Quote from Forum Archives on September 6, 2002, 10:01 am

Posted by: masinick <masinick@...>

Dear friends,

Today's message is a continuation of the series of messages that
Neil Anderson started about guarding our hearts and examining our
emotions. I'd like to share some of his messages on that topic
with you.

Please remember to pray for those who are still mourning loss
over the events almost a year ago in our nation's capital and our
largest city. God is still in control, even in those places.
Pray that God will bring healing to those who hurt, emotionally
and physically, those who are hungry, lonely, angry, or tired.
Think about H.A.L.T., the acronym to remember these four states
of mind. Then think of what God, through Christ, has done for
you personally. Hasn't He met your deepest needs, even if you
don't feel completely satisfied with what you're doing? Give
thanks to God, for He is Great, He is faithful, He is patient,
kind, and loving. Yes, He is my God and He is the One true God,
more than able to accomplish every purpose that He sets out to
do. In His time, everything will be made right.

Your Brother in Christ,
Brian

____________________________________________________________

SPONSOR | Visit the Worship Center for great music, new offers &
more! sda.goshen.net/cgi-bin/redirect.cgi?AD=intmusdevo2
____________________________

Coming in September...

The all-new Crosswalk.com! Faster load, fresh look, great reads,
and more...

N E I L A N D E R S O N D A I L Y D E V O T I O N A L
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

September 6, 2002

SUPPRESSION OF EMOTIONS

When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all
day long (Psalm 32:3 NIV).

Suppression of emotions is a conscious denial of feelings
(repression is an unconscious denial). Those who suppress their
emotions ignore their feelings and choose not to deal with them.
Suppression is an unhealthy response to your emotions.

King David had something to say about the negative impact of
suppressing his feelings in his relationship with God: "When I
kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day
long... Let everyone who is godly pray to You while You may be
found; surely when the mighty waters rise, they will not reach
him" (Psalm 32:3, 6 NIV). David is not saying that God takes
Himself out of our reach. When extraneous circumstances loom
larger to you than God, it will not take long for your emotions
to overcome you. When suppressed emotions build up within you
like "mighty waters," you won't turn to God. Your emotions will
be in control. It's important to open up to God while you can,
because if you bottle up your feelings too long, it will disrupt
the harmony of your relationship with Him.

David also commented on the impact of suppression on
relationships with people: "I said, 'I will guard my ways, that I
may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth as with a
muzzle, while the wicked are in my presence.' I was dumb and
silent, I refrained every from good; and my sorrow grew worse"
(Psalm 39:1, 2).

Don't cover over your emotions. Suppression isn't good for you,
for others, or for your relationship with God. God knows the
thoughts and intentions of our hearts, and others can sense that
something is wrong, because more is communicated nonverbally than
verbally. When the verbal doesn't match the nonverbal, people
believe the nonverbal. If we don't accurately express what we
believe, people will believe our nonverbal messages about what we
believe. Don't leave room for guesswork. Instead, "Speak truth,
each one of you, with his neighbor, for we are members of one
another" (Ephesians 4:25).

Lord, I want to live in honest agreement with You and others.
Give me the grace to speak the truth in love.

-----------
This daily devotional is published and distributed by
Crosswalk.com. It is written by Neil Anderson at
< www.ficm.org >.

Additional devotionals are available from Crosswalk.com:
< devotionals.crosswalk.com >.
-----------
To read the Current Feature Story from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentFeatureStory/

For today's complete News Summary from ReligionToday,
go to religiontoday.crosswalk.com/CurrentNewsSummary/

-----------
For Copyright Terms go to www.crosswalk.com/info/copyright

____________________SUBSCRIPTION INFO_______________________

* Copyright ? 2002 Crosswalk.com, Inc. and its Content
Providers. All rights reserved.

____________________________________________________________

=====
--
Brian Masinick, mailto:masinick@yahoo.com
Home page: www.geocities.com/masinick/

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Yahoo! Finance - Get real-time stock quotes
finance.yahoo.com