Emotions Emotions are feelings of pleasantness or unpleasantness, which spontaneously arise in us in response to some internal and external stimuli. They are an essential part of our personality.
Emotions are sometimes “masked” and you really have to figure out what’s behind the things a person may say.
For example, what are the emotions behind what they are saying?
I didn’t get invited to the dance. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I try hard to be friendly, but the boys just don’t pay much attention. Maybe I’m just plain ugly.
I know my children are busy, but I haven’t seen them for ages. They don’t even bother to call.
I don’t know if my husband loves me or not. He says he cares, but he doesn’t pay much attention to me, particularly when we’re with other people. Sometimes he even seems ashamed of me.
Are there good or bad emotions? Our emotions are God given. Jesus himself experienced the whole range of emotions (Mark 3:5, Matthew 21:12-16: anger; John 11:5, 13:34: love; John 11:35: grief; John 17:13: joy).
The pleasant and unpleasant feelings we experience include:
Why must there be more unpleasant feelings than pleasant feelings?
But actually whether an emotion is “good or bad” depends on where the feelings we experience drive us to, or what the feelings lead us to do.
Can you imagine situations where an unpleasant feeling becomes a blessing, and where a pleasant feeling draws us away from God?
So it is where it leads you to or what happens next that matters! Does it lead us to sin or to repentance? Draw near to God or to curse him? Does it glorify God?
Emotions interact with our minds (thoughts) and wills (desires); they can cause you to dwell on certain thoughts, and eventually intents, which are acted upon. There is the danger, for example, of emotions like anger or greed becoming jealousy and hatred, and which leads to pre-meditated murder and sin.
Emotions can be very useful to help us understand or discern our true beliefs and values. Try to give an honest answer to why do you feel a given way!
Emotions can be shaped by our values and beliefs (beliefs). At the temple Jesus became angry at the buying and selling because he believed that the place should be used as a house of prayer. The priests saw the money changers as a source of income? There were also different emotions (suspicious and antagonism vs. joy) in the incident of healing recorded in Mark 3:5. These conflicting emotions were shaped by the beliefs held by the religious leaders and the man who was healed, respectively.
Our beliefs can help us to have the right or correct reaction to our emotions: to be glad, sad or mad for the right reasons!
If we believe God’s word, here are examples of the “right response” to following emotions.
Hate: Do good to those who hate you. Luke 6:27-28
Anxiety: Pray to God; put your trust in him rather than be anxious. Philippians 4:6
Joy: Acknowledge the source of your goodness. Philippians 4:4Anger: Avoid sin and settle matters quickly. Ephesians 4:26
Envy: Lay it down and love others. 1 Corinthians 13:4
We not only live in a war zone, we are a war zone and there is a battle going on inside us. We are the battle field on which two sides clash and two ages are competing for supremacy in our lives. But we will not win by our own strength. We will win only if we live in the life and the power of the Holy Spirit. And the means to do this is being filled with the Holy Spirit.
Yield our whole personality; invite him to overwhelm us and exert his influence over our emotions, our minds and our wills.
You can ask to be filled with the Spirit to be overwhelmed in the area of your emotions:
Enable me to see what my emotions really are and why I feel a certain way.
You are not a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. Give me self discipline and self control in order that I may restraint any wrong reaction to my emotions.
Enable me to personify the mind of Christ, his attitudes, values and beliefs, to shape my emotions. Let my emotions produce thoughts, desires and actions that will only build me up, and I may become mature and attain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
I am tired from trying to be victorious and Christ like in my own strength and with self discipline and individual willpower. I ask that you will strengthen me with power in my inner being. And I pray I may have power to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge--that I may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. And according to your power that is at work within me, may I do all things to give God the glory.
Fill me up with emotions that will lead me to grow in spiritual maturity and produce in me the fruit of Christ, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
Mind The mind’s key functions are thinking, recalling, judging, reasoning and evaluating. Attitudes, values, beliefs, ideas, thoughts (“thoughts”) are the output or the state of mind resulting from its functioning. Recollection of thoughts is facilitated through the process of memorization.
The natural person is spiritually dead and the Bible describes the condition of the natural mind as:
Futile thinking,
Darkened in his or her understanding,
Ignorant, Ephesians 4:17, 18.
Blinded, 2 Corinthians 4:4.
Depraved & degenerate, Romans 1:28.
Corrupt, 1 Timothy 6:5.
