Don't Trust Emotions to Lead You

It is easy to do what we feel like doing, but that can get us into trouble. We are better off following the leading of the Holy Spirit, rather than our wicked, fickle, unreliable feelings.

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Transcript

Stop trusting your Emotions

We as Christian women should not trust our emotions to lead us in any way.

We are called to live by faith according to God’s word, so anything outside of that, no matter how it feels, should be rejected.

The world says to follow your heart, but we as Christian believers ought to know better. Trusting emotions is one thing that we cannot afford to do, as this is one of the most dangerous things you can do if you want God’s will for your life. We as Christian women should not trust our emotions to lead us in any way. We are called to live by faith according to God’s word, so anything outside of that, no matter how it feels should be rejected.

I know that this sounds like a difficult thing to do. Our emotions are so real to us, and they can be so strong at times. The anxiety we feel, the anger we try to calm, the sadness we try to shake, is all real. How can we not make decisions based on emotions? It’s natural for us to give up on working towards our goals, for example, if our emotions are telling us that it’s scary or unpleasant to continue. If we want to make it, we can’t give up. It’s hard for us to accept that the person who hurt our feelings didn’t actually mean it the way that we took it. We’re called to forgiveness, and that doesn’t make it any easier, especially when we are still hurting. Especially if the offender isn’t sorry. When the right thing to do doesn’t feel so good, how do you continue?

Jeremiah 17:9 says,

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things,

    and desperately wicked.

    Who really knows how bad it is?

We can’t trust our hearts. Emotions are easy manipulated, inconsistent, fragile, and apparently very deceptive. Have you ever had strong feelings for someone who was no good for you? Did doing something wrong ever feel so right? You can’t give into to those temptations. We are faced with some many things in our daily lives, and our emotions play a huge role. There may not be anything physically wrong with us, but the way we feel inside can paralyze us to the point of complete inaction. The way we feel can also drive us to reckless, regrettable behavior. Have you ever done something out of emotion that you regretted bigtime? Emotions are terrible leaders, and you can’t trust them to lead you into the things of God and the best life for you. So the question is, if we can’t trust our emotions to lead us, who can we trust?

We have to ground our emotions with truth. The word of God is the only solid, consistent way to be sure that we are on the right path. Nothing that contradicts God’s word will ever be the best decision for you. Don’t be deceived. Your emotions are going to prove the exact opposite to you. Galatians (4 or 5) explains that the flesh is against the spirit and the spirit is against the flesh. Human nature naturally resists what is truly best for us, and it uses our emotions to do it. Some of the most inviting, easy, pleasurable choices can lead to the most painful, devastating consequences we’ve ever faced. Marriages destroyed, families ripped apart, friendships broken, finances ruined, careers buried, all for emotions. 

Mass shootings are a result of out of control emotions. Don’t get me wrong, some people would argue that it’s not as simple as that, and certainly a mass killing has more involved then just some out of control emotion. The reality, no, that’s exactly what it is. You can try to blame it mental health issues and the failed relationships around them, how they were raised and what they had access to, sure. The reality is that if you take the unchecked emotions out of the equation, all of those other causes fall apart. That’s how serious and dangerous letting your emotions run you can be. You may compare yourself to something so serious and think that you could never get to that extreme, but you don’t have to go that far. Emotions can ruin your life if you surrender to them instead of surrendering them to the truth of God’s word and His will.

So how should we deal with our emotions? I’ll start with what you shouldn’t do. You can’t ignore your emotions. Trying to pretend they don’t exist will not work. You have to acknowledge them. 

You can always express them, either. There is a right way and a wrong way to express them, and frankly some emotions should never be “expressed,” in that way. Letting your feelings out doesn’t necessarily mean that you are going to do what feels good in the moment and then blame the emotion. Some things are better left unsaid to people, for example. The no fail, fool-proof way to dealing with your emotions, especially at the height of them is prayer. Take it to the Lord so that He can help you deal with what you are feeling with wisdom. Deal with your emotions openly and honestly before God, and then be humble enough to trust Him when He shows you how you should proceed. Sometimes, you need to speak to someone about what you’re feeling. Sometimes you just need to let it go because you don’t have all the information and you’ve got things wrong and dwelling on these feelings will only lead to trouble. Unnecessary trouble. You can not go wrong by casting it all into the Lord’s hands. 1 Peter 5:7 says, Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

