²¹ You know that our ancestors were told, “Do not murder” and “A murderer must be brought to trial.” ²² But I promise you that if you are angry with someone, you will have to stand trial. If you call someone a fool, you will be taken to court. And if you say that someone is worthless, you will be in danger of the fires of hell.

²³ So if you are about to place your gift on the altar and remember that someone is angry with you, ²⁴ leave your gift there in front of the altar. Make peace with that person, then come back and offer your gift to God.

²⁵ Before you are dragged into court, make friends with the person who has accused you of doing wrong. If you don’t, you will be handed over to the judge and then to the officer who will put you in jail. ²⁶ I promise you that you will not get out until you have paid the last cent you owe.

Lord,
you know how angry I can get.
Sometimes at important things,
but often at things that don’t really matter.

But they put me out of sync
with myself,
with those I get cross at
and with you.

That is not how you want me to live,
but I get myself dragged into it,
I wind myself up
and often try to take others with me.

But now I pause,
for I am before you.
Who am I angry with?
Who have I made angry
by the things I do
so thoughtlessly?

I stay before you,
feel your searching,
your probing my thoughts,
my heart.
In honesty I confess.

Yet that is not enough,
I need to do something,
to put things right,
to make right
relationships that have gone wrong,
to confess my errors
and forgive others theirs.

Lord,
may I take this time of Lent,
seize the opportunity
to bring peace,
to my life
and to the lives of those
I frustrate,
anger
and have wronged.

Give me your strength Lord,
the strength to stand before you,
strength to live in you
and your ways.

Make Me a Channel of Peace – not anger or disharmony