Can feelings be trusted?

00:07Welcome back to Real Talk with PK. Today we're beginning a brand new series called Faith Versus Feelings. So I want to ask you a question. Have you ever said, I just don't feel like God is with me? You ever said that? What about, I don't feel forgiven. What about, I don't feel loved. What about I don't feel strong enough, or I don't feel like I'm praying enough? Well, if you're honest, I think we've all been there. And the truth is, God created us with emotions. Yeah. Emotions is a gift. Now, some of you are thinking no, Pastor Ken, emotions are not a gift. They get me in trouble all the time. But they are a gift. They allow us to experience joy, grief, compassion, celebration, and love. But while feelings are wonderful servants, they make terrible masters because feelings change.

01:09You know that I know that, and God's truth never does. Today we're asking one very important question on this podcast. The question is, can feelings really be trusted? Today on Real Talk with PK. Well, as you can see, we're getting some new stuff into the studio, as I promised you last week, where we are making moves camera wise. Furniture. I got a new table here. Todd's getting set up here, so we're looking pretty good in here. Sound tiles, which they can't see, but it makes the sound better and stops the echoing. And so we're doing good, aren't we, buddy? Yeah. Doing really good. Yeah. I'm excited, so I'm really excited. I am too. It's it's coming along. It's coming. We're getting all professional. And everything. We're getting professional right now.

02:16Yes we are. And just a couple few more things. We're going to add some background stuff to the wall back here. But yeah it's it's exciting and it's new guests are coming and big emails going out to a lot of guests that we're wanting to interview. So really good things coming up the pike. For those of you who listen on the regular, I think you're going to thoroughly enjoy the new Real Talk with PK as we roll on Into the Fall. I wanted to start this new series with you on on this subject, Faith versus feelings, because, you know, it's it's a real thing. And you and I, we we have feelings and sometimes they get the best of us. And I really wanted to talk about this subject with you because I think it's needful. I like to call it roller coaster Christianity, where, you know, we're up one day and down the next.

03:24And a lot of times that happens to you and I, and God doesn't really get the glory out of that. And so on. Real talk. We're trying to look at subjects that will help you in everyday life. And I really believe that this series for August is going to do that. Several years ago I was driving early in the morning. And, you know, when we're changing seasons, it happens more often than like in August right now. But, like, I think it was September, October, I was I was driving and thick fog rolled in and I could barely see the road ahead of me. And everything around me told me that I should stop. I don't know if you've ever been traveling, maybe on vacation, on the highway before you get a severe downpour, or you go into fog and you can't see.

04:16Very good. But then I noticed something. The road hadn't disappeared, the lane markers hadn't moved. They were still there. The bridge ahead that I saw was still there. What happened was the fog had changed what I could see, but it didn't change the reality. And that's, I think, exactly what emotions do sometimes to you and I. It creates fog. Right. And they influence our perception, but they don't always tell us the truth. Feelings are real. I'm going to tell you that they are real. I don't want you to deny your feelings, but they don't always have to reflect reality. And so that's really what I want us to hone in on in this first session today, is that I don't want our emotions to get the best of us. I don't want us to be ruled by our emotions.

05:16So, number one, I want to talk about God created your emotions, but never intended them for them to lead you. In Genesis chapter one, verse 27, the Bible talks about how God created us in his image, and that includes our ability to experience emotion. So you might never thought about that, but it's true. And Jesus experienced joy. He experienced compassion, anger at injustices. Remember, he turned the tables over in the temple. Grief. He had sorrow. And so emotions are not sinful. They're a part of being human. It's part of us. And I think the problem comes when our emotions become our authority, when our emotions become our authority. Think about it this way. Think about the dashboard in your car. Right? The gauges tell you what's happening in your engine.

06:21You know, your air condition, everything right? They're valuable. But imagine grabbing the temperature gauge and seeing it and trying to steer the car are two different things. That gauge wasn't meant to drive the car, to steer the car. It wasn't designed for that. And emotions are indicators, and they're never meant to become the steering wheel of our life. Unless you drive a Tesla and then you can just push a button and boom, you're off and you don't have to drive. My son got a Tesla and Nathan out in Seattle, and the first time that I drove that PT, I didn't drive it. I put it in self mode and it was scary. I don't know if you've ever been in a Tesla, but they're pretty cool. The technology in those dudes are amazing, but I would have to say I'm lying if I wasn't nervous when I let the car drive itself and I'm not touching the steering wheel, I'm not doing the gas, I'm not even doing the brake. I'm just sitting there looking straight ahead and the car is doing it. It's freaky. Yeah.

