(Today is the Third Thursday of the month. Time for the Hearts at Home Home Blog Hop! This month's topic: Love Your Feelings. Head over to Jill's blog to see what other women have to say on the topic.)Feelings often lead to confusion. Or maybe confusion is what I'm feeling? Is it okay to rely on my feelings at all? Feelings come and go. Can feelings lead to positive change or are they truly just fleeting? Today's topic "Love Your Feelings" had me wanting to avoid the Hearts at Home Blog Hop all together. The truth is that I don't love my feelings. As far as my actions show, I prefer to bury them altogether.
When I am bombarded by too many feelings, I am motivated to
hunt like a lioness on the prowl. However, there is great difference in our
pursuits. Her mission is to find a remedy for the problem of hunger as my quest
is simply to find a distraction and dull the senses. While the lioness focuses
her search is in the Pride Lands, I concentrate on rummaging through my kitchen.
The countless thoughts in my head and the emotions pulsating
in my soul overwhelm me. Cravings begin to dominate my decisions and I fixate
on the desire for relief from my feelings. "Just this time," I tell
myself as I reach into the bag of semi-sweet chocolate chips intended for future
baked goods. "Next time I'll choose different."
This moment, like all those before too numerous to count, I
look to temporarily quiet the noise. Sugar is only a momentary fix. I know
this. And should I forget, guilt will remind me the next morning. For now, though,
I listen to the roar of momentary desires over the steady voice of Truth. I seek
to find rest for my soul (or what appears to be anyway) by alternating salty
and sweet, aimlessly seeking to avoid my tireless thoughts and emotions.
While I know the Truth, I don't allow my
feelings to stimulate positive results. I've been on a path of allowing my
feelings to define my life. And currently, my life is a bit of a mess. Lysa
Terkeurst, in her devotional, Craving God, says "We can't look to
our feelings to determine truth. We must look to truth to rein in our
feelings."
The relief I long for won't be found in the smorgasbord
of choices the world offers us. It is time to quit seeking to numb our feelings
by checking out in front of the television, logging in to social media, or overindulging
on food. That type of false comfort comes only for the moment. When we choose
to oversleep or overbook our calendars in an effort to manage our life, we put
off until tomorrow what needs to be dealt with today. The little break we so
desperately desire by turning to technology, sex, alcohol, drugs and partying
is only a distraction for the rest we are longing for. These outlets may make
us feel better momentarily but Jesus' words in Matthew 11:29 can help us reign
in our feelings. "Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am
humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls."
God offers me rest as I place myself under
His authority. He longs for my desires to lead me to Him. However, knowing this
Truth is not enough. I must choose to embrace it in the moment. The road I've
been headed down by choosing to medicate my emotions instead of seeking clarity
is not God's best plan for my life. It is time that I begin to look at my
feelings as a trigger to pursue what is best for me. There is a choice that
must be made every time I feel unsettled in my soul.
I'm tired of choosing the temporary fix. Today
when feelings overwhelm me (because they will... it's inevitable), I am going
to choose to talk to God about them. When I find myself standing in front of my
pantry, I am going to acknowledge that treats will not satisfy my soul. They
will not bring lasting peace. Neither will Facebook... or even a nap.
Today, I'm going to love my feelings by
allowing them to prompt me to seek God. My feelings can help me pursue God's
best for my life if I simply say "yes" to Him. Distractions won't
help me get there. Only honest conversation with the one who is worthy of our
confidence will take me where I need to be. Pouring out my heart to Him and
reading the Bible to seek what He has to say to me will bring me the enduring
rest I am so desperately seeking. It's time to sort through what is going on
inside my head and my heart and seek the Truth.
If I seek Him first, He offers peace. It may
not come instantaneously and it may not even come in the package I assumed it
would but I will choose to trust Him. He has good plans for my life. I'm done
with temporary relief. I want the rest God offers.
"Seek the Kingdom of God above all
else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need."
- Matthew 6:33
"...God is greater than our feelings,
and he knows everything." - 1 John 3:20b
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