34:18 Ministries

This!!!

Emotions are a part of how God made us. They’re in many ways primal. We need them to survive. They alert us to threats in our environment. They help us become compassionate, brave, light-bearing people.
Emotions can also mislead us. They don’t always “interpret” the data we’re receiving correctly. They are influenced by trauma, memories, and other aspects of our personal history.
That’s why it’s so important to learn to understand & care for your emotions, not “bypass” them. In order to lead yourself with God’s help, you have to pay attention.
This doesn’t mean you suddenly act out of every emotion you feel. In fact, it’s the opposite. It takes patience to notice what you feel and seek to understand it. It’s a practice you develop over time, a practice that is vital for your emotional & spiritual health. It’s key to caring for yourself and leading others well.
Here’s what that practice looks like:
1. Notice what you’re feeling today.
2. Get curious about it. “I wonder why I’m feeling that way.” (No judgment.)
3. Name it.
4. Invite God INTO what you are experiencing (vs. praying it away.)
5. Consider speaking on behalf of it with someone you trust in order to unpack it.
If you have a backlog of pain, you’ll want to first work through this practice with a counselor. When emotions show up for the very first time, they can get big. So, you’ll want to have someone there to help you.

But the beauty of this work is this: as you grow in your ability to understand your emotions, you gain so much confidence and clarity.
You learn how to honor your emotions without acting out of them.
You learn to make wise decisions on behalf of what you need.
You learn to lead yourself & others in partnership with God.


Edited to add: let’s move TOWARD emotional maturity, and AWAY from the spiritual bypassing column!

He was born so He could live and die and raise again. What beauty we can celebrate this weekend!

“Put yourself in Mary’s shoes for a second: you’ve just given birth to a baby. You’ve been told-- through an angel-- that the baby will great and the baby is someone many have been waiting for. And then this man, who knows exactly who your baby is, interjects the moment of blessing the baby to tell you: you are going to feel the pain of this. Your baby is going to lose his life when he grows older to serve as a miracle sign to many.” -HB
mary + her story is one i hold so closely. she knew who He would be + she held the weight of the world in her arms. mary knew all along the miracle + the pain + the sorrow + the joy that would come from the baby she carried. struggle and joy. the greatest miracles the world has ever known contain both.

This morning’s simple prayer to the Lord — how can you use me?

I have a million things in my mind, a million dreams, a million ideas, a million words. I have so many desires to do so many things. But I also have pain to sort through and truths to understand and healing to do. I have a baby to raise and a house to manage and a marriage to care for. I have bills to pay and Bible study to catch up on and laundry to fold. I am overwhelmed.

So this morning, in the quiet time I spend with the Lord before I fill my coffee cup or wake my daughter or start on the day’s many chores, I laid this out for him and was left with one main question. “How can you use me?”

I can rejoice knowing he can use whatever I give him. He can use in all of it, if I’ll just unclench my fists and hand it to him. He can even use the unglamorous and mundane moments of motherhood and housework.

Praise the Lamb.