A few days ago, I was speaking to our church staff when I made the statement that some people, “feel their way into the grave.” I made the statement without much forethought in the moment, but as I thought about it, I realized how much truth was in it.
The context for making this statement was regarding spending time with the Lord on a daily basis. I was saying that if we wait until we “feel like it,” we may never make the time to meet with God or read our Bibles. We meet with God and read our Bibles because it is the right thing to do, regardless of how we feel. If we wait until we feel like it, we may never grow spiritually.
There are so many examples of why waiting on your feelings before you act is the wrong thing to do. If you wait until you feel like exercising, you may never workout. If you wait until you feel like attending worship or a small group, you might never make it. If you wait until you feel like giving an offering, you could probably talk yourself out of it.
The truth is that you can either feel your way into actions, or you can act your way into feelings. The latter is always the better option. When I workout, regardless of how I feel, I always feel good when I am finished. When I read my Bible even if I don’t feel like it, I always feel good that I have done it. After attending church, I feel great even if I initially didn’t feel like going.
Feelings are great. God created them! However, feelings should always follow the right disciplines in your life – they should never dictate them. As a disciple of Jesus, our goal should be to follow Christ’s example no matter how we feel or don’t feel. No one ever follows Jesus’ example and regrets it. On the other hand, lots of people have decided not to follow Christ’s pattern and wish they had followed it.
I encourage you to make Jesus the model for your life. Like Paul consistently encouraged us to do, follow the example of Jesus. You will be glad you did.