The Truth About Emotions

ladies this morning I'd like to ask you to open your Bibles to Luke 1 and I would love to address the topic the lie that I cannot control my emotions I don't know if you've noticed but tween girls today are in crisis as I was preparing and researching to write lies girls believe I came upon the research that told me that today's tween girls aged 8 to 12 it's not that they might struggle with depression anger resentment greed selfishness depression anxiety stress is that they will struggle it but to what degree and so they have developed what they call a spectrum of anxiety to measure teens tweens emotions and the scariest thing that I read is that the anxiety levels of tween girls today for the normal average girl is higher than what would have put a girl aged 8 to 12 in an in treatment mental health facility in 1957 our daughters and our granddaughters are in crisis but as I was preparing this message for you and I was meditating on my concern for those young girls God started speaking to me and he said Danna what is more tragic that tween girls who are not yet mature in their faith and in their minds are struggling so terribly with their emotions or that many Christian adult women have not grown up out of that now maybe that speaks your heart but I think he was pointing to me when he said it and so I began to ask the Lord how do I grow up emotionally now I want it before look at Luke Juan I want to just make three important statements first emotions are good how do I know that because in Genesis 1 God looked back at everything he had created and he said it is good so our emotions are good and they are good tools of God when we use God's Word to govern our hearts two emotions aren't always reliable and this is where Luke one began to come alive to me because the the chapter opens with Zechariah receiving a visitation from the angel of the Lord and it says fear fell upon him now I don't know about you but an angel of the Lord shows up in my bedroom and I fear is gonna fall on me right but the angel of the Lord immediately says something that is said throughout scripture to many people and the Lord wants to say it to some of your hearts today he said fear not and then this is what spoke to me he said I have come to bring you gladness and joy you see the circumstance and his emotions were telling Zechariah to be afraid but the reality of his circumstances were that God wanted him to feel joy and gladness I wonder how often we look at our circumstances and instead of seeing God and his truth so that we can process the right emotions we cling to the ones that come too and fall upon us and that's maybe why we believe we can't control our emotions and so the third thing I want you to know is that you can control your emotions the evidence of this coffee I once went to the Dominican Tropic where the coffee is fine and upon arriving I might have partaken too much I had four cups within about four hours and my daughter looked at me and said who are you I put something inside of me that made me very very giddy and very very happy this summer I've had some trouble with my tummy and the doctors prescribed the medication for me that make me feel well like punching someone in the face anyone really I call them my grumpy pants pills I put something in me that made me feel angry sisters what if we put in us to control our emotions what if what we put in us to control our emotions was not coffee or pills or chocolate or food or carbs or drugs or alcohol but what if what we put in us to control our emotions with truth if what we put in us was truth it would help us put on what God really wants us to receive rather than to let the emotions that are falling on us settle and these are some of the things God says in Scripture you and I are to put on just like we get dressed every day just like we button on our shirts just like we put on our shoes we are supposed to put on peace strength love tenderness forgiveness humility brokenness honor contentment and we are supposed to put on praise and we are supposed to be in a continual state of Thanksgiving and praise sisters we need to start to put in truth so we can put on our praise we can control our emotions and I want to show you how God used Mary to speak to me recently about growing up maturing in my emotions putting in his word so I could put on truth and I want to share with you the two things that he spoke to me first of all as I read this story of Mary which let me let me just read I have to put my glasses on and I tell you I'm not feeling good about that but I praise Jesus for glasses I put on my praise while I put on my glasses I want to read to you beginning in Luke 1 verse 28 the age of the Lord came to her and said greetings o favored one the Lord is with you and she was greatly troubled at the saying she felt fear there was fear on her and she tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be and the angel said to her do not be afraid Mary for you have found favor with God and behold you will conceive in your womb and bear a son and you shall call his name Jesus he will be great and will be the son of the Most High and the Lord God will give to you give to him the throne of his father David and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever and of his kingdom there will be no end and Mary said to the angel how will this be since I am a virgin and the angel answered her the Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most high will overshadow you therefore the child to be born will be called the holy the Son of God and behold your relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a son and this is the six month with her who was called barren for nothing is impossible with God and Mary said behold I am the servant of the Lord let it be to me according