Abby and Eason,
I have mentioned emotions and prayer in several letters. Today, I want to try to explain that topic. Of course, the best explanation is in scripture. Throughout the Bible, we see person after person talking to God while expressing deep emotions. Here are two examples you can read: Hannah – 1 Samuel 1:9-28; Jesus – Matthew 26:36-46.
I believe that your emotions are a gift. When you respond emotionally to something, it can be a reminder that we need to talk to Jesus. Let me try to explain.
Fear is talked about over and over in the Bible. We are told that we don’t need to fear because God is with us (Isaiah 41:10). Yet, often, our first emotion is fear. In 1 Peter 5:7 says to cast all of our fears on Him. Jesus knows that we will face fear. He reminds us that He is with us so we don’t have to fear. But, in the middle of those two sentences is where an amazing prayer opportunity sits. When we pray, we cast our fears on Him and we learn that He cares for us.
Emotions are real. We pray. God, our Comforter, meets us where we are and reminds us of His perfect love for us.
I have looked a lot of places while trying to figure out what to do with emotions.
- I looked at myself. Maybe if I ignored my emotions enough they just wouldn’t be real.
- I viewed myself as strong. I believed I could handle my emotions. I didn’t need anyone. I thought I was strong and independent.
- I looked at my friends. I used to call a friend of mine, and we talked endlessly about situations. I would process it with her until I felt better.
- I viewed my friends as strong. I would take a friend’s advice and believe it was true. I relied on their advice for the strength to ignore an emotion and move forward.
Finally, I learned to cast my cares on Jesus. I learned to talk to Him about my feelings. And, when I do, He does something that no one or nothing else can. He meets the need that caused my emotion. He doesn’t show me how to “get through” to the next moment or to suppress my emotion to keep moving forward. Instead, His completeness and perfection meet me, with my emotion, and remind me that He is good. That He loves me with an everlasting love. Leaning into who He is, my emotions find rest and healing. His completeness takes my emotion and reminds me that my strength is in Him.
I am still learning to go to Jesus first. Emotions aren’t scary. They aren’t bad. They are reminders that we need to talk to Jesus.
Right now, I am learning to go to Jesus BEFORE my emotion gets big. Sometimes, inside of me, I feel uneasy. Often it isn’t even developed as an identifiable emotion yet. But, I know something is off.
I am learning to stop in those moments, before an emotion challenges me, and talk to Jesus.
My desire is to talk to Jesus constantly. Emotions are a huge gift because they serve as a reminder to do that.
I love you both so much. Isn’t it cool that God wants us to cast our emotions on Him?
Mom