Topic: Handling Your Hard Emotions – Daily Devotional by Proverbs 31 Ministries 4 APRIL 2024
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Handling Your Hard Emotions
APRIL 4, 2024
“Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image …'” Genesis 1:26 (NIV)
“For this to work, you need to leave your mask at the door.”
These were words my counselor spoke to me in our second meeting. The first meeting was when she handed me a book on boundaries, which felt like a very blunt way to tell me I had a problem.
Now, when she told me to leave my mask at the door, it was all I could do not to fake a stomachache and never return.
She was saying I couldn’t keep my happy-go-lucky face on in counseling. It would get in the way of making progress. Instead, she challenged me to be honest in expressing my emotions … honest with myself and God.
But I thought showing frustration, anger, disappointment and sadness as a Christian was wrong. I thought if I believed in God, then I shouldn’t express these bad emotions because they were just that: bad.
That’s when my counselor kindly stopped me again and said, “Those aren’t bad emotions. They’re hard emotions. They’re uncomfortable to sit with. But they are God-given. He isn’t afraid of our emotions. He wants us to be honest about our feelings.”
You see, we were created in God’s image: “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image …’” (Genesis 1:26). Our purpose as image bearers is to glorify God, and He has given us so many emotions to feel as we walk out this calling. Our full range of emotions is a blessing. Even hard emotions have a purpose: For example, sadness can help us value joy. Anger and frustration can help us respond to injustice and value peace and stability. And our hard emotions drive us to depend on God.
Jesus experienced some hard emotions too:
- Frustration with merchants in the temple (Matthew 21:12-13).
- Sadness when His friend Lazarus died (John 11:35).
- Loneliness when He was on the cross (Matthew 27:46).
Though our emotions, if not dealt with and processed well, can lead us to sin, Jesus’ emotions stemmed from His righteous love for His people. In His anger, He did not sin. In His grief, He did not sin.
This “aha!” moment, realizing that all emotions are God-given, was freeing for me. And maybe you find yourself feeling a little freer too?
You may be:
- Upset with your child who hasn’t picked up their toys.
- Frustrated with a friend who keeps canceling plans.
- Angry at a spouse for the way they’re handling a work situation.
And those are OK feelings. We just don’t want to stay there all the time. We want to understand why we’re feeling how we’re feeling, repent if our emotions have led us to sin, and ask for the Holy Spirit’s help to handle our hard emotions with grace.
I’m becoming more comfortable not only leaving my mask outside the door of my counselor’s office but also when I meet with friends or in my church small group. I’m still not the best at expressing hard emotions … but it’s not about perfection. It’s about progress.
God, thank You for the gift of emotions. Thank You for Your grace on days I don’t get it all right. May Your Holy Spirit work in me so I get better at processing and expressing my emotions each day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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