Maturing through difficult times

Maturing in difficult times....

"We all meet difficulty in this life, no matter who we are.  The key is how we respond to it.  The apostle Paul discovered that by admitting his frailty, not denying it, he opened the door for God's healing power."

There's the first step in maturing in my opinion.  Admitting you are not perfect.  Admitting you have failures...admitting you are a lowly sinner.  

"our emotions are brainless reactors.  Emotions make no distinction between a present reality and a fictitious fantasy.  Emotions cannot think for themselves.  They merely respond."

Emotions are not wrong.  We were created with emotions.  Have you not seen the difference of emotions between a man and a woman? We were created to have emotions and experience them...Jesus did.  Sometimes we freak out though.  We think we are bipolar, crazy, EMOTIONAL, a wreak...when really those are thoughts.  WE look to hide or change our feelings rather than realizing it is our thinking that needs to change.  We can never change our emotions...it's part of who we are.  We can only change what we choose to think, not what we feel.

I have been told I act "defensively" when I am attacked or called out.  I can't change those emotions but I can change how I respond to them.  With some people it's easier than others.  I find that weird.  My reaction to harsh words from a sister in Christ is just to break down and cry...and separate myself from the world.  My reaction to family...even my husband...is defensive reactions...

Jesus is our Healer.  In his Word, the Healer does not appeal to our emotions in order to change them.  INstead, he appeals to our minds in order to renew them.

"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is - his good, pleasing and perfect will."

As we experience the renewing of our mindsets, we can walk through trouble without the trouble itself determining how we think and consequently feel about ourselves.  The trouble may not go away for some time, but our attitudes and responses in the midst of circumstances can change dramatically.  As the Healer renews our minds, we can experience significant changes in how we feel.