Check Under the Hood
"Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts!" - Psalm 139:23
When your car’s engine light comes on, it’s an indicator that something needs attention under the hood. The same thing happens in life. When emotions like anger, sadness, or resentment flare up, they’re signals that something is going on beneath the surface. The question is, do you have the courage to look under the hood? The truth is you don’t have to do it alone. God longs to walk with you through that process.
Take Paul, for example. In Acts 15, Paul had a disagreement with Barnabas over whether to bring John Mark along on a missionary journey. This wasn’t just a simple difference of opinion, it was the result of Paul’s unresolved resentment toward John Mark for deserting them earlier.
His reaction to Barnabas was shaped by what he was still holding on to from his past experience with John Mark. This teaches us something important: What we bring into a situation often affects how we respond to it. If you’re carrying anger or hurt from one place, it’s likely to spill over into other areas of your life.
That’s why it’s crucial to take stock of where you are emotionally. If you don’t, you might find yourself reacting to situations based on unresolved feelings from your past, projecting onto others what you’ve been carrying from elsewhere. But here’s an important distinction: Emotions and feelings are not the same.
Emotions are physical reactions in your body, while feelings are the meaning you assign to those emotions in your mind. For instance, when you feel anger, your body might tense up, your heart might race, and your voice may change. That’s the emotion. But how you interpret that anger, whether it leads you to feel distrust, defensiveness, or suspicion, that’s the feeling.
So, when the emotional warning lights come on in your life, don’t ignore them. Ask God to search your heart and help you deal with what’s going on beneath the surface. Pay attention to where you are emotionally so you can address it in a healthy way, and let God help you navigate the emotions that arise.
When your car’s engine light comes on, it’s an indicator that something needs attention under the hood. The same thing happens in life. When emotions like anger, sadness, or resentment flare up, they’re signals that something is going on beneath the surface. The question is, do you have the courage to look under the hood? The truth is you don’t have to do it alone. God longs to walk with you through that process.
Take Paul, for example. In Acts 15, Paul had a disagreement with Barnabas over whether to bring John Mark along on a missionary journey. This wasn’t just a simple difference of opinion, it was the result of Paul’s unresolved resentment toward John Mark for deserting them earlier.
His reaction to Barnabas was shaped by what he was still holding on to from his past experience with John Mark. This teaches us something important: What we bring into a situation often affects how we respond to it. If you’re carrying anger or hurt from one place, it’s likely to spill over into other areas of your life.
That’s why it’s crucial to take stock of where you are emotionally. If you don’t, you might find yourself reacting to situations based on unresolved feelings from your past, projecting onto others what you’ve been carrying from elsewhere. But here’s an important distinction: Emotions and feelings are not the same.
Emotions are physical reactions in your body, while feelings are the meaning you assign to those emotions in your mind. For instance, when you feel anger, your body might tense up, your heart might race, and your voice may change. That’s the emotion. But how you interpret that anger, whether it leads you to feel distrust, defensiveness, or suspicion, that’s the feeling.
So, when the emotional warning lights come on in your life, don’t ignore them. Ask God to search your heart and help you deal with what’s going on beneath the surface. Pay attention to where you are emotionally so you can address it in a healthy way, and let God help you navigate the emotions that arise.
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