Matters Of The Heart

[Edward]

This thread did get a lil long huh?

 

[Razeontherock]

This thread did get a lil long huh?

I don't think so. I think the lull it got was too long, there's SUCH important stuff here!! The "issues of life" proceed from our heart, per Proverbs 4:23, as our dear Sister reminded us in a different thread. Has anybody done a word study of that? I wonder if anything interesting turns up, not readily apparent in English?

Of course this passage says nothing about differentiating heart from mind (or soul, or anything else) if Scripture is even so specific as to really address such distinctions? I'm not at all sure. I know it talks about "dividing soul from Spirit," so that makes sense to me.

 

[Edward]

don't think so. I think the lull it got was too long, there's SUCH important stuff here!!

Amen Brother, that's the content!

I don't think so. I think the lull it got was too long, there's SUCH important stuff here!! The "issues of life" proceed from our heart, per Proverbs 4:23, as our dear Sister reminded us in a different thread. Has anybody done a word study of that? I wonder if anything interesting turns up, not readily apparent in English?

Of course this passage says nothing about differentiating heart from mind (or soul, or anything else) if Scripture is even so specific as to really address such distinctions? I'm not at all sure. I know it talks about "dividing soul from Spirit," so that makes sense to me.

It seems to me, that perhaps the voice of our conscience might be the voice of our spirit?

My experience is that, when my conscience speaks to me usually my flesh will begin to freak out, spewing doubt and condemnation!

It's not real, I'm not good enough, blah blah blah...!

We have to be sure who's talking. I wonder, if you feed your spirit man more (the Word), and listen to him more...will one day he rise up, and become (divided asunder) dominant within my being
We are triune beings, after all.

 

[Razeontherock]

Yes yes YES!! When we can get any two aspects of ourselves to gang up against the third, the two will usually win. This can work for us or against us though. On the positive side, getting our minds renewed by the Word and in agreement with the Holy Spirit, our soul and Spirit can "buffet our body" as Paul did, and we can start to OBEY; i.e., be co-laborers together with Christ, ushering in His Will and His Kingdom. This includes physical healing!

Our conscience: I have strong reason to believe God deals directly with our conscience. Life would be SO much simpler if He were the only one that had access to it. This is where Proverbs 4:23 comes in, as well as our Breastplate of Righteousness,(BoR) also "the whole armor of God," and etc various and sundry other ways God patiently keeps trying to tell us the same Truths, hoping some day we might GET IT.

 

[Edward]

Yes yes YES!! When we can get any two aspects of ourselves to gang up against the third, the two will usually win. This can work for us or against us though. On the positive side, getting our minds renewed by the Word and in agreement with the Holy Spirit, our soul and Spirit can "buffet our body" as Paul did, and we can start to OBEY; i.e., be co-laborers together with Christ, ushering in His Will and His Kingdom. This includes physical healing!

Our conscience: I have strong reason to believe God deals directly with our conscience. Life would be SO much simpler if He were the only one that had access to it. This is where Proverbs 4:23 comes in, as well as our Breastplate of Righteousness,(BoR) also "the whole armor of God," and etc various and sundry other ways God patiently keeps trying to tell us the same Truths, hoping some day we might GET IT.

Thats what makes me think that our conscience is the voice of our spirit, God deals directly with our spirit.

In the gospel of Thomas, Jesus says, when the two become one and you make the inside like the outside and the outside like the inside...then you will enter the Kingdom of Heaven.

That sounds like what we're talking about.

 

[stovebolts]

So, what is the heart? Did God intend for it to be like the river of inspiration that we see throughout Scripture? Does this pertain to both our hearts and minds?

An interesting thing relating to previous comments about archaic views of the mind being lower than the heart: our small intestine has more nerves (or nerve endings?) than our brain. I was really surprised when I first encountered that info so I'm surprised I don't recall all the related details; it's not something you use every day.

I heard of a study a year or so ago that your body is part of your whole emotional experience. Scientist used to believe that all thought, emotion etc came from the mind. Many scientists are now rethinking that notion and believe your whole body participated. Pretty amazing!

What struck me in your post above is how the gut has so many more nerves.... which is where we get the saying, listen to your gut. It is also the place where the ancients believed was the place of emotions.