to your word and the angel departed from her in those days Mary arose and went in haste to the hill country to a town in Judah and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth the first thing I saw as I read this after the Lord had spoken to me about Zacharias predicament was this we mature emotionally when we choose to believe God's truth no matter what our circumstances look like we mature emotionally when we choose to believe God's truth no matter what our circumstances look like Zechariah heard the word but he did not believe it it tells us that in verse 20 because Thakker ayah didn't believe he had more about emotions I'm thinking when he walked out mute that that might have had some more bad emotions I don't know he did not believe he did not put in truth he did not put on praise he outed and it resulted in more negative emotions but Mary heard the war word and did believe we know this because in verse 38 she says yes Lord yes Lord now what I what I think is that she must have known the prophecy of the Messiah she must have known the Word of God that was already written it was familiar to her and so when she was in these circumstances she relied on that and she demonstrated submission she put on submission and said yes Lord and because Mary believed she received great emotions we see in the next chapter that she breaks into song it's known as Mary's magnificant as she receives joy because she knew the word that she believed the word and she acted according to the word now it's important to note that both of them questioned the word of the Lord both of them questioned the angel both of them said what are you talking about it's okay my sisters to go to the Lord with your doubts and your questions it's okay to say I feel afraid is that the right emotion it's okay to say what I'm gonna have a baby do you know how that works it's okay to say that Philippians 4:5 2:7 says the Lord is at hand do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and supplication with Thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God you know I think that that also includes I think our requests can include I need understanding I need courage I need strength and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus but after you ask him the questions and reveal the doubts sisters we have got to choose to believe his truth no matter what our circumstances look like who do you think had more cause to be fearful and remain in the fear and doubt Zecharia are married come on mm-hmm her life was about to change and be altered in ways none of us can even imagine because of the day and age we live in but she made a truth to believe the word what she knew about God what was written in Philippians 4:8 and 9 says whatever is true she knew what was true she knew what was written whatever is honorable pure just lovely commendable if there is any excellence if there is anything worthy of praise think about these things and I think Mary didn't think about what's gonna happen to my reputation what about Joseph how is this gonna work instead I think she thought about the things of God and the peace of God was on her I'm gonna detail this to you I'm gonna say this to you the way I say it to between girls sisters my friends your thoughts are the boss of your feelings whatever you are thinking about is going to be how you feel and Mary chose to think about the Word of God now here's the thing she was taking every thought captive when she chose to think about what she knew about God what was written about God and put on submission but she knew it she knew the Word of God you have to know the Word of God so that when the bad emotions fall on you what has been put in you helps you to put on the truth I had a really emotional I will just call it the great Mexican meltdown recently because that's what I call them when they're big now I'm not prone to extreme emotional immaturity I have my moments but this was like a thick battle I don't know if you've ever had one of those days or months or summers where just a lot of things converge and you come to a breaking point I came to that point and I got to a place where I just couldn't think on anything good all I could think on was all the bad have you been there and I am a woman who can sleep nothing wakes me up and I can sleep long and hard so when I don't sleep and when I become sleepless it is because my emotions have gone out of control and so I lay down in bed one night and it was ten o'clock and the emotions started to get thick and the darkness started to make them so pronounced and it just fell on me so heavy and I remember sitting there and thinking my life is terrible I'm a bad mom I'm a bad wife I'm a bad teacher I'm a bad blonde like you name it and the thing is it was a deep thick heaviness and i i i i got i had to choose to put on what i had already put in me and i have spent time in my life memorizing scripture for times like this but i wasn't using it and so I lay there in bed I think I can't really show you this I'm gonna do as modestly as I can I need to show you this you have to excuse me so I'm laying in my bed and you know have you ever been there where you're like just the darkness is is is heavy holding you down right and I'm laying in that bed and the Lord is saying to me put on what you put in you put on what you put in you put on and I'm crying and I am shaking with fear of the future and the Lord says to me hey a woman of God smiles at the future and I'm like I got nothing to smile about Jesus and I'm searching my memory bank for Scripture and suddenly I was feeling very sinful I should mention that's part of it and so suddenly Psalm 130 Psalm 130 comes to mind if you O Lord kept a record of sins who could stand and all I could do is whisper it and I said it over and over and and and and I