Unspiritual, Colossians 2:18.
The mind of the natural man is sinful and leads to death; it is under the control of Satan and it can never please God. Romans 8:6-8.
In Ephesians 2:1-5 Paul says of the natural person: You are dead in your sins when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air. All of us also lived among them at one time… gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts …we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved.
The natural person follows the ways of the world and is worldly. But it is also possible for some who are alive to Christ to also be worldly. 1 Corinthians 3:1-3.
Being alive in Christ is entering into God’s Kingdom (rule and power); yaay! God has given us the authority (right) to think the thoughts of Christ, and have the mind of Christ. We need to exercise that authority. Philippians 2:5; 1 Corinthians 2:16.
Because having the mind of Christ means:
Being set on what the Spirit desires,
Life and peace, Romans 8:5-6.
Understanding spiritual things and being spiritually alive, 1 Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:5
Agreeing with God’s purpose for you: to grow to spiritual maturity and do good works, 2 Peter 1:3-9; 1 Corinthians 3:1-3; Ephesians 2:10.
Attesting (knowing with certainty) how trustworthy and correct the will of God is, Romans 12:2.
When we exercise that authority we are no longer conformed to worldly ideas, but we are transformed by the renewing of the mind. Renewing means an on-going process. We must not be too disappointed whenever we stumble and fall – remember we are “already and not yet perfect” kingdom people!
And God has mad a great provision available for us: His Spirit. Being filled with the Spirit allows us to use God’s power to renew of our minds. The good news of the kingdom of God includes receiving his power to help us have and “personify” the mind of Christ!
As we understand the kingdom of God, Christians are engaged in a war in this present age and in the world. We not only live in a war zone, we are a war zone, and our mind is a great battlefield. It’s a battle to decide if worldly ideas or God’s truth will prevail. In a sense it is the mother of all ideological battles.
It’s a spiritual battle. And in 2 Corinthians 10: 3-5 Paul points out to weapons we use that are not the weapons of the world, they have the divine power to demolish strongholds. And we are to demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
And so we have the mind of Christ when: (1) all thoughts and ideas etc that hinders your knowledge of God are demolished and when (2) every thought is subjugated and obedient to Christ. It would seem that this means leaving no room for doubts and being full of faith!
The “mind renewing” process should be one where we continually welcome the Spirit. And on a moment by moment basis (as and when we evidently need help) invite him to take control and exercise his influence over you. In practice, being filled with the Spirit (overwhelmed by him) can involve asking for his power to:
Help you overcome any unbelief. Mark 9:4
Give you the ability to understand spiritual things, to understand the truths of God, and to see what’s happening in the spiritual/kingdom realm. 1 Corinthians 2:14.
Guide you into all truths. John 16:13
Empower you to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Ephesians 3:17-19
Build you up… in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and to become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
Ephesians 4:13
Let the word of God to become living and active: sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; judging the thoughts and attitudes. Hebrews 4:12
Important to say, your part in renewing your mind must include spending time reading the word, memorizing scripture, studying and meditating on the word. And acting in faith, which is to say based on God’s truth and not worldly ideas:
~With the conviction that God can, and a hope that he will. Faith is a hope that you are sure of when faith is in the person of Jesus, and when you are acting according to his commands or promises
~With the belief that God is real and that he is applying his power toward your salvation and restoration
Will This is the part of you, which originates, shapes, or expresses your wants, yearnings, desires, intent/purpose, hopes etc. The will is exercised in terms of the deliberate choices you make.
Living in the kingdom means you choose God’s will for your life! And naturally this will first involve knowing God’s will and subsequently, doing it.
Knowing God’s will does not require one to possess extraordinary knowledge or intellect. Finding the answer is as simple as asking, seeking and knocking on the door. Matthew 7:7-8. (Everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened).
Our will is expressed in the choices we make. And freedom of choice is essential if there is to be a real relationship between persons. How can love be expressed if one has no choice in the matter? Can we call it love when the person who has expresses does it mechanically without there being any meaning or significance to what is happening? Or when the expression is compelled and programmed like software that runs but which is just following a set of rules, laws or procedures that put in place?
This should also be a simple thing to understand. Right from the beginning men and women have been given choices. In Genesis 3, there is freedom “not eat of this fruit” and this choice would have demonstrated Adam’s and Eve’s trust in, reliance on, and love of, God. (Another reference is Deuteronomy 30:19-20 which suggests that we have the freedom to choose whom we wish to serve).
