Seeking the Lord when Struggling Emotionally

Feelings Demand to be Felt

It is no lie that life is tough, but it is so much harder when you are struggling emotionally. This spring has been non-stop chaos and go-go-go! In the midst of the chaos, I was met with various emotions; however, I was so focused on getting through spring activities and graduation that I shoved any unpleasant emotion aside. So naturally, the burdensome feelings started to build up. I continued to set aside how I was feeling for another 3 weeks after graduation because I was still busy and just “didn’t have the time to feel.” But, the second I had a day to myself, with no to-dos, nothing planned, and no pressing responsibilities, the mountain of feelings and emotions I had been setting aside finally erupted.

I realized that no matter how long you set aside your emotions, eventually you will have to confront what you’re feeling. Feelings demand to be felt. You can either take the time to work through the emotions as they come, or you can learn the hard way (like myself) and struggle with about 3 months worth of emotions and feelings.

It is not pleasant, but it is a lot easier to work through what you’re struggling with in the moment. Trying to work through an emotion for an issue that has already passed or been forgotten is burdensome because you are having to confront why you felt the way you did after the fact. Because even if the issue has passed, there still needs to be resolution within your spirit or you are left feeling restless.

So, do not try to avoid your emotions and feelings, because life is never too busy to “feel” and to “heal.” Regardless of the time, feelings  D E M A N D  to be felt, and until the demand is met, you are the one left struggling.

God is the Creator

Over the years, especially from more emotional people, the question of “are emotions good” has come up quite often. And the first time I was confronted with this question, I was quick to answer “no.” How nieve of me, right?!

I am not an emotional person. I have emotions, I struggle with emotions; but as far as having an emotionally driven personality, I am quite the opposite. So, answering no was my first response. I have been around emotional people who do not know how to handle their emotional side, and their unhealthy relationship with their emotions gave me the negative impression that emotions are bad.

But, how can something that God created for our good be bad?

“So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God He created them; male and female He created them.” Genesis 1:27 NIV

“God saw all that He had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning — the sixth day.” Genesis 1:31

In Genesis, chapter 1 illustrates the process God took to create His creation. The sixth day, God created mankind, and in the two verses shown above, it states just that. God created mankind in his image; God saw His creation and proclaimed that it was “very good.” God did not state that only certain pieces of His creation were good, He states that His creation as a whole is good.

So, if God’s creation - specifically talking about mankind - is good, and God created people as emotional beings, doesn’t that mean emotions are good?

Yes! Emotions are good, and I would go as far to say that they are also a blessing!

How beautiful is it that God created us with the intention of giving us the opportunity to feel every aspect of His goodness?! Without the emotions God instilled in each and every one of us, we would never get the chance to truly acknowledge or appreciate just how good God truly is!

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” Galatians 5:22

For example, if we were not created as emotional beings, we would never have the opportunity to feel the magnitude of these fruits. We would not be able to truly grasp how sincere God’s love for us is, how freeing His joy is, how unexplainable His peace is, how undeserving God’s patience for us is, how beautiful his kindness and goodness for mankind is, how unfathomable his faithfulness for us is, how matchless God’s gentleness toward His children is, and how unworthy we are of His self-control.

Those are only a few examples of how great God is to us, and how blessed we are to receive His goodness on an emotional level!

Why do we Perceive Emotions as Bad

If emotions are good, why are we so quick to label them as bad? I will be the first to say that for years I perceived being emotional was a negative attribute. I did not live for the Lord at this time in my life, so obviously I did not see the blessing behind God creating emotions.

However, after prioritizing a relationship with the Lord, reading His word, and seeking answers to questions I had, I realized the answer was quite simple: the devil. Because the devil’s desire is to destroy God’s perfect creation (“The thief comes only to steal, kill, and destroy…” John 10:10), he tries to turn what God created for good and pervert it into something that is no longer good. The devil does this to emotions too. And if we are not seeking the Lord, we lose ourselves in the emotions God created for our good (“…I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10).

Seeking the Lord When You’re Struggling Emotionally

- I feel alone : Isaiah 41:10 , psalm 23:4

  - I feel lost : Jeremiah 29:11 , Romans 8:28

- My heart hurts : Psalm 34:18 , Lamentations 3:33

- I feel sad : Luke 6:21 , Matthew 5:4

- struggling with faith : Matthew 17:20 , Lamentations 2:22-23

- staying patient : Psalm 27:14 , Hebrews 10:36

- Feeling hopeless : Jeremiah 29:13 , Proverbs 23:18

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God is the creator of all feelings and emotions; which means they are not bad. You should never ignore how you feel, you should acknowledge your emotions because they will never just “go away.” Ignoring is never the solution. However, do not focus so much on how you feel that you lose faith in the creator of your feelings/emotions. In all things, especially emotionally, we should seek the Lord and His understanding. When we seek the Lord and His goodness, the devil cannot taint what God blesses.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding;”

Proverbs 3:5