“Jerry, I do not know how you
do it,” is a phrase I hear frequently these days. People seem to be surprised that I try to carry
on with life and faith in a time of great personal loss and sadness. Some
appear to think that I somehow live without deep sorrow, that I exist in some
kind of bubble that protects me from negative emotions. The truth is that I ache, I cry, and I wonder
where this will lead. But, I refuse to
be a victim of my circumstances. I am no
hero, nor am I a Lone Ranger. There are many
who pray for us and there is great strength found in Divine Comfort. There
are many who come alongside of us to
offer practical help. Our adult
children, our church family, are treasures to us.
And there is this – I refuse to allow how I ‘feel’ to rule my
life! Many days my emotions scream for relief. Yes, part of me wants relief or escape and
temptations to spend too much, eat junk, watch too much TV for a diversion are
always with me. But, I also know that I am not a slave to my feelings. Some
mornings when sorrow closes in on me and tries to throw darkness over me like a
heavy blanket, I have to work to change my thoughts. I speak to myself and direct my thoughts. “Jerry,
it is time to change the story, to choose a different perspective!” That is not
denial. I know the facts. I choose to
believe the Truth of God.
Jeremiah, the ‘weeping
prophet,’ wrote about this very choice. "I
remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well
remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the
LORD’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are
new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The LORD is my
portion; therefore I will wait for him.” (Lamentations 3:19-24, NIV) He did not pretend that things were great. He
felt the weight of his emotions calling his experience one of ‘affliction,’
that were like ashes in his mouth. But,
Jeremiah also chose to trust the Lord.
God made us spirit, mind, and
body. What part of you directs your daily actions in life? For many, the body, with all of its desires,
is allowed to be ‘in charge.’ Some
people mistakenly believe that every appetite must be fed, every feeling
acknowledged and served. “If I practice self-denial, I’ll just die,” they say.
No, that is simply not true. The mind
that God gave us can be trained to overrule those desires. Ask any highly
trained athlete! He learns to push his body past the cry for comfort. Paul
speaks to this choice in his own life. “I
do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the
air. I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to
others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize." (1
Corinthians 9:27, NIV) Do not
misunderstand his words. He is not talking about hurting himself. He is
speaking to the discipline that governs his impulses. He brings them into line
with the Truth!
This is not just a rigid
self-discipline. It is a matter of the transformed heart. Because God, the Holy
Spirit lives in us who belong to
Christ Jesus, our spirits (The God-breathed part of every person) can and
should take charge, responding first to God, the Holy Spirit, then directing our
mind to order our physical existence in the body! Here is how the Scripture teaches that
principle: "The Holy Spirit will
give you life that comes from Christ Jesus and will set you free from sin and
death." (Romans 8:2, CEV) How does
that look in everyday life? Read on. "People who are ruled by their desires
think only of themselves. Everyone who is ruled by the Holy Spirit thinks about
spiritual things. If our minds are ruled by our desires, we will die. But if
our minds are ruled by the Spirit, we will have life and peace."
(Romans 8:5-6, CEV) Does this happen
without effort? No. We have a daily choice to make. "If we follow our desires,
we cannot please God. You are no longer ruled by your desires, but by God’s
Spirit, who lives in you." (Romans 8:8-9, CEV) The result of choosing
to respond to God’s spirit is life and more life.
What I love about the life of
the Spirit is that He allows us to fully experience our emotions without being
ruled by them. We can be and must be
completely authentic. We do not fake it. We weep, we laugh, we stagger, we
dance, we crawl, and we run. We know
what we feel and are enriched by the gift of our emotions but we are not slaves
to them. When tempted by their
seductions, we look higher, take the strength, know the Truth – and do His
will.
Here is a word from the Word.
Receive it and live it – for the honor and praise of Christ who gives you life
and strength.
"What happens when we live God’s way? He brings
gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things
like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a
willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a
conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves
involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to
marshal and direct our energies wisely.
… Among those who belong to Christ, everything
connected with getting our own way and mindlessly responding to what everyone
else calls necessities is killed off for good—crucified. Since this is the kind
of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not
just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out
its implications in every detail of our lives." (Galatians 5:21-25, The Message)
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