On doing God’s will, Ephesians 5:15-17 warns us that your will be used for good and evil. And Romans 7:18 that you do not always have the capacity to carry out our own will!
So what is God’s will for you?
It is surely to become like Jesus, Romans 8:29 and to do good works, Ephesians 2:10. It is also to have an intelligent, freely cooperative relationship between mature persons who love each other. Be called a friend of God and a fellow-worker. John 15:13-25 and1 Corinthians 3:9.
Doing God’s will on your own is impossible! We are to God’s will with God’s help. The good news is that God’s unlimited capacity is for us, to enable us do his will.
He will supply our needs and work all things together for good. Philippians 4:19, Romans 8:28.
He will be faithful to complete the work he has begun in you. Philippians 1:6.
He will work in you to will and act according to his good purpose. Philippians 2:13
Having accepted Jesus and being birth into His kingdom, we can be assured of receiving divine guidance. God speaks. The most frequent used phrase in Bible is – let anyone with ears to hear, listen.
In Mark 4:23-25 Jesus teaches that, “If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear. Consider carefully what you hear”, he continued. “With the measure you use, it will be measured to you--and even more. Whoever has will be given more; whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him”.
God addresses us in various ways: the Bible has recorded dreams, visions and voices, use of scriptures and supernatural phenomenon / messengers. God is able to continue speaking to us in these means.
And in the “still small voice”: This phrase, from Kings 19:11-11 has the idea of a gentle whisper of a voice, of being unobtrusive. God’s voice speaking to us seems almost to take the form of thoughts that are our thoughts: He uses your thoughts and feelings to bring to you the truth of his word and understanding. We can also have a beautiful picture of a caring God walking through our personality “with a candle” (Proverbs 20:27) directing one’s attention to things one after the other (Psalms 139:23).
But here there is no short cut to personal experience. Every one must learning to hear through trial and error. Like sheep we have to become familiar with the shepherd’s voice. Struggles to hear and mistakes in hearing help you to grow; God is big enough to earn your trust because trust in any relationship must be earned.
Dallas Williard notes the 3 factors to distinguish the voice of God:
(1) Weight of authority; this inclines us toward agreement and even toward active compliance. The unquestionable authority with which Jesus spoke was a manifestation of this quality. And because the voice bears authority it does not need to be loud or hysterical.
John Wesley’s puts it so succinctly, “How, I pray do you distinguish between day and night. How do you distinguish between light from darkness? Is there not an inherent, obvious, essential difference between the one and the other”.
(2) The Spirit’s character; Dallas Willard has described that character as, “a spirit of peace and confidence, of joy, of sweet reasonableness and of good will”.
While speaking of …the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere, James in 3:17 does give us helpful pointers.
(3) Content; It must conform to and be consistent with the truths of God’s nature and kingdom that are made clear in the Bible.
How can deal with the so-called “problematic situations” when God is silent and the Bible does not offer specific guidance? What are we to do? What if we go outside of the “perfect will” of God?
Know the Father’s heart. If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him! Luke 11:13. No decent parent will obscure their intentions from their children! If no clear instructions are given when you sincerely ask, consider that it means it is best that he does not give it!
Surely we are in his perfect will when we have sincerely heard and obeyed a specific word of God.
But it is just as much so in situations where no clear instructions is received, when we act in faith, and our choices are aligned to the general counsel of God as given to us in the Bible as a whole. In such situations, God expects and trust us to choose. He goes with us in our choices. Isn’t that awesome?
It is God’s will that we ourselves should have a great part in determining our paths through life. God’s purpose for us is achieved, by his leaving it as often as possible to us to decide.
Here are several ways in which we can invite the Holy Spirit’s overwhelming influence in the area of our will:
~ To work in you to will and act according to God’s will, Philippians 2:13.
~ To fill you up with the knowledge of His will, Colossians 1:9.
~ For empowerment to live by faith not by sight, on the basis that what God has said is true. 2 Corinthians 5:7
~ As thoughts come to mind which may be divine guidance, for an increase in your ability to recognize the voice of the good Shepherd
~ For boldness to learn through trial and error (and coming against the fear)
Finally, keeping a spiritual journal is a simple tool, and the most practical thing you can do. It’s a life-long habit to help you to track and learn from your experiences in the life-long process of choosing God’s will.