07:42I don't I don't know if I'm. I'm okay with that. I've been seeing these commercials and actually seeing they're testing those Waymo. Yes. Like cab things around here that don't have a driver. You don't. Have a driver. You just call it up and get in it and it takes you wherever you go. I saw that in Vegas. They had those in Vegas. I don't know. I don't know if I could do that. I don't. Know if I could be wanting to jump into the driver's seat and. Yeah, well. You know, I never got in one of those things in Vegas when we went out to see a show there. They had those everywhere. And I'm like, oh my gosh, look, there's no one driving that car. And there are people in it, right? And now that's different from a Tesla because you can always turn it off and take the wheel. But when you get into a vehicle and there's nobody there and it just takes off on you. I mean, I hope I hope it goes to where you want it.

08:29To go. Oh I know, but Teslas are way before their time. Yeah. So I was very nervous when we got out on the main road and we started driving. And it's picking up speed and I'm like okay you know. And I got my hands near the wheel steering wheel and I'm ready to intercede if I have to. And the real good test was when it's turning left. So we were going to go, we're going to Home Depot. And the car turns its signal on, gets in the left lane to turn left into the parking lot, and it starts itching forward like you and I do. Right? Yeah. Has a yellow light. You know, the light is blinking yellow for us to turn and on coming. Traffic's coming. And all of a sudden the car wants to go and I'm like, oh, there's a car coming. And it recognized it because I was going to take over because that car was coming pretty quick in our car, stopped waiting for that car to go and then turned and I'm like. Yeah, but here's the real test.

09:27Can it do a Michigan left? I don't think so. I don't know. I wonder if they would I wonder how it would if it knew I know that. Right. And then make the user. You know, that's a good question. I'm sure it does. Elon Musk is a pretty brilliant man. But anyways, that was an adventure in itself and I'll never forget it. And I kind of thought it was cool and I got really used to it. I'm like, no, I put it in the hyper mode, the fast mode, you know, because I got more confident, you know? But that thing is pretty neat. But, you know, our emotions are kind of like that. You know, they never were meant to be the steering wheel. Right? So your feelings are valuable messengers. They are, but they are very poor leaders.

10:12So I don't want our emotions to lead us. I don't want that for us. Number two, feelings are real, but they are not always reliable, right? You and I can say that we can vouch to that, right? Jeremiah 17 nine says, the heart is deceitful above all things. The heart is deceitful above all things. Now I want you to notice something the Bible never says. Your feelings aren't real. It says that they can be deceptive. So you and I, sometimes we feel like I'm alone. God says I'll never leave you. Sometimes you and I feel I'm a failure. God says there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Sometimes you and I feel like there's no hope. I mean, we just had an election last night, and Michigan elected its first communist to to run in November. El Sayed won. So I'm.

11:20Like, I mean, look who he was going up. Well, I know, I. Mean, Stevens was a joke. I mean, oh my gosh, she couldn't put two sentences together. It was really sad. Yeah. And we might do as, as we get closer to November, we might do some politic things. Maybe I'll even interview some people who are running. Maybe I could get Mike Rogers in here. Now that would be something. And maybe El Sayed. I'd like to talk to him. He's a talker. I wouldn't mind talking to him. And he smooth. But I've heard some of the things that he said, and it's kind of scary. And, you know, something like after an election and, you know, and these people that we don't agree with get in and we're thinking, there's no hope. This is crazy. I live in America, and American cities are putting into mayors and council people, people that are flat out socialists, communists, people.

12:23It's I, I'm shocked. And you could look at that stuff and say, there's no hope. But God says, I know the plans that I have for you, says the Lord. So truth doesn't become less true because your emotions disagree with it, right? Clouds can hide the sun, but they can never remove the sun. And so we have to remember that. We have to remember that no matter what, we feel like, all hope is gone. This is terrible what's happening in our country today. Can I tell you that nothing ever takes the Lord by surprise? Nothing, right? Number three, faith speaks back to our feelings. Our faith speaks back to our feelings. Now, I get this from Psalms 42 five because David asked himself, he asked himself in the psalm, why my soul, are you so downcast?

