Acting Amidst Your Feelings

Choices lead, feelings follow. My pastor says it all the time and it always holds true. We can’t live off feelings alone because they have the power to lead us astray. We can and should take our thoughts captive when it comes to our attitudes, our decisions, and our relationships. 

But how do we do this in our every day?

“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.” 2 Corinthians 10:5 (NIV)

We all face situations where we are tempted to be bitter and choose negative thoughts which breed negative attitudes and feelings, and conditional acts of love.

For myself, as my husband and I started out in marriage, I had a really hard time meshing with some of my husband’s friends. A handful of them were easy to get along with and welcomed me with open arms, but a few of his friends were not my biggest fans. It was honestly one of the hardest situations I’ve ever dealt with because I so badly wanted us to all be best friends, sharing vacations and weekly dinners. I had dreamt up a whole scenario in my mind that was not coming to fruition. And it was hard.

So, God asked me to do the hard thing like He does so many times in order to bring out the best, to bring out HIS best. 

And even though I didn’t want to, I asked one of my husband’s friends, who was a girl, to go get coffee. 

She said yes, and we met and talked about our differences and how we could put them behind us so our husbands could continue their friendship in peace. And we talked with hopes of becoming friends ourselves! 

Sometimes, we take our thoughts and feelings captive through obedience. Even though our feelings say otherwise, when we do the hard thing God asks first, our feelings follow. 

Kiss him first.

Apologize first.

Serve him even though he hasn’t for you.

Hold your tongue even though he pointed out your wrong.

Say the kind thing even though they didn’t.

Show up even though they didn’t.

Choices lead, feelings follow.

Wife Step: Sit and ask God to reveal to you ways in which He is asking you to simply obey Him, trusting the outcome to Him.

Kaitlin is a newlywed striving to be a strong half of a Kingdom team with her hunk of a husband. She is a lover of words, good coffee, and exploring new cities. Her favorite places include airports, hotel rooms, and bookstores and she has yet to meet a stranger she doesn’t like. Kaitlin is addicted to shopping, yoga, and brunch and couldn’t make it a single day without her dream-supporting family and best friends. She hopes everyone who meets her sees Jesus in her eyes and feels a little lighter when they leave her presence. You can say hi to Kaitlin on social media at @kchaprogers on Instagram and Twitter, @kaitlinchappellrogers on Facebook, or on her website at kaitlinchappell.com!