He cares for you. The Lord knows what you’re feeling. He knows better than you do why you feel that way. Talk to Him. Trust Him to help you manage what you are feeling. You can’t make decisions based on feelings. Your choices need to be surrendered to the Lord’s will. Jesus himself had so much stress in the garden of Gethsemane. He was literally sweating blood. He felt all of the feelings about be crucified and He actually prayer, Lord, is there another way we could do this? Even in that intensity of emotion, He surrendered to the will of the Father. Luke 22

39 Jesus went out as usual to the Mount of Olives, and his disciples followed him. 40 On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” 41 He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.[c]

45 When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46 “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”

What an incredible example of submission and trust in God’s plans and purpose? Can you imagine the magnitude of the impact if Jesus chose in these moments not to surrender? Jesus chose to go through with this painful plan because you and I would need Him one day. Emotions could have led the savior of the world away from His destiny. If it was a temptation for Him to cave in under the pressure and choose the easier path, you have to understand that we have to face the same thing. When it comes to fulfilling our destines and living out the call of God on our lives, we have to battle our emotions, because they will get in the way at times.

So what does this look like practically? You can’t say everything that comes into your mind. You have to pay attention to your thoughts and judge them to see whether or not that should be something that comes out of your mouth. Are you properly representing Christ with those words? We are called to speak life.

We have to pray. We have been given a direct line straight to God the Father, and we should be on that line all the time! 1 Thes 5:17 says pray without ceasing! That doesn’t mean you need to kneel on the ground all day, it means that you are to stay in constant communion with Him throughout your day. Your emotions will stay under control if you are in the habit of lifting them up to God to moment you experience them.

We have to seek the truth before you jump to conclusions. Sometimes we can hear or see something and react without having all of the facts, and that’s dangerous. Make sure you have proof, make sure you understand all side of the story first. Keep those emotions in check investigate before you respond. Then we go back to the prayer, get the truth and then pray on it.

We have to make decisions based on wisdom from scripture and Godly counsel. Pray, dig into the Bible, talk to someone who is also in the habit of praying and digging into the Bible. Be careful about who you seek advice from. Measure everything by God’s word, seek the Lord first before you get on the phone.

We have to pull back in certain circumstances and get yourself under control before you do something you’ll regret or will grieve the Holy spirit. Sometimes the best thing that you can do is nothing. Don’t say anything. Don’t do anything. Settle your emotions first.

We have to forgive when you may not want to. It doesn’t matter if that person is sorry. This is not about waiting until you don’t feel hurt to make the decision to forgive. You can decide to forgive someone and still be hurt. You can still keep a distant while you’re healing. You have to make the choice to let it go, because God can’t forgive you of your sins until you forgive theirs. 

By now you get the idea. These are just some practical examples of surrendering your emotions to the Lord. 

When it comes to accomplishing things for the kingdom or God, or for life in general, you have to get up and get things done when you don’t feel like it. You have to discipline yourself to pray, study the word, go out and share your faith, do the work you know needs to get done. Serving God doesn’t feel wonderful every minute of the day. No you are not going to feel like doing the right thing all of the time. The true test is are you going to stick to what is right when it doesn’t feel good? When it requires sacrifice? When you feel like giving up?

Are you ready to endure your emotions, woman of God? There will be times when you are motivated, and you do feel it, and your emotions line up with God’s will. Just as quickly as that can happen is how quickly can shift to the opposite. Truth doesn’t change. You know what’s true, but the way you respond to that truth depends on how you feel most of time. If you can overcome this, and hold to what is true regardless of the emotions that surround, you will be on your way to incredible victory in your life. Great success will come to you if you can surrender your emotions to God and be led by the holy spirit.

If you are looking to be encouraged and inspired to move forward with your life and walk in God’s will, Keep tuning in! Subscribe, grab a copy of my book and join the Jesus Women community at patreon.com/jesuswomen, “Slow and Steady: Biblical Wisdom from the Hare and the Tortoise,” just click the links in the description below. Remember, don’t quit, get equipped!