13:28Why are you so perplexed? Notice something remarkable here that David does. David doesn't let his feelings preach to him. He preaches to his feelings. He's asking his feelings. Why are why my soul? Are you so downcast? Then he says, he preaches to himself, put your hope in the Lord. Put your hope in God. That's spiritual maturity. It's not pretending that our emotions don't exist because they do, but it's refusing to let them have the final word. And friends, if there was ever a time in our world where we cannot let our emotions have the final word, it's right now. It's right now. I feel, PT, that sometimes I feel like I'm in a in a tornado. When it comes to our world right now, it it is so topsy turvy. You don't know what way the wind is blowing.

14:35And if it wasn't for the faith that I have in God's Word and in Jesus alone, I don't know how I'd make it. I mean, I don't know how people make it without Christ, I. Really don't. I, I don't either. It's, I guess, that's why the world's upside down right now. That's why drugs and alcohol is so high right now. You know, escapism. You know, that's why people aren't wanting relationships. They just want to isolate themselves. They want to hide. And that's not the answer for our world. But here is the answer for our world. We need to walk by faith. And when we walk by faith, that means that we're trusting God beyond our emotions, beyond what I feel. Because second Corinthians chapter five verse seven says that I trust God's promises. I trust God's promises.

15:24So even when I don't feel healed, God's Word says, I am healed. When I don't feel forgiven, I know I'm forgiven. I've asked the Lord into my heart. He's forgiven me of all my sins. When I don't feel strong, when I don't feel hopeful, faith doesn't deny my emotions. It simply reminds me and gives me God's Word as the final authority in my life. There are many times I feel like those things. I feel like I'm not forgiven. I feel like I've messed up too much. I feel that I'm not strong enough or I, I can't move on. There are many. I mean, I can't tell you how many times I wanted to quit ministry in the 30 years that we just celebrated my 30th year anniversary a couple of weeks ago. I can't tell you how many times I wanted to quit, but I never did because Faith said you can't. My faith latched on to Christ.

16:22And he said, no, it's not done. We're not done yet. This is just a little hill that we're going over, but I'm with you. So it never faith never denied my emotions that the raw emotions that I had in ministry, it just gave me faith to believe God's word. You know, when you're on airplane, especially these big commercial airliners, pilots learn to fly by their instruments. They have to, because many times they don't see through the clouds. A lot of times now they can get above the clouds, but you got to fly by the instruments to get there, right? And especially at night. So everything inside of them may say that the plane is tilting one way or another. It might be climbing, it might be falling. Right. But they can't go by what they feel because they'll be misled all the time.

17:15They have to fly the plane by the instruments because the instruments tell the truth. It cuts through the darkness. The radar cuts through the clouds, through the darkness, through the haze. It tells the plane it's going correctly, right? Well, that's exactly what God's Word does for us. God's word is our spiritual instrument panel. God's word is our spiritual instrument panel. When emotions run high. Scripture comes in and straightens us back up. Scripture is what keeps us on course. It's God's Word, and that's why you and I have to be in God's Word every day. If I'm not in God's Word every day, I'm telling you I'm going to make mistakes. I'm going to make mistakes. You have to be in God's Word. And good time for me is early mornings.

18:11I just I get up early. I get my coffee going and I got 5 to 10 minutes with the Lord. It's perfect. It's just it just sets the day right for me. And and maybe you can try that, you know, get up a little bit early and just take 5 or 10 minutes to start your day, right? With, God, I gotta I gotta drive an hour to work. I gotta do this. I gotta do that. Well, I understand that, but you know what? If you really want peace in your life, try something different. And if you haven't, you haven't done your devotions in the morning. Try it and see if it will really make a difference in your life. You can always revert back to going backwards, but if you want something different in your life, you got to try something new.

