Emotions
The light of the eyes rejoices the heart, and good news refreshes the bones. Proverbs 15:30
I am looking forward to another topic that, like family, affects all of us. Our emotions. Whether we tend to suppress our emotions or have excessive emotions, we all need “wisdom for our emotions”. These are two quotes I found helpful in thinking through having healthy emotions and using them as an opportunity to know God:
Jesus lived for us, in our place, the perfect human life, with every emotion in close alignment with the heart of God. And here in the book of Proverbs we have his wisdom for our emotions—our squally emotions, our negative emotions, our dead emotions, our distorted emotions, our upset emotions, our excessive emotions. We need the emotional life of Christ, and he wants to give it to us. – Ray Ortlund
Ignoring our emotions is turning our back on reality; listening to our emotions ushers us into reality. And reality is where we meet God…Emotions are the language of the soul. They are the cry that gives the heart a voice…However, we often turn a deaf ear – through emotional denial, distortion, or disengagement. We strain out anything disturbing in order to gain tenuous control of our inner world. We are frightened and ashamed of what leaks into our consciousness. In neglecting our intense emotions, we are false to ourselves and lose a wonderful opportunity to know God. We forget that change comes through brutal honesty and vulnerability before God. – The Cry of the Soul (Tremper Longmen & Dan Allendar)
Join us Sunday as we learn about this critical topic – particularly during this season when EVERYONE’S emotions are being challenged and distorted.