Emotions

There are times that I often feel so inadequate.  I feel like a failure as a husband, father, minister, and friend.  Feel.  Ah, there is the explanation: emotions.  Our human emotions cannot rule our hearts and lives.  They are fleeting.  They are incomplete.  They are troublesome.

Remember as a teenager, when we would say, “I love you, forever and ever!”  Then the next week, month, or year, we have moved on to someone else and expressed the same sentiment.  Emotions.  I heard the story of a young couple talking about life during the first year of marriage.  The young man asked, “Would you love me if I cheated on you?”  His new bride replied, “Yes.”  He then asked, “Would you love me if I lost my job?”  “Yes,” she replied.  “One more question,” he asked, “what if I was in a terrible accident and could not walk again, would you still love me?”  She smiled at him, and spoke with great compassion, “I will love you always and forever, because of my obedience to God, not because of your abilities or inabilities.”

She has learned that emotions cannot be trusted, but obedience will always trump emotions.

Don’t let the world sway you; choose obedience to God in seeing you through those terrible days that always leave you questioning your faith or existence.  In the big picture, God is with you desiring to move you out of your comfort zone to strengthen your faith and bring glory to Christ.  Yet, you still have to make the choice to allow God to do that in your life.  Trust me, I’ve constantly experienced the pitfalls of emotions, and the only remedy is obey and trust God.