Have you ever trusted your feelings to bring you hope? How did that work out for you? It never has for me. Why is it we think how we feel will bring us hope? Is it just wishful thinking? Is there anything about feelings we can be certain about? Have you ever trusted your feelings over the truth? I have and it did not work out to well. Let me share with you about understanding how feelings did not bring me hope.
I have found that my feelings have betrayed me. They betrayed me when they did not match up to what is true. When my life was a mess, I often felt like everything would be okay even though things were not going to be okay.
As I struggled with Laura’s mental health and ultimate suicide, I felt like I could make it on my own. I hoped that I could pull myself up by my own bootstraps, after all that is the American way right. I learned I couldn’t do that, and I needed help, and I needed it from God. The truth is that I cannot do anything on my own. Scripture says that “I can do all things through Him [Chris]who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 (ESV) I have found there are about one hundred verses that talk about being strengthened. Another one of my favorites is found in Isaiah 40:31, “but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (ESV)
I am surrounded by people telling me how I should think and act. These people are friends, political leaders, actors, professional athletes, the news media, religious leaders and so on and so on. I am also inundated with my own feelings. This is why it is very important we examine what someone writes or speaks about to what the Scripture says about it. The Apostle John speaks about this in 1 John 4:1-6. Pastor Troy Dobbs, Grace Church Eden Prairie MN spoke about this last Sunday. I encourage you to watch or listen to it.
I pray you will join me in trying to live by God’s truth and not by feelings. There is hope when we live by His truth, but if His truth does not agree with our feelings, then there will be no hope. I pray if you have not already repented of your sin that you will now. It is through a relationship with God through Jesus that solves the problem of sin and brings us hope in the present and the future. I would also encourage you to seek Jesus for He is the only opportunity there is to have eternal life. This is to me the greatest source of hope. In doing so, I believe we will have hope and joy during our everyday lives. Understanding that Jesus Christ allows us to access eternal life, “And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” John 17:3 (ESV) This will allow us to have hope. At the same time understanding you will live eternally knowing the only true God and Jesus Christ and this will bring you the greatest hope. Because of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross satisfied the penalty for sins. His payment satisfies all my sins from the past, the present and in the future. My penalty and yours was satisfied on the cross by the death of Jesus, God’s greatest act of love and wrath, who became sin for me and you. It was also God’s greatest act of faithfulness because “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8 (ESV) Because holiness shows us, we need to believe in Jesus. I hope that you join me in helping others to choose Jesus.
If you have not read my previous blogs, you can find them here.
You can watch book trailer about my book.
You can find my book, Hope Amid Hopelessness: Our Abba Father Provides a Way Through Mental Illness here.
eBook or Audiobook versions can be found at Westbow Press or Christianbook.com at Amazon or Google.
