Beliefs Influence Thoughts And Thoughts Influence Feelings

Females can be emotional... happy on one day, and feeling like the world is crashing around them the next. Smiling in the morning and then crying—sometimes for no discernible reason— only a few hours later.

 

And apparently, changing feelings are the norm for others and not just females.

 

Beliefs influence thoughts, and thoughts influence feelings. One way or another, all our emotions, both positive and negative, overflow from what we're inwardly convinced of. Think about it. If you believed that your mocha latte had been poisoned, would you actually consume it like you normally do—savoring every last sip?

So, what am I getting at?

As Christians, we often allow our emotions to wreak havoc with us:

 

We don't always feel like God loves us.

We don't always feel zealous for the gospel.

We don't always feel overwhelmed with joy.

We don't always feel forgiven.

 

We deeply desire to feel these things, but sometimes... well, the feelings just aren't there.

Take a look at Job. On a day during the height of his enjoyment of God's blessings—without any warning—two things happen that change his life forever. A breathless servant arrives, carrying a message: Job's wealth has been obliterated. Before he has even a second to absorb this, another messenger arrives, with even worse news. Job's children have met sudden, violent deaths. And what does he do? Not what most people would expect—he falls to the ground, and there, face down... he worships.

 

He worships!

 

In the midst of Job's greatest crisis, he exclaims, "The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised" (See Job 1:21b) springs spontaneously from his lips. Job's reaction doesn't make rational sense. In fact, it defies cause and effect.

 

How could his first, reaction be to praise God?

Acceptance is one thing, but adoration?

There's only one explanation—Job's emotional response came from a firm, unshakable conviction.

 

It was his belief in the goodness of God that compelled him to worship. Job's relationship with God wasn't based off of circumstances, or the feelings produced by those circumstances. The reason he "didn't curse God and die" (See Job 2:9), as his wife advised, was because his relationship with God rested on one solid, reliable foundation—truth.

 

If we allow ourselves to be directed by our feelings, we will quickly find ourselves obscured in fog, upside down, and probably headed for disaster. We need a stronger foundation—a foundation informed by the truth and supported by belief, not sustained by emotions. Only this kind of relationship will enable us to produce God-glorifying feelings in any circumstance.