Pastor's Corner by Pastor Larry Tong
June 2009
Sometime during the crazy Hippie era in the Sixty’s and Seventy’s when everything went crazy, emotions somehow took priority over almost every decision. I think it must have been something to do with the rampage of smoking marijuana. Feeling became more important than thinking, even more important than common sense. Objective reasoning took second place to subjective feeling. The line between right and wrong became blurred, and life started to revolve around how one’s felt. “If it feels good, do it!” or “If it feels good, it ain’t bad!” became the common philosophy of life. Oh really? If you spend just an extra minute or two to think about that philosophy of life, you would realize that there are so many flaws in it. Things that make us feel good aren’t necessarily good for us. To take this a little further, “feel good” isn’t necessarily legal or moral. Feeling isn’t the gauze by which we set the standard of living.
We have to understand that there is nothing wrong with emotions. As a matter of fact, God made us emotional beings. And feelings are part of life. Imagine the coldness if there is no feelings. Thanks to feelings that spring from emotion, we have compassion for those who are hurting, we care for the poor children living in the third world, we anger when we see injustice done to the innocents, we share laughs with those who are funny, shed tears with those who are in sorrow, we have peace with God when we walk within His will, and so many other examples. We even have different levels of intimacy when relate to others. I love my wife a lot more than I love yours. I love my children more than I love yours. How empty life would be without those and countless of other feelings!
With that said, it is crystal clear that emotions are good and necessary, but the secret of it all is to have good control. While emotions add color and spontaneity to our daily life, we need to understand that it must be under control. This is what the Bible teaches in one facet of the spiritual fruit—self control. Like a river, our feelings need to run within their well-defined and controlled boundaries, or they will flood out of control and cause disaster. I don’t know about you, I have had experience that I allowed my emotions to take a better of me, and caused troubles too “hot” to handle.
Before I sign off, I would like to recommend for you to read the Bible every day, for in it, God gives you many guideposts to live a harmonious life that we are originally designed to live, on top of having a pathway to Heaven. This pathway isn’t limited to the knowledge of knowing who Jesus is, but also to love God with our mind (intellect), heart (emotions), and soul (determination). Oh, how I wish you will follow this pathway to Heaven!
Pastor Larry
