It’s quite
simple to live by our feelings, or to go with the flow of the moment. Our emotions
can easily roar through our lives in the manner of Class IV rapids on a river:
turbulent, complex, long, and difficult. Whether emotions are positive or
negative, they can be overwhelming—if we allow it. Here are two interesting facts:
- We can rein in our feelings.
- We can completely alter any situation by taking charge of our feelings.
How to get Around Negativity
Joyce Meyer
says that feelings come after decisions, not decisions after feelings. She says
that we can raise our expectations by speaking this positive affirmation: “Something good is going to happen today.”
This exact
message got good results when a lady the televangelist knew repaired a
dysfunctional relationship. The woman and her son constantly fought. Surprisingly enough, after she began
repeating the phrase quite often, her son told her he loved her.
Two Ways to Look at Setbacks
Negative--The Man at the Pool of Bethesda
John 5:1-15 tells the story of a man who let his
circumstances overcome him. For 38 years, he had lain by the pool of Bethesda.
He couldn’t move. He didn’t try to help himself in any way. He waited all those
years for someone to help him into the pool.
One day a
year, an angel would come down to stir up the water in order to give it special
healing properties. Whoever got into the pool quickly would be restored to
health.
Jesus approached
the man, asking if he wanted to be healed. Please note that he asked the sick
man if he wanted to be healed, not
why he hadn’t received his healing. In
other words, Jesus wasn’t asking for
excuses. Nevertheless, the man gave him an excuse: he didn’t have anybody
to help him into the pool at the right time.
What was the
Savior’s response? Did he come to the man’s pity party? No! He did something
more useful: he made the man whole. Immediately, he said “Get up!” He also told
the man to take his bed with him. End of story. Done.
Positive--The Donkey in the Pit (told by Joyce Meyer)
A group of
men were digging a large pit. It was deep. They noticed a donkey had stumbled
into it. They had a hard time deciding what to do. The workers knew they would
have to fill in the pit soon. Yet, they didn’t have any way to pull the donkey
out of it.
They finally
determined to just leave him in there. The animal was old, anyways. The men
didn’t see a problem with just burying it. Accordingly, they started filling in
the pit with dirt.
At first, the
donkey complained. He cried and whined. It was pitiful. However, he soon calmed
down. He quickly learned that he get closer to the top of the pit by stepping
on top of each pile of dirt that was shoveled in.
Rather than
allow the dirt to bury him, he used it to step his way into freedom—little by
little. The men were astonished to see the animal finally walk contentedly out
of the pit.
My Conclusion
We can allow
emotional “pits” to bury us, or we can find a way out of them. Common sense
tells us to conquer our negative feelings. Everyday life and the Bible give us
many examples of believing/expecting and receiving miracles. The Bible also gives us this promise: “And
whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”—Matthew 21:22
(NIV)
Are you expecting good things to
happen?
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