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Nothing More than Feelings
| The TV show Star Trek
often contrasted the “feeling” Dr, McCoy with the passionless Mr.
Spock. This contrast was also captured in the movie The Zero Effect
with the saying, passion is the enemy or precision. Rather than
attempting to decide which is better, consideration should be given to
priority. God created us in his image and thus we have emotions.
However, we do not see God running amok as recorded of the supposed
gods of ancient Greece.
Emotions are the result of what we experience. When the cart is put
before the horse, we end up chasing after things that will make us feel
good. This is the path of alcoholism, drug addition, and all sorts of
self-stimulation. God made the world much more difficult after the
flood because it is human nature to pursue feeling good to the
exclusion of all else. Without understanding that natural difficulties
exist to force us to limit our self-destructiveness, we see them as
obstacles to our comfort. historically we can observe prosperous
societies rot from within from having obtained the means to provide
self-indulgence and stimulation.
Rage is an obvious indicator of emotions out of control. Shouts of
Trump being Hitler, road rage, and being bullied reflect a triggered
emotional reaction. Suddenness and unexpectedness are also contributing
factors. While emotional outburst such as anger or crying are more
obvious, allowing emotions to rule our lives can be much more
dangerous. Consider the seducer who tells a young girl she can be a
model and then directs her to a path of prostitution. Being vulnerable
to the emotional appeal of flattery can be a path to misery.
Advertisers seek to trigger positive emotional responses to increase
their sales.
People can be driven to accept things they otherwise would not if they
can be assured that in doing so, they can avoid anxiety. Many people do
not see in truth that which makes them feel good. As a result, they can
be made to accept what is not true as truth so that they can avoid
undesired emotional reactions. The avoidance of truth brings a sort of
blindness. Consider societies that achieved peace and prosperity. They
soon devolved into what can be called a flood of dissipation and became
weakened to the point where they are invaded, enslaved, or otherwise
ruined. The same is true at the individual level as well. Blindness to
truth in favor of feeling good does not often end well.
The desire to feel good can shut many doors. The person who is
persuaded that he has the “right” answer to questions about
Christianity may lock himself into a position that prevents further
learning and maturity. People tend to avoid those that might provoke
them to examine their assumptions. As a result, the insular life can
become a prison, a comfortable one, but still a prison.
The church service with self-stimulating emotional appeal and affirming
messages can be an attractive experience. however, learning to be like
Jesus is seldom found in environments of self. Having emotional
and emotional responses is not bad, it is just that one can be led
astray and even crippled by making our decisions based oh what feels
good.
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? - Jeremiah 17:9 |
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