SCRIPTURE: Joel 2:13 (GN)
“Let your broken
heart show your sorrow; tearing your clothes is not enough." Come back to
the Lord your God. He is kind and full of mercy; he is patient and keeps his
promise; he is always ready to forgive and not punish.
STORY as shared by James
S. Flora:
A group of motion-picture engineers classified the following
as the ten most dramatic sounds in the movies: a baby's first cry; the blast of
a siren; the thunder of breakers on rocks; the roar of a forest fire; a
foghorn; the slow drip of water; the galloping of horses; the sound of a
distant train whistle; the howl of a dog; the wedding march. And one of these
sounds causes more emotional response and upheaval than any other, has the
power to bring forth almost every human emotion: sadness, envy, regret, sorrow,
tears, as well as supreme joy. It is the wedding march.
OBSERVATION:
What stirs our emotions? The motion picture industry has
discovered how to manipulate our emotions through sounds. And when those sounds
are linked to images it becomes a powerful tool to control the viewer. Emotions
are powerful. Is that why many go to great lengths to hide their emotions?
Here I’m thinking of my father. He was easily stirred
emotionally by what he saw on TV and yet, he never allowed those emotions to
find expression outwardly. The tears would be there in his eyes, but would be
quickly brushed aside, wiped away, denied and forgotten. We never really got to
see that side of his personality. And rarely did we witness him being affectionate
towards mom … because men were not supposed to have emotions! It was some
stupid ideal of being strong, manly or some crazy notion of another era.
When carry this notion over into our relationship with God
we can get into trouble. As Joel states, “Let your broken heart show your
sorrow…” Let it be known. Let it be seen. Let our guard down and let the
emotions flow naturally from the depths of our being. It is the only thing that
can breakdown the barriers that have been built between God and us.
I have often wondered how many men have kept the living Lord
at arms length because they are afraid of their emotions. And even further, I
have often wondered how many women fail to understand because they approach the
relationship solely based on emotions. Now, before everyone comments … yes, I
know that these are huge generalities painted with massive brush strokes
because there are men who show emotions and there are women who are deep
thinkers … but I was just wondering … generally speaking that is.
Spiritual healing includes the heart and the head. God
cannot do for you what you are afraid of him doing because of some outdated “ideal”
of what it means to be masculine or feminine.
PRAYER:
Help us to stop running away from the emotions that are
within us. Bring us into a personal relationship with you.
QUOTE by Max Lucado, No Wonder They Call
Him the Savior, page 108:
To put a lock and key
on your emotions is to bury part of your Christ-likeness! Especially when you
come to Calvary. You can’t go to the cross with just your head and not your
heart. It doesn’t work that way. Calvary is not a mental trip…. It’s a
heart-splitting hour of emotion…. Look again. Those are nails in those hands.
That’s God on that cross. It’s us who put him there.
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