I've got lots of emotions. OK, so I am a woman--multi-dimensional, complex, and (to be honest) hormonal. All of this results in lots of emotions. And I like to feel them all, analyze them all, get to the root of them all--which truthfully makes for a cluttered mind at times. But what are we to do when our emotions do not line up with what God says is truth? They often feel so right--justified. We can defend them, explain them, and believe them. But if they oppose God's Word then they cannot be trusted.
Recently I struggled through some "unfaithful" emotions. And they affected me. They affected my mood and my perspective. I knew in my head that they were not based upon a trust in God's sovereign way--living free of fear, in love, and always forgiving--but they affected me. So what are we to do? We are to stand firm on what His Word declares as truth.
I began preaching to myself and crying out to God, "Lord you have called me to forgive. Help me. I want your love to spill out onto others. Enable me. My emotions have me cast down. Lift me." I acknowledged the emotion and questioned it's foundation. Over and over I declared truth and sought after His wisdom. By His strength I did not revel in the feelings; rather I desired for my emotions to submit to Truth. As I battled for the peace rightly due to God's child, He faithfully spoke to my spirit so clearly.
Sometimes our emotions will not line up with God's Word--but the heart is deceitful. When those days come, we must fight to put our hope in God and not in the unstable ground of feeling. Stand on truth. Keep preaching it to your spirit. Eventually the emotions will bow down.
"As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God... Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God." Psalm 42:1-2a, 11
2 comments:
These are my biggest battles of late, on several fronts. A lot of it has to do with being isolated because I'm more aware of the thoughts and tendencies. They've always been there, on some level- now they're all exposed. Thanks for the encouragement.
Fighting the good fight alongside you and lifting you up in prayer! Thanks for your ministry here. You are meeting so many women 'face-to-face' in a very personal and individual way. Press on :)
Amber
Thank you for posting this! I have been in this place as well recently, and have had to go back to the truth of the word. I may feel "love" (for instance), but if patience and kindness and all the things of 1 Corinthians 13 are being exhibited toward me, then I am in fact BEING LOVED! Trust you are doing well!!
Post a Comment