Harnessing Our Emotions
Emotions are a beautiful gift given to us by God so we can enjoy life. Yet many people have problems with their emotions. I’m here to tell you that it is possible to harness or control your emotions so you can live a full life.
For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he Proverbs 23:7 (KJV)
If we look closely at the verse, we can easily pinpoint how to get a handle on our emotions so they don’t control our lives. The word heart in this verse is the Hebrew word nephesh, which refers to the soul, self, life, person. And from other articles we have posted, you already know that the soul of a person is their mind, will, and emotions.. So, this verse could be translated “As a man thinks in his mind, so is he.” And according to E.W. Bullinger, the word thinketh could be translated “estimates himself.”
From this, we can figure out that how we think will affect how we feel. If we control our thoughts, we can control our emotions. Happy thoughts produce happy emotions. Angry thoughts produce angry feelings. And if we act upon bad feelings, we can get ourselves in big trouble. And thoughts can decide how we feel about ourselves, God and others. The way we choose to think about a thing can determine how we feel about it. So, to control our emotions, we must first control our thoughts and words.
This is the usual connection between thoughts, emotions, and the quality of our lives. Thoughts come to us, some from God, some from the devil, and some from us. As thoughts come, it is up to us what to do with them. If we entertain them and accept them, then we experience emotions tied to those thoughts. Eventually we usually end up speaking them out of our mouths. And words have power that usually lead to actions. And once we have acted on our emotions, we experience the results- sometimes good and sometimes not so good.
As thoughts come, we must consider the outcome if we act on that thought. We must be mindful of the emotional response that comes with a particular thought. For example, entertaining a thought that tells us we are no good will not bring joyful emotions. We have to reject negative thougths like that which we know are not from God.
To have good emotions and good health, we must control our thoughts with the Word of God. When we choose to think on the Word instead of on bad things, we release good emotions and healing and health to our bodies and souls. Man is such a integrated being, and emotional and mental issues can affect physical health as well. Cleaning up our thinking can heal emotional problems and turn around sickness in our bodies.
So, as we think, we become happy or sad, peaceful or upset, healthy or sick, etc. Having a controlled thought life is key to healthy emotions and a healthy life.
