During the Bible study at church this morning, one of the things we talked about is the role of emotions in people who are called by God. The subject of emotions is something that has been on my mind for quite a while.
I've done a sermon series of sorts on the subject, mainly focusing on negative ones (anxiety, fear, and anger). I focused on these not because I like being negative, but because the negative ones are the cause of a lot of confusion, esp. in Christian circles. I think that many of us have the convoluted idea that it is bad for a Christian to have strong emotions; that somehow we are to rise above them to the point where we are unaffected. Sadly, such concepts are not found in the Scriptures.
The Bible is full of emotional people, and often God does not chastise them for being that way. A prime example of this is Elijah. During the whole Mount Carmel experience, he was riding pretty high. Shortly afterward, he was pretty low, but did God tell him to get a hold of himself because he had things to do? No, He let him sleep, gave him some food, and let him sleep some more, so that his emotions could recover. Emotions, in and of themselves, are not a bad thing. They are not some sort of design flaw; a glitch in the system. God gave us emotions because He Himself is emotional.
There are many examples of God expressing emotions, even supposedly negative ones. In the Ten Commandments God depicts Himself as "a jealous God", and there are other accounts of Him being angry, sad, vengeful, etc. Many people think that such things are confined to the Old Testament portion of the Bible, that when you get to the New Testament it's all "Gentle Jesus, Meek and Mild". However, a further reading shows that this is far from the truth.
In the New Testament you read about Jesus overturning tables, brandishing a whip, confronting hypocritical leaders, and casting out demons. (I have an active imagination, but even I have difficulty picturing Jesus doing such things with an even tone, and an expressionless face.) You even have Jesus expressing such things as loneliness in the Garden of Gethsemane. Someone once told me that I shouldn't be lonely because I have God with me, but then how does one explain why Jesus wished His disciples would have prayed with Him even for a little while. He had His Father, but He still wanted His friends there as well.
So now you may be thinking, "O.K. I get it. Emotions are not bad, but how do I deal with all these conflicting feelings that I have?"
1. Acknowledge your feelings: Don't think as though you can just dismiss them as though they do not exist. You are just fooling yourself if you think that'll work. It just causes more problems.
2. Try and think as to why you feel this way: This is not always easy because there is often a lot of overlap (your emotions from one thing go into another unrelated thing), but with some practice you can do it. For example, yesterday I was frustrated with myself because I forgot to do something. Then someone asked me to do something small, and I felt angry at them. I wasn't angry with them, I was still feeling the emotions from the previous incident.
3. Be in control: This overlaps a bit with the previous two. Remember that you don't have to do what your emotions tell you to do. Their advice is not always correct.
4. Be under His control: The most important rule. Many times we get emotional when our selfish desires are thwarted. The only way to overcome this is through the power of God. God will help you if you simply let Him.
All this may be an oversimplification of the matter, but it helps me get a handle on this topic. Don't think this is the final word on the matter. Feel free to share where you agree and/or disagree, and what can be changed. Don't worry, you won't hurt my feelings.
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