Emotions organize - rather than disrupt - rational thinking. Traditionally, in the history of Western thought, the prevailing view has been that emotions are enemies of rationality and disruptive of cooperative social relations. Dacher Keltner is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley. The Science of Inside Out, The New York Times

 

It's an old Sunday school question, what is the shortest verse in the Bible? A hint...it is from John 11.35.

 

Jesus wept.

 

Its an amazing verse for in those two short words we feel the full humanity of Jesus. He has arrived at a friend's house to learn Lazarus has died. He loved Lazarus, deeply. And He wept.

 

For many years there were many well known authors, scholars, even preachers who described emotions as positive, the ones to have or negative the ones to avoid or get rid of quickly. This was so pervasive, we still hear it in our own reactions apologizing for tearing up, or hiding that we are afraid, or even punishing ourselves for getting angry. We should be above such responses.

 

The reality is emotions are not positive nor negative, they are emotions. And as their etymology indicates, they move, they flow. Researchers indicate that emotions when allowed to flow freely often express and move through you in a few out breaths, and they are gone. What more often occurs is we have a feeling, we judge that it is not okay to be feeling (wrong feeling, wrong time, wrong something), and we block the flow. And the feeling get stuck in our system, they don't go anywhere they just attach themselves to a part of us. Often times when someone seems stuck with sadness, or anger it might be more of the reality they didn't felt those emotions all the way through and they got stuck.

 

Another verse that is used is don't let the sun go down on your anger. (Ephesians 4.26). For years, I heard individuals quote this as do not be angry. But that's not what it says. It almost assumes there will be anger; and to feel it out and full before you sleep.

 

I recently saw the movie, Inside Out. Its a wonderful Pixar movie about emotions. It truly is a movie to go see, I believe it is more for adults than kids. It depicts how vital all our emotions are and how when we just feel them, they are such gifts in our lives to inform us and keep us healthy. There is a powerful lesson in how no emotion is better than another and how they need each other. And its very imaginative and playful.

 

Scripture is filled with references of emotions expressed. And specifically, Jesus expresses and demonstrates their enormous value by having them.

 

In that verse, Jesus wept. Jesus knew at some point he was going to do something of resurrection with Lazarus. When his eyes filled with tears, he doesn't talk or think himself out of feeling and say, "Oh man he's going to be okay there's no reason to cry" or "You had better get it together everyone is watching you".

 

We are told, He wept. He allows himself to feel the full sadness in that moment all the way through of losing his beloved friend. What a gift for us from this our Lord.

 

Welcome our emotions, let them flow, all of them. We might get messier and yet a lot more authentic and much more alive.

 

Peace,

Dee