When I read deuteronomy 6:4, it lists all three attributes of who we are as created beings. 1. What we think, 2. What we feel and lastly, 3. What we do.

All three should complement the other for harmony to be achieved. Get any of them out of balance and chaos occurs.

In other words, what we think should agree with what we feel, which will result in expressing those thoughts and feelings in a Godly, and tangible manner.

.02

 

[Razeontherock]

Balance! I see a Scriptural principle that our thoughts will steer our emotions, and that our actions will reveal our beliefs. Spirit, soul, and body. It sure would be nice if the only thoughts we had were from our spirit! In communion with the Holy Spirit, of course.

Maybe heaven will be more like that?

 

[stovebolts]

I'm thinking that the Trinity shows us the perfect harmony that is, and we are invited to participate within that harmony now.

I believe we need to get to the place where we trust our emotions as well as our intellect. Point in case, how many times have you known you were making a bad choice because of your emotions, but you did it anyway because your emotions over ride your intellect?

Or what about the times we reason ourselves out of doing the good our heart led us to do?

I think we need to stop being afraid of our emotions and get to a place where our heart and mind complement each other instead of warring with each other. So yes, it's about balance.

The thing I've found about emotions, is that if we dont find that balance between the heart and mind, the emotional response will always over ride ones intellect given any event that triggers a past experience that is highly emotionally charged.

As an example, just this weekend I attended a wedding, and it brought back memories of when I married my wonderful and dear wife. I love the feeling of being near my wife. So we see that all triggers are not sinful or hurtful. Triggers can be from both positive and negative experiences.

 

[Razeontherock]

An aside is that business research demonstrates that people make buying decisions based on their emotions. Information and questions that appeal to the intellect will reinforce the decisions already made emotionally, at best.

 

[stovebolts]

An aside is that business research demonstrates that people make buying decisions based on their emotions. Information and questions that appeal to the intellect will reinforce the decisions already made emotionally, at best.

Isnt that the truth! Most new car purchases are emotionally driven... point in case,
I purchased a 2018 Silverado for my wife because she likes vehicles that sit up high and we need a truck to pull our camper and trailer. I drive a 2016 Cruze because I drive 100 miles a day and 42 mpg saves me cash.

My car is in the shop and my son put our truck in the ditch, so it's in the body shop. That leaves us in dealer rentals. It's great marketing. She absolutly loved the luxury found in the Malibu, but when we got the Trax, it was like she found a little piece of heaven.

The Trax sits up high, so you feel like your in an SUV, but it zips around effortlessly. Parking and manuverability is a breeze. My wife found a way to put on over 600 miles in a week because she enjoyed the car so much. Now she wants one, but our smarts tell us otherwise lol!

 

[WorshipWeapon]

Thoughts and emotions have to be married I think.



That is how they train us to be. To suppress our emotions and rely on carnal thinking.
In most things, they have taught us the exact opposite of the truth of how we should be and live. So maybe we shouldn't suppress our emotions but to embrace them instead?

2 billion teenage girls can't be wrong, lol.

Dear Edward,

Isn’t it interesting that Paul writes it’s our thoughts we must take captive?

I’m a Marriage and Family Therapist, which is to say, I don’t care as much about diagnosing people as helping their systems function better. I sometimes see people write about systems in the forums. Integrating the different aspects of ourselves into a complete whole would be considered a healthy thing, from a systems perspective. Another cool thing about systems is this: if one part is changed, all the other parts are affected, too, and must adapt in some way. I could spend a week unpacking this!

There’s a drawing I can’t find, but I’m going to mention it anyway. A Venn diagram, just two circles. One is knowledge, and the other is emotions. The intersecting space where the circles merge is WISDOM. I think this rocks. Whatever the heart is, I believe it is the seat of wisdom.

Our feelings are important, because they inform us about what is important, just like your romantic story. Or bumping into a bear. Whoever teaches people to suppress emotions is crippling people in their ability to assess what is important. Wisdom needs to be relied upon for decision making, etc., but feeling is a critical piece.

Feedback welcome....
WW

 

[Truth7t7]

Dear Edward,

Isn’t it interesting that Paul writes it’s our thoughts we must take captive?

