Angry Words

James 1:19 - 20 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

You can take a lot of things back, but words simply aren't one of them. Words, good or bad, (and the perceived intent behind them) will always be stored in the hearers heart. You'll notice that James links hearing, speaking, and the anger of man together. I believe that is because listening will help us to understand what is truly being said, even when the words we hear don't say it all. The Scripture could be translated to say, "Be a good listener, don't say the first thing that pops in your mind, and don't use your words to punish or hurt people."

A pretty smart guy by the name of Josh Billings once said, "The best time for you to hold your tongue is when you feel like you must say something or bust." So my advice is: take a breath, swallow the words you want to say and choose to rise above the situation. I know you'll be better off in the  long run. Now, I'm not saying you can't get angry or upset with someone or about a situation, but Ephesians 4:26 says "be angry and sin not." As human beings, we're going to get angry, our goal as Christians is to take care to "sin not."