I typically am not an emotional person. But, something happened to me last week. I felt like I was reliving my middle school days all over again. I allowed my emotions to completely take control of me. I was over-sensitive, easily offended, and a bit irritable. Just ask my husband. Ladies, I am sure that I am not alone in this. We are emotional beings, which is a good thing if used properly. It helps us to show empathy, compassion, and remorse. However, when we let our emotions take the driver seat in our lives, we head down a dangerous path. When our emotions take control, how we feel and what we perceive becomes reality to us. This reality then becomes truth, and we react and make decisions based on this “perceived” truth. This is a scary thing because our emotions often lie to us.
Let me explain. Have you ever watched a movie where you have empathized so much with the main character that you begin to feel their grief or drama, as if it is your own? You exit the movie theater feeling shaken up or stricken with sadness. For the remainder of the day, you feel depressed, and it has nothing to do with your own reality. Those are fake emotions.
On the flip side, we may have a legitimate situation that irritates us. Instead of handing it over to God, we think about it, dwell on it, and let it consume us. If we don’t deal with it properly, watch out. Anyone who comes into our path better be on high alert.
The good news is that God gives us power over our emotions. We don’t have to be a slave to them. We have authority, in the name of Jesus, to command our emotions to come into alignment with Him. Feelings of self-pity, jealousy, pride, anger, inferiority, fear and depression are not from God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. – Galatians 5:22-23
Why do we allow ourselves to repeatedly ride an emotional rollercoaster? Who wants to be a slave to how she feels? Instead, we want to be women who are led by the Spirit of truth. Listening to the Holy Spirit, and not simply reacting to our emotions, will give us clear perspective, a patient heart, and character like Christ. It’s time for us to stop being so emotional!
