Feelings: Don't Be Afraid To Express Them
Work It Out~ Have you been in a tough situation recently when you found it hard to express your feelings? Maybe someone in your family was very sick or your parents were going through a divorce. Perhaps your boyfriend or girlfriend broke up with you. Whatever the situation, you were hurting. Were you able to get all of your feelings out into the open? Or did you have a hard time expressing how you felt?
Everyone has been in a tough situation at one time or another. Jesus was in one when his friend Lazarus died. Jesus loved Lazarus and his sisters. They were his close friends. Now Lazarus was dead, and Mary and Martha were hurting. Jesus stood in front of the tomb, and he cried.
The next time you're in a situation and it hurts, take a lesson from the Teacher of all teachers: Cry about it.
Nail It Down~ Read John 11:35 where Jesus expressed his feelings.
Think It Through~ Why are people uncomfortable when someone cries? Even when a loved one dies, people will often pat on the back the one who is crying and say, "Oh, don't cry." Crying gives outward evidence of inward pain. It's like drawing a picture of the pain for everyone to look at, and people are often uncomfortable with such pictures.
Crying is as beautiful a way to express hurt as laughter is to express happiness. Don't be afraid of it. Crying releases the tension that grief causes. Crying can blunt the sharp edges of hurt. Crying eases the pain of tough situations.
The next time you're in a hard situation, if someone tells you, "Oh, don't cry about it," politely ignore them and go on expressing your feelings-just as Jesus did.
Nail It Down~ Reread the little verse in John 11:35. For further insight read Psalm 126:5-6.
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