Keep, Donate, and Throw away!
The last two weeks have been a flood of emotions. I have been dealing with a truck load of feelings. Feelings that I am having difficulty processing. Feelings that put into question my perceived reality surrounding my entire upbringing. The more I process the situation the more stuff I become aware of. It is like cleaning out your closet. The deeper you clean the more stuff just appears out of nowhere. The next thing you know, you are facing a massive mountain that you have no idea how to deal with.
This morning while having breakfast with my husband, the tears once again began to fall, as my heart began sorting through the “closet” of my feelings.
That is when the Holy Spirit brought to me, keep, donate, and throw away.
When organizing your home these three things mean a great deal. You simply get three boxes label each and then begin going through your items putting each one into one of the three categories: “keep” refers to items that are sentimental or you still use and want to hold onto, “donate” meaning items in good condition that you no longer need but can be given to charity, and “throw away” referring to items that are damaged, unusable, and should be discarded in the trash.
So why would the Holy Spirit point out household organizing tips to me this morning? How can I take those three same things and use them to organize my feelings? This process is not so simple. Feelings are tricky little suckers. The Cambridge dictionary has the basic definition of feelings as: a physical or emotional experience or awareness.
After prayer and pondering this question for quite a while, overnight, to be exact. God has given me this inspiration to apply this technique to dealing with or sorting out my feelings.
Staying with the same three categories, it goes like this: “keep” refers to all the feelings or emotions that align with God’s word. Those feelings that confirm scripture and who God says that I am. His direction for my life, His truth. “Donate” meaning the feelings that we are meant to share with others. God has given each of us a gift and a capacity to lift each other up and speak life to one another through emotional experiences that help shape who we are in Him. And lastly, but certainly not least, “Throw Away” referring to all those feelings that make you feel less than, unloved, useless, bitter. Thoughts, feelings, emotions that are counter intuitive to what God says about you. These are the words of the enemy designed to keep you down and away from the plan and purpose God has for your life and these go in the TRASH!
Well, that sounds easy enough, however how do you sort your feelings into these categories? Back to praying and waiting.
It has been days, four to be exact, and finally I feel the Holy Spirit moving me to these instructions:
First, you need to be actively partnering with the Holy Spirit. My husband once told me that the Holy Spirit is with us just as Jesus promised but He acts on invitation. So daily we need to ask the Holy Spirit to participate in all our thoughts and decisions. Once you have done that, you have an amazing advocate to help decern where your feelings come from and where you need to put them. You just need to listen. Second, it takes full honesty with yourself. Is what you are feeling in alignment with what God says? I know that bad stuff is easier to believe but be honest with yourself or seek the counsel of a trusted confidant that you know will be honest with you. This is not an exercise in self-assassination but an exercise in self-preservation. Last, I would refer you to Joshua 1:9 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord you God will be with you wherever you go.” NIV
Through prayer, seeking counsel of friends, you can take out the trash and live the life God has designed for you to live. A life full of Hope, Love, and Purpose.
God Bless,
Your Friend, Rho
