Veroni's Views

God and Our Emotions

The Book of Psalms provides a remarkable account of human emotions.  The Psalms often also provide God’s perspective on our emotions and describe how the Psalmist reached a solution or resolution.  Today I want to focus on one of the Psalms that describe raw emotions and how God helped the Psalmist to deal with them.  I strongly encourage you to read Psalm 73 in its entirety.

The Psalmist had struck some great difficulty:  

Ps 73.1-3         Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart.  But as for me, my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold.  For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

It drove him to despondency:

Ps 73.13-14   Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and have washed my hands in innocence.  All day long I have been afflicted, and every morning brings new punishments.

His despondency developed into extremes:

Ps 73.16.  When I tried to understand all this, it troubled me deeply.

Ps 73.21-22  When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered, I was senseless and ignorant;  I was a brute beast before you.

In this condition, the Psalmist discovered the wonderful truth that God knows and understands what we feel.

Ps 103.14 says “He knows how we are formed, He remembers that we are dust.”

The Psalmist also discovered that God meets us where we are.  He had an experience with God:

His condition lasted until he had this experience.  I verse 17 he says he “entered the sanctuary of God”.  I believe this means he had an experience of God’s presence.

Then he realized that God had always been with him 

Ps 73.23   Yet I am always with you; you hold me by my right hand.

He regains his perspective and even looks ahead

Ps 73.24  You guide me with your counsel, and afterward you will take me into glory.

You see, God meets us where we are and helps us to deal with our circumstances

But there is more:

God shares our emotions

John 11.1-44 contains the narrative of the raising of Lazarus.

At the graveside:

Jesus experienced deep grief 

John 11.35 “Jesus wept” 

Why did He weep?

            Not because Lazarus had died

            He knew He was going to raise him from the dead. 

Jesus wept because he felt the neediness of the people

I believe it is safe to say that God experiences every emotion that we can ever experience.  

But there is still more:   The awesome God we serve meets us where we are, He shares our emotions with us, but He is also not inactive but acts in our behalf.  He not only wept at the graveside of Lazarus, He actually raised him from the dead.  

God can do something about your circumstances

Today God speaks to his people to comfort and strengthen them.  He speaks to us as his people, but also to each individual, that is, to you and me.

He is waiting for you to meet Him.

He is ready to help you in your circumstances

Prayer is a good place to seek an experience with God, as the old hymn reminds us.

Sweet hour of prayer 
That calls me from a world of care
And bids me at my Father’s throne 
Make all my wants and wishes known 
In seasons of distress and grief 
My soul has often found relief 
And oft escaped the tempter’s snare 
By Thy return, sweet hour of prayer

Let us pray:

Father, we thank you that you understand us, and share our deepest emotions.  We commit bring ourselves anew today.  Please help us to trust you to enable us to deal with every circumstance in our lives.  In Jesus Name, Amen.