Bruised, Blind-folded, Buffeted

Confused, bewildered, and condemned

Was how the man did feel,

Tossed, torn, badgered and buffeted

A fish hooked on a reel

 

Pulled here and there with various

Demands upon his time

Just like a puppet on a string,

Chastised for no mean crime.

 

Each string pulls on an unhealed hurt

Lodged deep inside his past.

To shake the shame off, he lets loose

A violent verbal blast.

 

“I wasn’t wrong!” he argues.

“I was right to act that way!”

“Stop telling me what I must do.

You can’t make me obey!”

.

And yet he can’t escape the fear

Still tugging on his mind.

It keeps him bound as he seeks out

A safe place to unwind.

 

Then shouts a higher voice,

“Oh, you who know not what you do,

Behold my thorn-stained brow.

I came from heaven to die for you.

 

“I let myself be blindfolded and

Treated shamefully.

The blood flowed as they plucked my beard

Men hit and spat at me.”

 

“Confusion mocked my pain

As men who changed truth for a lie

Heaped insults on my head

And ordered me to prophecy.

 

“And as I hung upon that cross,

Engulfed in misery,

I felt abandoned and alone.

God had forsaken me.

 

“But though it didn’t make much sense,

That’s how it had to be.

Your heartache I took on myself,

That you might be set free.

 

“It isn’t yours to carry,

For I’ve risen from the dead.

Recall that you’re my body

And that I, Christ, am your head.

 

“So, cast your sorrows onto me,

Along with every strife,

And I’ll give you the joy

That springs up to eternal life.”

 

 

 

 

 

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Faith Versus Feelings

Many times, in Christian circles I have heard it said that believers are to walk by faith and not by feelings. But I have noticed that when Christians feel bad or are experiencing depression, they often do follow their feelings – straight to the doctor’s office. They want meds to make them feel better so that they can enjoy life and resist the constant urge to kill themselves. Others, who were born with a dose of overconfidence and optimism may also end up running to the doctor – not to make them feel better but to help them get some rest. They desire drugs to balance their overexcited nerves and bring peace to their souls.

“I know I’m supposed to walk by faith, Doctor, not by feelings. So please, you have to fix my feelings so I can walk by faith.”

The question is, what does Jesus think of this idea? Can you imagine Him sending his disciples to a doctor when they were upset?

“I’m afraid you’ve got a little problem with manic-depression, Peter, jumping out the boat one moment, confident that you can walk on water. The next moment, you’re in a panic, crying out for me to save you as you sink beneath the waves. You need some meds to even out your mood swings!”

Feelings change. They’re like waves of the sea – up one moment, down the next. That’s why Christians shouldn’t live by their feelings. But does that mean we shouldn’t have them?

Many of us have felt God’s presence. We have experienced His touch. Our emotions have been stirred through worship. When we read His Word, it stirs our hearts to action. If you know you should step out in faith but your heart’s not in it, should you look to natural means to fix your feelings?

Or should you seek the LORD with all your heart and believe the promise in Jeremiah 29:13?