The Danger of Living by Feelings

Our kids are growing up in a feeling-oriented world. If you don’t feel something, it can’t be real. A few years ago I read Mother Teresa’s book, Come Be My Light. This collection of journal entries and letters indicates that for over fifty years Mother Teresa didn’t feel the presence of God. Perhaps what surprises me most is how much press the book’s message is getting as if her lack of feeling God is a surprise. Mother Teresa’s experience is normal. Emotions rise and fall, come and go, increase and decrease. They just aren’t trustworthy. Read the Old Testament. I wonder how often Noah, Job, and others felt God. In the New Testament, Jesus doesn’t say “follow me and feel good!” Rather, he says “take up your cross and follow me.” Parents, tell your kids that God is real, present, and at work in their lives. . . . even when it doesn’t feel like it. Realizing that fact is a big step to finding intimacy with God and a real faith that’s mature.