Pursuing Emotional Health Psalm 42:1 As the deer pants for the water, so my soul longs for you Psalm 63:8 My soul longs after you Luke 4:18 (NKJV) He has sent Me to heal the broken-hearted (broken souls) Reasons why we are Emotionally Unhealthy: Uninformed regarding scriptures reference and care of the soul. Wrong perception of Health. (Diarrhea or Constipation) Dysfunctional boundaries. Unskilled in evaluating and processing soul s indicators. I m broken, everybody s broken and it s ok. It is NOT ok for me to STAY broken. 1. Soul health is the starting point for the rest of your health: 3 John 1:2 (NIV) Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well. God wants your soul to PROSPER- so the rest of you will prosper! 2. God Restores your Soul: Psalm 23:2-3 (NIV) He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my SOUL. 3. God says to Protect your Soul Proverbs 4:23 (NIV) Above all else, guard your heart (soul), for everything you do flows from it. Philippians 4:7 (NIV) And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts (SOUL) and your minds in Christ Jesus. 4. Confession heals your Soul James 5:16 (KJV) Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
Fault: Transliterated: (Greek) Paraptoma trespass 9, offence 7, sin 3, fall 2, fault 2 Definition 1. to fall beside or near something 2. a lapse or deviation from truth and uprightness a. a sin, misdeed 2a: WEAKNESS, FAILING especially : a moral weakness less serious than a vice He loves her despite her many faults. b: a physical or intellectual imperfection or impairment : DEFECT a theory with some serious faults 4: responsibility for wrongdoing or failure the accident was the driver's fault 5: a fracture in the crust of a planet (such as the earth) or moon accompanied by a displacement of one side of the fracture with respect to the other usually in a direction parallel to the fracture Frequent earthquakes have occurred along the San Andreas Fault. The Five A s 1. AWARE: You have to be aware when something hits you sideways! FEAR CYCLE!: Can you identify your broken places? Your Feelings are like the lights on your car dashboard. Your Feelings aren t the problem; they indicate there is a problem! Tune into signals that alert you to your feelings. Pay attention to feelings: indicates that something is wrong in my heart. Whoever you hurt you (right then) probably isn t the one who broke you! But we blame them!! Dad s broken foot story Pain revealed dad s foot was broken but I didn t break it. Psalm 31:9 NIV Be merciful to me, Lord, for I am in distress; my eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief. He knows something is wrong in his heart! KEY THOUGHTS. Incorrect: Ignoring or stuffing what my heart may be telling me. Correct: Is my heart experiencing anything out of the ordinary right now?
2. ACCEPT Welcome your feelings (whether positive or negative) and accept the job to care and learn from the specific experience(s). Assuming responsibility for your healing isn t accepting the blame, it s acknowledging that you are broken, but have no intention of remaining that way. You intend on creating an attitude and environment for God to do a miracle in your heart. Reactions: Abdicate, Act Out, Anger/Rage, Avoidance, Blame, Caretaking, Catastrophize, Clinginess, Complain, Criticize, Defensiveness, Denial, Earn-it Mode, Escalate, Exaggeration, Fix-it Mode, Humor (to avoid), Indifference, Invalidate, Isolate, Judge, Lecture, Minimize, Manipulate, Mind Read, Minimize, Nag, Negative Beliefs (about others), Negative Body Language, Passive Aggression, Pessimism, Provoke, Rationalize, Repeat Yourself, Sarcasm, Self- Abandon, Self- Deprecate, Selfishness, Shut Down, Stonewall, Strike Out, Stubborn, Tantrums, Withdraw, Withhold (affections, feelings or intimacy from others). NO ONE CONTROLS YOUR REACTIONS! 2 Corinthians 10:4-5 (NIV) 4 The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. The thoughts that we don t take captive, will take us captive. That s why we call it the Sabotage Cycle. Understand, when we react we are SELF sabotaging! Keeping ourselves from getting what we want. KEY THOUGHTS Incorrect: Blame others- He/she makes me feel, made me upset, angry, bitter Correct: I am the one who is responsible for caring for my heart. Fire everyone else!
3. ALLOW Go to God first: give time to God and get HIS perspective. What Is God saying about this? You do not have to care for yourself without help. Romans 8:26 (NKJV) Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. Psalm 23:1-3 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul KEY THOUGHTS Incorrect: Assume you know what is going on. I should feel guilt. Correct: What is God s perspective in the situation, what is God saying to you? God will correct, but encourage 4. ATTEND Identify the feeling & explore what is needed in the moment to move towards or maintain emotional health. Where is this feeling coming from? Tell yourself the Truth! There is NO Shame in how you feel! Remember: it s your perceived reality, may NOT be real. It s a feeling, but it s coming from somewhere. I understand why people feel: Alone, abandoned, disappointment, judged, hurt etc. Do you? Psalm 22:1-2 (NLT) My God, my God, why have you abandoned me? Why are you so far away when I groan for help? Every day I call to you, my God, but you do not answer. Every night I lift my voice, but I find no relief.
Feelings: Abandoned, Alone, Betrayed, Controlled, Deceived, Defective, Disappointment, Disconnected, Disrespected, Failure, Helpless/Powerless, Humiliated, Ignored, Inadequate, Inferior, Insignificant, Invalidated, Judged, Mis-portrayed, Misunderstood, Not Good Enough, Phony, Rejected, Taken Advantage Of, Unaware, Unfair, Unimportant, Unknown, Unloved, Unwanted, Worthless. KEY THOUGHTS: Incorrect: Nothing is wrong, just get over it. There is nothing I can do about how I feel. Correct: Seek God s truth for my situation- tell yourself the Truth and believe it! 5. ACT Act in a way that is consistent with the person who you WANT to be in light of God s design and vision for you. Psalm 42:5 Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God. James 1:2-3 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. The Trial reveals who you are. How do you know: If you are a kind person unless someone is unkind to you? If you are a loving person, unless someone hates you? If you are a forgiving person, unless you have been betrayed? HOW you React or Respond Is the person who you really are! KEY THOUGHTS: Incorrect: Respond in my own wisdom or strength. Correct: Who do I want to be point your heart in THAT direction. Act like THAT person would act. Be your own HERO (of course Jesus!)