It’s Ok To Not Be Ok

For as long as I can remember, I have always been a counselor at heart serving as the sounding board for my family, my friends, and mentees.

While I recognize that I don’t have all the answers, I do know that I serve a God who does. The truth is, Jesus always knows what we need and when we need it. We’ve all experienced tough seasons that have left us feeling depleted, discouraged, and maybe we wanted to throw in the towel. Can I encourage you today that it's okay? It’s okay to not be okay… even as Christians.

If you’re like me, someone may have told you that your emotions are a sign of weakness or that you should just ignore them. But I want to let you know that couldn’t be further from the truth. In fact, God gave us all the ability to feel and have emotions.

The world teaches us that our thoughts inform our emotions, but the Bible tells us otherwise. Proverbs 15:13 (NIV) says, “A happy heart makes the face cheerful,” meaning that when I’m in an emotionally good space, there’s a physical manifestation. But then it goes on to say, “…but heartache crushes the spirit.” That means that we can be in an emotional space so difficult that it disrupts our spirit.

So that tells us that our emotional health and our spiritual health are inseparable! We can’t be spiritually healthy without being emotionally healthy. To tend to, to give yourself permission to feel your emotions is divine work.

Think about Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane. Matthew 26:36-39 (MSG) says:

Then Jesus went with them to a garden called Gethsemane and told his disciples, “Stay here while I go over there and pray.” Taking along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, he plunged into an agonizing sorrow. Then he said, “This sorrow is crushing my life out. Stay here and keep vigil with me.”

39 Going a little ahead, he fell on his face, praying, “My Father, if there is any way, get me out of this. But please, not what I want. You, what do you want?”

- Matthew 26:36-39

Jesus was in tune with His emotions. He knew He was about to be crucified on the cross and so He cried out to the Lord in prayer. And in this passage, Jesus is modeling how we should respond when our emotions are attempting to take the lead. If you’re able, step away and cry out to God. Pray to Him.

Today, allow the Father to be your compass, not your emotions!

Som Tami

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