Train your Soul - Emotions

Emotions.

They let us know we are alive.

They give life meaning and value and fun, and...can be catalysts for a move of God!

Did you know, that when emotions are used in a godly way, they actually express how God feels?

God has emotions. He feels joy, sorrow, peace, anger, urgency, jealousy, compassion, delight, God laughs, etc. (I challenge you to think of scriptures that show this to be true).

Yet, emotions can cause a life of instability, can't they? The ups and downs of uncontrolled emotions lead to a major roller coaster ride.

When emotions become our master, they take over our mouths and wills. Relationships are destroyed, we slip into depression, anxiety becomes our master, commitments are broken and hurts become our story.

"Do what feels right to you."

"I don't feel like it..."

"I'm upset so I'm going to blast you."

Watch out for whoever is on the receiving end of a social media post! Yikes!

We've become addicted to emotional highs and lows, have we not? (movies, books, etc.) Emotions used badly turn us into master- manipulators; we can learn to manipulate others through self-pity, anger, lust, intimidation, etc.Like a drug, emotions can create a fantasy world that is used by the devil to wreak havoc.

However, used in a godly way, the Holy Spirit is free to work through our emotions and bring transformation!

If you’ve lived long enough, you’ve probably already figured out that not every emotion is based on reality. *pms...cough*

I remember times I’d be a puddle of tears over something and a few days later roll my eyes over my silly emotional outburst. There were times when I thought someone felt something negative about me and then realized I was being irrational and overly sensitive.

I’ve wasted way too much of my life over uncontrolled emotions and self-pity.

There have been times, in leading women, being friends with them and also raising a couple of them, that I would be shocked at the wrath of untrained, out of control emotional outbursts. Men have their issues too, but let’s be real... women can be a force to be reckoned with if they have learned certain tactics of emotional manipulation. ( NOT FUN on the receiving end!!) I remember one time, coming to the realization that if women can be that hard to lead, what must my husband think about my emotional outbursts? Poor guy. I’ve not always been an easy gal to be married to.

As we are discussing how to train our soul in the area of emotions, let’s start with how to stop emotional deception.

The first key is to DOUBT our emotions. Like I mentioned above: what we feel may not be real.

How many times did God have to tell people “do not fear”?

Why?

Because instead of believing God, they would live out the fantasy world that fear would create.

We FEEL rejection but has God rejected us? 

We FEEL like failures but has God called us failures?

We FEEL worry... what has God said about that thing we worry about?

God‘s word is reality.

Without the word of God, emotions become really bad taskmasters.

Line your feelings up with the reality of Gods word and emotions come under control.

Isn’t it interesting that there are scriptures that say things like “ make no friendship with an angry man, and with a furious man do not go, lest you learn his ways and set a snare for your soul.” Prov 22:24-25

Having had an angry father, I sure know what that feels like. It was a burden I was so happy to leave when I married my husband.

But then, I discovered that anger had followed me. After having children I learned that if I did not master anger, my children would have the same story.

Today, I can say that I have mastered anger.

The second key to training our souls in the area of emotions is this: CONTROL THEM.

Psalm 42:5 “ Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.“

King David journaled his emotional ups and downs in the book of Psalms.  When he was down cast he commanded his soul to praise; to look to God; to be encouraged.

Paul in the book of Philippians; imprisoned with a death sentence wrote in his book, “ Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” Phil 4:4.

A weapon we must learn is control.

When you change your focus, you change your feelings.

Today, practice doing this:

If you find yourself dwelling on a negative event ( reimagining an event or on negative feelings or bad memories), grab a hold of those emotions and speak to them.

Say to them “ Emotions, you come under my authority! You do NOT control me. I control you by the Word of God. I WILL rejoice! I will love that person! I reject sin and bring it under control. Fear, you are a liar!, etc.”

Try it!!

Then turn that emotion into praise.

P.S. Do not let the “buts..” of life misguide you. ( “but if you knew how bad they treated me... but my family is so difficult... but finances are so tight, but....)