As a person who can easily be overtaken by depression and anxiety, it has been laid upon my heart to delve into the factors that underscore my emotions when sadness and frustration begin to weigh in on my already sensitive predisposition. Now it would be easy for me, to simply discount these feelings as the kind of passionate sensitivity required of anyone who loves to engage their creative muses as much as I do; but I know this is simply not the case. Artistic temperament is not a valid excuse for allowing myself to be overcome with emotion in a way that might otherwise be redeemed when taken to the Lord. Instead, I have to fight the tendency to vent my worldly concerns through my artistic endeavors which afford me a release, but avoids what God might otherwise be attempting to facilitate in my life and the lives of those around me that are in need of prayerful intercession.
It has occurred to me that when I use my art in this manner of escape, it could be termed idolatrous (Lev.19:4, Eze.20:16). How much better it would be to consider the things that burden my heart and mind as opportunities of invitation; a calling if you will, to come share with Christ my concerns for the things that bring me heartache.In doing this, I would actually be doing as scripture says, “Rejoicing in the hope and the glory of God” (Rom.5:2). But instead, my natural tendency is to take captive for myself, the fears and frustrations of the world in a way that overwhelms. So I have a choice, and it would be better to take captive every thought making it obedient to Christ or merely vent my anxieties through my muse which leads to things of only limited value.
When the burdens we carry for the lost and broken are left untempered and not subject to time well spent in prayer and supplication, they quickly turn from valid concerns to heavy anxieties. This alarms our sensibilities demanding release instead of lifting us up inwardly when we make our requests known to God. When we neglect to take the burdens that have been laid upon our heart before the Lord and instead allow them to freefall us into a place of depression and despair we are in essence rejecting the call quickened in us by the Holy Spirit to intercede on behalf of our infirmity (Romans 8:26-27). I believe this is, in essence, an affront against God in which we either consciously or unconsciously are telling him that the mind of the Spirit not sufficiently knowing, and our flesh knows better. If this is so, then we must repent by paying heed to his call by choosing to live above the suffering caused by whatever ails us. We must determine to bring back before the Lord the things that cause us angst and despair because chances are, they are the same things that grieve his Spirit. It is a good thing to be in agreement with Him against the enemy’s attack, and a fearful thing to be in agreement with Satan in the midst of all his accusation and insinuation that rails against the knowledge of God.
If we indeed were made for relationship with our Father in Heaven, then why would we be tempted to stand alone in the face of our burdens, without first submitting them to the authority of God through prayer and supplication? After all, it is Him who made us for Himself (not the other way around.). And in that acknowledgment, we are, therefore, obliged as bond servants of Christ to graciously accept his position as our daily sufficiency (2 Cor. 9:8) by choosing to abide in him instead of dealing with our burdens and worries on our own. This kind of attitude will only lead to a sense of melee and confusion; especially when we ignore the call to intercession.
Determined submission to the One who made us needs to be our first line of defense against the temptation to ignore our calling. We mustn’t take no for an answer. We are; after all, told to “Rejoice evermore. Pray without ceasing. And in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.”(Thes.5:16-18) This means He is prepared by the way of the Holy Spirit to empower us against the world the devil and our flesh but we must first be prepared to ask in humble submission. We must be willing to turn from the worry and angst we experience by giving it to him.
Turning over the driving forces behind our emotions into opportunities for deep fellowship as burden bearers and intercessors to the lost is a much more profitable endeavor than that of one who has merely been delegated to a position of sadness and over sensitivity all in the name of aesthetic expression or unmitigated depression.
No comments:
Post a Comment