Let's start with a blanket statement. How you feel is REAL.
How you feel is not simply academic that can be changed because you know you shouldn't feel that way. How many times in our lives have we had someone instruct on how we "should" feel in a certain situation instead of acknowledging how do "do" feel?
We all know how frustrating it can be when we feel one way but wish we could feel another. We know we are here for a purpose but yet feel unused or irrelevant. We know that we should focus on encouraging others and not be filled with envy but yet we find that to often we are focused on ourselves and are left feeling like failure or powerless.
So how do we change this? If we are aware of what we are doing and want to change it, how do we? It's actually easier than you would think.
Change what you SEE, to change how you FEEL.
Such a simple statement but filled with so much power. We must change what we see in order to change how we feel. See we've spent our lives trying to focus on the feelings we have and changing them without ever looking at the source of them. It's like going to a doctor who spends all his time trying to change how you feel with medicine but yet never looking to see where the root of the issue comes from. That would make no sense and would be very frustrating.
To change what you see you need to first understand what it is that you do see. The first step in living a MEANT life is to know that you are wonderfully made and and have been created with intent. If you don't take the time to fully grasp this how can you then feel empowered to discover your purpose and have courage to move on it if all the while you still see yourself as worthless and feel as such?
For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10
Do you SEE that?! For WE are God's handiwork! WE have been created to do good works which were what... prepared in advance for us to do! How empowering to see this passage. Changing how we feel requires changing what we see. God's word is one of the greatest sources of truth to help you see and then feel what you were created for.
For many of us we have turned to Hollywood or even friends to define what we should see and feel. For many we have been left feeling empty knowing there must be more. There is.
I encourage you to take a few minutes to think. What do you see when you think about your value and purpose? Are these feelings coming from what others are defining as success or value or are they coming from what God's word would say of your worth?
If you struggle with feeling loved and wonderfully made, try spending time in God's word learning more about his eternal love for you. What he was willing to go thru to walk along side with you. As you start to see the truth... you will start to feel the truth.