The Joy of Emotional Strength
In harmony with cause and effect, our feelings change after our focus changes. Our emotions function as a kind of feedback mechanism that helps us evaluate the quality of our thought lives - and make corrections as necessary. In reality, our emotions allow us to feel what we've been thinking about.
To make wise decisions, let your goals and your reason - not your emotions- guide you. To live a life of maximum joy learn the methods for minimizing negative emotions so they will not dominate your life.
Negative emotions - how do you extinguish them in your life? You extinguish them with positive constructive thinking. You dont ignore them, and you refuse to nourish them with the kind of attention that causes them to erupt into a blazing inferno.
Two steps:
- Acknowledge your negative emotions to God.
- Challenge the legitimacy of your negative emotions.
Left unchecked, your feelings tend to drag you into the worst aspects of human nature - a way of shifting your attention and outlook from the long term to the short term. Make a commitment today to challenge the validity of cloudy emotions.