“We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,”  2 Corinthians 10:5
A while back, I was given the opportunity to guest teach a
youth girl’s class at my church on the topic of managing emotions.  I was thrilled to be assigned this lesson
because it’s an area of my life I’ve really been working on over the last
couple of years. 
Now, with that being said, there are still moments you could
speak to me and think, “She’s come a long way in learning to control her
emotions???  Yikes, what was she like
before?”  That’s why I mercifully
claim the scriptures above, Philippians 3:13-14, as my life verses; I think
they perfectly summarize our Christian journey. 
I haven’t obtained perfection in managing my emotions but I am pressing
forward and seeing progress with each passing day.  Hey, it’s not easy breaking a habit that’s
dug in over 30+ years (don’t ask how many pluses!). 
But, I’m determined to
exit the emotional roller coaster once and for all and resist all future rides.
I shared with those sweet and crazy girls an example of how
terrible it would be to have an unstable boss at work.  Someone who’s up one minute, down the
next.  Someone who lies constantly, stirs
up trouble where there is none and is just simply unpredictable.  None of us would want to be managed by
someone like that and yet many of us are…our emotions.
Emotions are based on
feelings and feelings aren’t stable!  Feelings
are unstable because they can be easily swayed by so many things:
  • our
    circumstances
  • who we
    are around and their attitudes
  • how
    much rest we’ve been getting or not getting
  • our
    insecurities
  • hormones
  • other’s
    opinions of us
  • how we
    feel physically
  • how
    much time we’ve spent with God                    
                                                                                                the
list is endless!
Not only are emotions
unstable, but they also lie:
  • emotions
    can convince you a friend is angry with you when really, they are just
    having a bad day and it has nothing to do with you
  • they
    say you aren’t good enough, aren’t liked or accepted when nothing could be
    further from the truth
  • they
    convince you someone was talking bad about you when you entered the room
    when they were actually saying how much they love your outfit
  • they
    whisper that things will never get any better and that you can’t change
    when God’s word clearly offers hope to the contrary
You get the picture. 
Emotions can be mean little boogers!
So, if emotions are unstable and lie, why are we so easily
lead by them?

We’ll tackle that question tomorrow but until then,
I’d love to hear your thoughts, ideas and struggles with emotions. I could use
all the insight you are willing to pass along.