was like Lord is this is this verse gonna sink in because I think this is the one and then the next thing I knew I was feeling a little bit of it and so I sat up in the dark hoping that I didn't wake Bob with my whispers if you O Lord kept a record of sins who could stand if you O Lord kept a record of sins who could stand if you all are kept a record of sins who could stand and then I thought okay I need to say this out loud because maybe maybe if my ears hear it clearly I'm gonna start to feel it cuz I'm not feeling it so I drug myself to the bathroom and I looked in the mirror if you'e Lord kept a record of sins you can stand both you there is forgiveness therefore you are feared my soul waits and in his word I put my hope Oh Lord more than Watchmen wait for the morning and then I felt like I gotta say this fool out loud so I walked downstairs turned on the fireplace if you O Lord kept a record of sins who could stand and I felt my backbone straightening I felt my spirit getting stronger and then I thought you know I need to shout this out loud so I walked out to my barn it was a bit of a temptation because there were baby goats out there and that could also help with peace love and joy and I held a baby goat in my arms that poor little thing because I began to praise the Lord if you a lord kept a record of sins who could stand but with you there is forgiveness therefore you are feared my soul waits and on your word I put my hope more than Watchmen wait for the morning more than Watchmen wait for the morning put your hope in the Lord for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him his full Redemption and I want you to know something I was feeling it I was feeling the unfailing love I was feeling the forgiveness I was feeling the full redemption full Redemption sisters that is better than Walmart's guarantee I was feeling it because I had put his word in me then I could put it on me but I had to do the work of it sisters I had to do the work of it sisters you have to do the work of it sisters in the dark night when everything is crumbling in on you you have to do now there is some people would say that was just a mantra no that was the living active Word of God it is alive and active and it works some people would say it's just a crutch and I would say it is a crutch that works just fine put it in you so that you can put it on you and it will control your emotions the second thing I see very briefly is that Mary matures in the faith matures emotionally we mature emotionally when we run to our sisters for help in controlling our thoughts we need each other we need the word and we need each other to control our emotions Mary went it says in verse 39 in haste hurry go fast go during the break go during your breast trip home tell your sisters what emotions you're fearing and feeling I don't know why we're so afraid of telling someone our emotions vulnerability is emotional exposure exposing your emotions is vulnerable but here's what I have come to learn is that people are drawn to it every superhero has its weakness and we know Superman has his kryptonite Achilles has the heel Samson had the hair sisters does this make us love them less no I have been vulnerable with you from the platform I am vulnerable in my books do you love me less what would happen if you dared to be emotionally vulnerable with your sisters I think they could help you put in the truth so that you could put on the emotions that God intended for you to live in and I think that's what happened when Mary went to Elizabeth it says she stayed there for three months that's a long time sometimes you need to be with your sisters a long time you know what our lack of vulnerability is shame shame is one of the most powerful and deeply impacting emotions we didn't see it before the fall it is a result of the fall and I want to invite you not to live under the power of the fall but to tell your sisters what emotions you need help with so they can put truth in you so that you can put it on because listen here's what matters not just that we look like mature believers act like mature believers but why would the world want what we have unless they see it working for us why would they this is a gospel imperative that we put in ourselves the truth so that we can put on us these emotions that God intends for us to be governed by and to enjoy and to experience now I want to ask you to make a decision I want us to respond to this because I don't know about you we we don't put on the things that we need to when we interact with our roommates and our co-workers at our children and our spouses a lot of times we just let our guard down when we're near the ones God has entrusted to us most and so I want you to search your heart and ask yourself where are my emotions out of whack where do I need to put on God's truth put in God's truth so that I could put on the emotions he intended for me to live in and Kristen and I are gonna search our hearts as well we're gonna ask the Lord where he wants to work in us and then as a symbol of our decision to put in truth so that we can put on the emotions God intended us to operate in we're gonna stand and sing a very simple truth Jesus loves me but we're not gonna sing it because it's time to sing it we're gonna sing it when our hearts are saying yes Lord to the emotional chaos and darkness in our life that we are going to mature in the faith we're gonna grow up we're gonna put His Word in us so we can put the right emotions on us so when we feel that we've made that decision each individually I want you to stand and sing jesus loves me with us

Channel: Revive Our Hearts

Views: 31,585

Keywords: True Woman 18, Dannah Gresh, truth, lies, emotions

Id: cDoSm5O-9IY

Length: 23min 3sec (1383 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 30 2018