30 Days of Proverbs: November 14th

November 14, 2017
Proverbs 14: Sift and Weigh Every Word 

"She who is slow to anger has great understanding, 

But she who is quick-tempered exalts folly.

A tranquil heart is life to the body,

But passion is rottenness to the bones."

Proverbs 14:29-30 (pronouns changed) 

Ok, so BUT FOR REAL- ask my husband Matt if I feel all my feelings. Because I ABSOLUTELY DO. (And a lot of times I eat my way through them. Google Trim Healthy Mama Skinny Chocolate because that's what a lot of MY feelings taste like. With extra mineral salt sprinkled on top. Bless.) 

My go-to stress response: tears. 

I can happy-cry, sad-cry, tired-cry, angry-cry, excited-cry, anxious-cry, hungry-cry, bloated-cry, TV commercial-cry. You name it and I can well up all kinds of tears about it. That hot, throat closing, stinging eyes sort of feeling when you might not weep actual tears but it's only because you're holding them back with every fiber of your being. 

Yup. That's me. And these verses tell me that it's not always OK. ::gulp::

When my perfectionism gives me anxiety over the state of my house and I want to stomp and fuss and holler at the kids about their toys- WRONG. When Matt and I aren't seeing eye to eye about something and I want to try and manipulate my way- WRONG. When there is a situation brewing within our church family that has the potential to make or break relationships and I'm dying to throw my two cents into the group discussion- WRONG. When the kids aren't listening and my patience is wearing thin and all I want to do is raise my voice and show them that I'm the Queen of Yelling- WRONG. 

Having emotions and feelings in these situations isn't bad. It's when I allow myself to jump to reacting instead of responding that I can get into trouble. 

God has blessed Matt with a good job that allows us to live in a house that, in my opinion, is vulgarly nice. I want to keep it clean and neat and in order. But I don't need to become a tyrant to my family about it. 

Marriages are built on closed-bedroom-door discussions. Matt and I have shared many, many, MANY hours talking about all.the.things together after the kids go to bed. But it's never OK for me to try and weasel my way into winning by using deceptive means. I've got to say what I mean and mean what I say. 

All Christian families have encountered bumps in the road. Satan loves to use human emotions and short comings to fracture those bonds we have made within our church family. We've got to be diligent to recognize those attacks and have the self control to examine the situation before we could react and unintentionally add fuel to the fire and make things worse. 

Kids are loud. And they fight. And their hands are always sticky. And when I'm not diligently parenting them, I can allow these things to chip away at my self control until I'm nothing more than a grown woman who is stomping around her house and yelling at her kids like a 3 year old. 

These verses tell me that a tranquil heart will add life to my body. If I'm focusing on responding instead of reacting, it's going to be a lot easier for me to steer clear of those hot, burning emotionally uncontrolled tears. God gives me peace through His comfort and protection. If I'm stopping every morning to give my day to Him and to ask Him to guide my emotions and to guard my heart, it'll be that much easier to maintain peace and calm and self control when the choppy waves of the day threaten to capsize my boat. 

I am going to remember that today. 

Have a Christ-filled day, y'all! And thanks for stopping by~ Katie.