A Liverpool Customs Officer's Victory Over Hasty Anger

A gentleman employed at the Liverpool Custom House, though a devoted follower of the Lord Jesus, was cursed with a hasty and violent temper that grieved him deeply. In his helplessness, he cast himself upon the Lord's hands, beseeching Adonai to deliver him from this destructive passion that marred his Christian witness.

One evening, having completed his duty locking each door in the building, he was well on his way home when a boy rushed after him with urgent news: a man lay locked inside one of the inner rooms. Anger rose immediately in his throat—the old demon stirring. But lifting his heart to God in that very moment, he turned back.

Room after room he unlocked until he found the poor fellow trembling, fully expecting the outburst of rage for which this officer was notorious. Instead, the Customs official approached with a smile, stretched out his hand, and told the man kindly not to trouble himself over the inconvenience caused.

This is the power of God's charis (grace). When we submit our worst passions to the Lord's transforming work, He enables restraint where nature demands explosion. The gentleman did not merely suppress his anger—he replaced it with genuine kindness, demonstrating that Elohim's grace operates not through human willpower alone, but through surrender and faith in His renewing power.