MORE THAN A FEELING
Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.
Psalms 42:5 (NIV)
Sometimes we can mistake strong emotions toward Jesus for the truest measure of spiritual maturity. One of the major pitfalls for followers of Jesus is putting too much stock in our feelings. Feelings can serve you, but they can also mislead you. Why is it that one morning you wake up and feel great, and the next morning, for no reason, you feel overwhelmed or discouraged? The culprit? Often, it can be your feelings. One of the keys to spiritual growth is not to let your feelings have the final word, but to remind yourself about God's truth. Start preaching to yourself.
The Psalmist above has feelings that begin to speak to him. He doesn't suppress them. He acknowledges them. Suppression causes us to deal with things sideways. This is where we end up trying to numb or escape our pain, and it doesn't work. We must face our feelings head-on; however, the Psalmist shows us that once our feelings speak, we speak back. Notice the Psalmist tells his feelings something like, I know I'm feeling this, soul, but I'm going to put my hope in God. I'm going to praise Him even if it doesn't make sense.
I've learned that in life, we must preach the best message we have to ourselves. We should be honest about what we feel. We should even share what we're feeling with others, but we need to preach to ourselves the promises of God.
I remember a leader telling me, In life, the hardest person to lead will be yourself. I think he was right. There are times when you don't feel like being a friend, going to work, or being a parent, but commitment compels you to do these things. Feelings flee, and someday you'll feel like following Jesus, and other days you won't. Don't read into those feelings; commit to following Him. Jesus faced the cross with deep anguish. In fact, He says, "Father, if there is any other way..." But feelings didn't lead His life. His commitment to honor God did. Feelings are good. Faithfulness is better.
APPLICATION: Today, don't listen to yourself; instead, preach to yourself the promises of God.
PRAYER: Spirit of God, awaken my heart to the depth of Your love for me. Let that love overflow in faith, obedience and joy as I commit again to follow You with my life. Amen.
"… Our Father in heaven…" Matthew 6:9b (NLT)
• What do You want to say to me today as my Father?
"… may your name be kept holy." Matthew 6:9c (NLT)
• What do You want to reveal to me about Your power today?
"May your Kingdom come soon." Matthew 6:10a (NLT)
• Help me make Your priorities my priorities today.
"Give us today the food we need," Matthew 6:11 (NLT)
• Is there anything specific You want me to do with my time or the people I'm around today?
"and forgive us our sins, as we have forgiven those who sin against us" Matthew 6:12 (NLT)
• Reveal to me anyone I need to forgive or ask for forgiveness.
"And don’t let us yield to temptation…" Matthew 6:13a (NLT)
• Is there anywhere I'm vulnerable to temptation?