We all experience a wide range of emotions that are in the normal range. And sometimes we experience emotions far greater than seem normal. Their intensity seems inappropriately intense and we don’t know why.
That, too, is normal in that it is common and normative in the human experience.
One of the helpful responses to our emotions - or the deadness of no emotions - is to discern first if they are appropriate to the situation or seemingly more intense than appropriate for some reason. Becoming mindful of what I am facing, what I am believing, and how I am feeling (or not feeling).
One of the questions to consider is, “Do I need coping mechanisms or healing?” The answer is, of course, Yes! I need both.
When we are in the pit of despair, we need both short term and long term solutions and strategies in order to move forward and find healing.
Today I want to offer a guide for the immediate relief portion of that journey.
King David wrote in Psalm 42:5 “Why my soul are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.”
Meditation #1: Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed?
Consider these questions and reflect on all the possible answers. Write them out. Give them a weighted score, in terms of their individual intensity or pain. Name them and reflect on their impact on you.
Meditation #2: Put your hope in God.
Take each thing on your list and tell it to God, one at a time. Declare your hope in God for each item. Confess that hope, even if you’re not feeling it. Hope is not about how you feel, it is about what you choose. Your feelings will eventually catch up.
Meditation #3: Praise Him, your Savior and your God.
Spend a few minutes praising God. Thank Him for His Presence, for His forgiveness of your sin and His patience with your human frailty. Praise Him for fighting on your behalf and for His Spirit that lives within you.
David continues in v7 “Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls; all your waves and breakers have swept over me.”
Meditation #4: Just sit in God’s Presence, trusting that His Spirit is working deep within your spirit. Imagine Him working in the depths of your soul, and His waterfalls of love and protection washing over you.
Here is the Truth: You belong to God and your emotions cannot always be trusted. Bring your battle to the Lord and fight - with whatever limited energy you have - and watch God wrap His powerful and loving arms around you!