capable of controlling emotions at all times? Perhaps we would be like
Mr. Spock on Star Trek, as his responses to all situations seem to be
purely logical, never emotional. But God created us in His image, and
God's emotions are revealed in the Scriptures; therefore, God created
us emotional beings. We feel love, joy, happiness, guilt, anger,
disappointment, fear, etc. Sometimes our emotions are pleasant to
experience and sometimes not. Sometimes our emotions are grounded in
truth, and sometimes they are "false" in that they are based upon
false premises. For example, if we falsely believe that God is not in
control of the circumstances of our lives, we may experience the
emotions of fear or despair or anger based on that false belief.
Regardless, emotions are powerful and real to the one feeling them.
And emotions can be helpful indicators of what is going on in our
hearts.
That being said, it is important that we learn about managing emotions
rather than allowing our emotions to manage us. For example, when we
feel angry, it is important to be able to stop, identify that we are
angry, examine our hearts to determine why we are angry, and then
proceed in a biblical manner. Out-of-control emotions tend not to
produce God-honoring results: "Human anger does not produce the
righteousness that God desires" (James 1:20).
Our emotions, like our minds and bodies, are influenced greatly by the
fall of mankind into sin. In other words, our emotions are tainted by
our sin nature, and that is why they need controlling. The Bible tells
us we are to be controlled by the Holy Spirit (Romans 6; Ephesians
5:15–18; 1 Peter 5:6–11), not by our emotions. If we recognize our
emotions and bring them to God, we can then submit our hearts to Him
and allow Him to do His work in our hearts and direct our actions. At
times, this may mean God simply comforts us, reassures us, and reminds
us we need not fear. Other times, He may prompt us to forgive or to
ask for forgiveness. The psalms are an excellent example of managing
emotions and bringing our emotions to God. Many psalms are filled with
raw emotion, but the emotion is poured out to God in an attempt to
seek His truth and righteousness.
Sharing our feelings with others is also helpful in managing emotions.
The Christian life is not meant to be lived alone. God has given us
the gift of other believers who can share our burdens and whose
burdens we share (Romans 12; Galatians 6:1–10; 2 Corinthians 1:3–5;
Hebrews 3:13). Fellow believers can also remind us of God's truth and
offer new perspective. When we are feeling discouraged or afraid, we
can benefit from the encouragement, exhortation, and reassurance other
believers provide. Often, when we encourage others, we ourselves are
encouraged. Likewise, when we are joyful, our joy usually increases
when we share it.
Allowing our emotions to control us is not godly. Denying or vilifying
our emotions is not godly, either. We should thank God for our ability
to feel emotion and steward our emotions as a gift from God. The way
to manage our emotions is to grow in our walk with God. We are
transformed through the renewal of our minds (Romans 12:1–2) and the
power of the Holy Spirit—the One who produces in us self-control
(Galatians 5:23). We need daily input of scriptural principles, a
desire to grow in the knowledge of God, and time spent meditating on
God's attributes. We should seek to know more of God and share more of
our hearts with God through prayer. Christian fellowship is another
important part of spiritual growth. We journey with fellow believers
and help one another grow in faith as well as in emotional maturity.
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