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In his book, Handbook for Christ-Centered Counseling, 1 Dr. Charles Solomon uses this beautiful Scripture when showing a troubled, anxious soul that the problem he/she is facing really isn't with their circumstance, thoughts, or feelings; but rather, Dr. Solomon would describe it as a "spiritual problem." Not knowing how God makes His Spirit a reality within the person is a problem of the spirit. Or it can be further explained that one does not know how to let the Holy Spirit, working through one's spirit, meet the needs of his/her soul.
A soul is comprised of three components. The mind processes and compiles the accumulation of all we have learned to think. The will makes the decisions on what one thinks. And, the emotions are the soul, or personality, relating to self and others' consciousness.
As believers, our spirit is alive to God. "Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus" (Romans 6:11). It is in union with the Spirit of Christ Jesus. It's the inner most identity, and where our Lord communicates with us. This is where we are God-conscious.
In this article, I will be focusing on the "emotions" aspect of the soul. Over the last six months, the Lord has been showing me certain understandings of such a gripping, misleading distraction to our identity.
It was at a Grace Life Conference where I first heard the Godly explanation concerning the worldly phrase, "You are what you feel." Don Higgins (a gifted teacher of the Word from Crossways to Life 2 - Ontario, Canada) explained that the world looks at how you feel; first, to allow you to know who you are. You act upon those feelings, and in turn, you believe in what you acted out. You then conclude that this is what you must be! For example: if one was feeling inferior, he would then act inferiorly, believe he was inferior, and know it was true.
God's way is the exact opposite. We first know who we are, believers in Christ, and our identity with Him. We believe it to be true, we act on our beliefs, and feelings will come. Example: as believers, we have been given the fullness of His Joy. What happens if we're not feeling joyful? God's Word says it is true. Know that you have the fullness of joy in you, believe it, act on it, and joy comes - not always right away, but it will come, for it is of Him who is in you.
When one's life journey has had many events causing the volume of the soul to get loud (for example, feelings to be turned up), one can struggle with allowing the knowledge of God to overcome or precede the emotions of the moment.
As a believer, this can be one of my personal 'thorns in the flesh'- to trust in what I know to be God's Truth and not letting the feelings of my soul deceit this knowledge. I can conclude this because my emotions can be hard to track. Being brought up in a home of physical and emotional abuse, I learned early in life to tuck my feelings away and pretend all is fine. Years later, as a believer walking in the Lord, I would find myself focusing on Him, knowing my identity, only to find emotions...read more here
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1 Charles Solomon. Handbook for Christ-Centered Counseling. (Sevierville, TN: Solomon Publications, 2000).
2 Crossways to Life. Ontario, Canada www.crosswaystolife.org
Laurie Penner (Alberta, CANADA) is a contributing writer for IOM America - Transformational Biblical Worldview & Exchange Life Development.
Permission obtained from writer to republish Be Anxious for Nothing. Please credit writer of article.
All Scriptures, unless otherwise stated, are taken from the New American Standard Bible,� Copyright 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.
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