I’m a Marriage and Family Therapist, which is to say, I don’t care as much about diagnosing people as helping their systems function better. I sometimes see people write about systems in the forums. Integrating the different aspects of ourselves into a complete whole would be considered a healthy thing, from a systems perspective. Another cool thing about systems is this: if one part is changed, all the other parts are affected, too, and must adapt in some way. I could spend a week unpacking this!

There’s a drawing I can’t find, but I’m going to mention it anyway. A Venn diagram, just two circles. One is knowledge, and the other is emotions. The intersecting space where the circles merge is WISDOM. I think this rocks. Whatever the heart is, I believe it is the seat of wisdom.

Our feelings are important, because they inform us about what is important, just like your romantic story. Or bumping into a bear. Whoever teaches people to suppress emotions is crippling people in their ability to assess what is important. Wisdom needs to be relied upon for decision making, etc., but feeling is a critical piece.

Feedback welcome....
WW

I believe feelings need to be handled with wisdom?

I was on a public fishing boat recently with 50 people, an individual that spoke broken English, he kept pushing me out of the way while trying to obtain a piece of fishing bait.

I wanted to openly express my thoughts and feelings to this individual, and even thought about throwing him off the boat for a baptismal before repentance?

No I didn't act upon my feelings, and that of many others on the boat.

 

[Edward]

I'm thinking that the Trinity shows us the perfect harmony that is, and we are invited to participate within that harmony now.

I believe we need to get to the place where we trust our emotions as well as our intellect. Point in case, how many times have you known you were making a bad choice because of your emotions, but you did it anyway because your emotions over ride your intellect?

Or what about the times we reason ourselves out of doing the good our heart led us to do?

I think we need to stop being afraid of our emotions and get to a place where our heart and mind complement each other instead of warring with each other. So yes, it's about balance.

The thing I've found about emotions, is that if we dont find that balance between the heart and mind, the emotional response will always over ride ones intellect given any event that triggers a past experience that is highly emotionally charged.

As an example, just this weekend I attended a wedding, and it brought back memories of when I married my wonderful and dear wife. I love the feeling of being near my wife. So we see that all triggers are not sinful or hurtful. Triggers can be from both positive and negative experiences.

I think you're exactly right. Maybe when our heart and mind both agree, our spirit resonates at the same frequency as heaven (the Holy Spirit)

 

[Edward]

Dear Edward,

Isn’t it interesting that Paul writes it’s our thoughts we must take captive?

I’m a Marriage and Family Therapist, which is to say, I don’t care as much about diagnosing people as helping their systems function better. I sometimes see people write about systems in the forums. Integrating the different aspects of ourselves into a complete whole would be considered a healthy thing, from a systems perspective. Another cool thing about systems is this: if one part is changed, all the other parts are affected, too, and must adapt in some way. I could spend a week unpacking this!

There’s a drawing I can’t find, but I’m going to mention it anyway. A Venn diagram, just two circles. One is knowledge, and the other is emotions. The intersecting space where the circles merge is WISDOM. I think this rocks. Whatever the heart is, I believe it is the seat of wisdom.

Our feelings are important, because they inform us about what is important, just like your romantic story. Or bumping into a bear. Whoever teaches people to suppress emotions is crippling people in their ability to assess what is important. Wisdom needs to be relied upon for decision making, etc., but feeling is a critical piece.

Feedback welcome....
WW

Very interesting that Paul said that. Take all thoughts captive to Christ. If we don't, then thinking about a woman in lust is sin. So most everything in the world is a distraction. No wonder Enoch went to a cave to live, away from the world lol.

 

[jasonc]

If I recall properly. The ancients believed emotions came from your mid section and your heart is where your intellect came in.

Regardless, we are sentient beings and our emotions drive us more than we would like to admit. Often, our emotions become so heavy we can lose control of them and sometimes do stupid or destructive things.

We like being in control, so we often build up our intellect and suppress emotions. It's not really healthy, but at least we can control our intellect.

As the world has effected us, our emotions effect the world around us. Just drive in the city and experience being the victim of road rage and you'll understand. Or take the woman who was abused by her father, and then abused by her husband. When they get out of those wicked relationships, they have a lot of emotional triggers as they lash out on unsuspecting men who run them the wrong way.

The list and examples are too numerous, but what's really happening is the mind is simply trying to understand what in the heck just happened.

I prefer the Vulcan way , lol