1a How to Be Not Led by Your Feelings

intro

"emotions" in Latin roots means ex-movere, means "moving away".

(ever wondered if there's some evil one out there who wants to move you away from what you supposed to do?-well, that's Satan's plan...to move you away from the will of God.)

emotions also means "a complex...strong subjective response...involving psychological changes in preparation for action"(defs from Webster Dictionary)

it is so often easier to do things when we are motivated by emotions! we often perceive the emotional support to be a "yes!" from God! 

CONCLUSION: thus we must understand the very fickle nature of emotions. if we lack understanding of emotions, Satan can use them-or lack of emotions-to keep us from God's will. 

emotions, or god?

there's always a balance needed to grow. 

sometimes, we need to stop giving too much to people because it can actually hinder them from growing. (like parents not letting go of their children!)

thus, to grow, emotions, must be guided by wisdom! wisdom how? by being sensitive to the Holy Spirit.

eg: an eaglet is born with a little tooth in its beak, to hatch itself outta its own egg. it is an arduous struggle, and some people try to help it. unfortunately, the eaglets who receive "help" usually dies not long after that.

here's an amazing Word from proverbs 4:7 i gotta add: 

"the beginning of wisdom is: get wisdom (skillful and godly wisdom)! And with all you've gotten, get understanding..."

so?

CONCLUSION frm author: 

"whenever emotions rises up on the inside of me, I test it to see if its in line with the will of god. if its not...i resist it."-Joyce Meyer

that is how we fight our emotions-by using our will to make a decision to follow God's Word rather than our feelings.

the other way round-EMOTIONLESS??

when people are hurt badly in the past, some develop hard cores and build up high walls to prevent themselves from being hurt.

but you know what? emotions are from God, to gain a conscience, so that we know if we're hurting others! if not, our "moral understanding is darkened and reasoning beclouded" (Ephesians 4:17)

this is VERY dangerous...and that's why the world tells us, "if it feels good, do it!"

BUT...

remember it is never a matter of "i shouldn't be feeling this way", BUT a matter of crying out to God and functioning in self-control.

ever got an emotional high?

there will be periods of time in which you feel more emotional than usual! like you feel depressed in the morning for no apparent reason.

that's when you gotta watch out, 'cos your feelings is gonna get hurt very easily.

and these things happen...because w/o going into trying times, you will not learn anything. 

remember god says that he will never allow any more to come upon us than we are able to bear (1 Cor 10:13)

ever been to something so exiting and you returned home, wishing it would remain that way?

(rachel says i did..lots of times!)

thing is, too much of emotional highs, will wear us out emotionally. 

sometimes after an emotional high, we need to REST and RECUPERATE. zzzz...

manic depression = moving from one extreme emotion to the other

health experts have discovered this term, and concluded that balance is the key.

thing is, we have to learn to manage these extremes to acheive this balance!

what people usually do when they're emotionally down, is that they will 

1. act out of character (extroverted person become quiet, vice versa)

2. because they rather do so than reveal that they're depressed to others. (aiya, don't bother about me ar. i'm upset now, so that's why i'm quiet)

answer: we should be honest about how we feel with people. don't say nothing! because you can cause serious confusion among the people who are around you. (they think they made you mad)

worse, negative thoughts may be planted in their heads.

people will always respect a person who is straightforward. and the devil always want us to be guilty and condemned by our emotions, so that we are not able to control our emotional upheavals in the future.

the price for catering to our emotions

thing is, there are a lot of verses in the bible about the consequences of catering to our emotions. but i think this sums it up:

god still loves a person who is an emotional wreck =) he's not happy with the lifestyle we're in, because he is unable to do what is supposed to be done in you.

if you had lots of $, and you had a kid who's always led a spendthrift lifestyle, with addictive habits, you can't give your inheritance to him, because you know it's going to go faster than you will say jack robinson!

final note

"when faced with any difficult decision, wait until you have a clear answer before taking a step that you may regret. Emotions are wonderful, but they must not be allowed to take precedence over wisdom and knowledge. Remember: control your emotions, don't let them control you."

(Joyce Meyer, 1997)