peace.  Tell the Lord all about your need.  He has the solution, and He can put out the fire—now and forever.