18:54So maybe you could try that. Number five is you got to renew your mind daily. Now this is key. Romans 12 two talks about this. We don't overcome unhealthy emotions by pretending we don't suppress it. We don't say, well, I'm not feeling this way and or I'm just, you know, I'm just going to think new thoughts. No, you can't do that because we overcome those bad thoughts by renewing our minds through God's truth. Right. As your thinking changes, your emotions often begin to follow. And so you have to be consistent in this. So feelings make excellent passengers, but they should never be the lead driver. They should never be allowed to drive because it's going to take you down a road that you don't want to go down.

19:47So I'm not saying that you pretend that you're not feeling depressed. You admit it, but you also get into the word and you allow the word to speak into your life who you really are. That you have the mindset of Christ, that God is for you and not against you. And there are so many other scriptures that you can begin to quote the mind of Christ inside of you. Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus. So see, you don't have to just land at depression. You use the word to fight through that and you go on to the other side. Amen. And it really works. I mean, I'm telling you, I've done this my whole life. And so this this week, I want you to practice this with me. And whenever a strong emotion arises in your life, I want you to pause.

20:41I want you to pause. And I want you to ask yourself a couple of questions, okay? Number one is, why am I feeling this way? So you got to pause. You can't just let it roll. You got to stop yourself from thinking, okay? You got to stop the emotions from rising. And you got to say, okay, Ken, why am I feeling this way? Why am I feeling this way? Right? And then why am I feeling it? Why am I doing this in the first place? You got to pause and you got to ask yourself, right? Why am I allowing this to be in my life? Three is what does this feeling agree with God's Word or not? If I feel alone, I know that I'm not alone because God word tells me that. So you got to pause and you got to think, okay, wait a minute.

21:32Hold on. I'm not alone. God never said he'll. He said he'll never leave me nor forsake me. So, God, I know your word is true. And I'm going to trust your word right now. I know I'm not alone. You are with me, right? And this is how you counteract the bad feelings and the emotions that are trying to get the best of you. Question number four is what truth do I need to believe right now? So what do I need to believe right now to get out of this funk? What do I need to believe? Okay. And those are just some questions. What am I feeling? What is it? Why am I feeling this way? What? What did I do? Something happened to me. Does this feeling agree with God's Word or not? What truth do I need to believe right now? Those are some simple questions that if you'll just pause and just ask yourself these questions, you're going to start changing and get that emotion out of the driver's seat.

22:36And you take control through God's Word. Amen. It's powerful. And and can I encourage you? You got to be more consistent. You got to be more consistent than your feelings. Consistency is key. God gave me a word back in January that he told me, I want you to be more consistent, and I have been working on that in my life all year. Just trying to be more consistent and it has really helped me a lot. Truly, it has helped me, and that's what we have to do in all phases of our lives, right? So, family, I want to tell you, God isn't asking you to ignore your emotions. He's not he's inviting you to bring them to him. And that's what you and I have to do. Some days your feelings will encourage you. In other days they'll bring you down.

23:21They're going to confuse you. You're going to say why? What is going on today? But I think through every season that you and I go through, one thing remains unchanged. And here it is. It's God's character. His promises are true. His love never fails. His faithfulness endures forever. And when your emotions become cloudy friends, I want you to anchor yourself to what never changes. Feelings come and go, but the word of the Lord stands forever. Come on. Amen. The word of the Lord stands forever. It will not change. And so I want want to encourage you with that today. So I want to close in prayer today. Father, thank you. Thank you for this time that I have with your precious people. Thank you, Lord, that you created us with emotions.

24:11But thank you even more that you have given us your unchanging truth, the Word of God. So, Lord, I pray that you'll help us to be honest about what we feel without allowing our feelings to rule over us. Lord, I pray today that you would teach us to anchor our hearts in the promises and to walk by faith instead of being driven by our changing emotions. When our feelings and your word seem to conflict, give us the courage to trust in you because your word never fails. Father, I pray these things in Jesus name and I thank you for it. And God's people said, Amen. Amen, I love you. Amen. So I want to thank you for joining me for week one of Faith versus feelings. I want you to go back and listen to this again.

25:05You might have to listen to this a couple of times and take some notes, but it's going to help you get out of this trap that we find ourselves in. So next week, we're tackling the question that almost, I believe, every believer ask at some point in their life. And here it is when God feels silent. You ever felt that way? So until next time. Remember, don't build your life on what changes. Build it on the one who never changes. We'll see you soon.