How-to Guide for Keeping faith in God and believing in yourself
Finding yourself in God can be exhilarating and scary because this world doesn't support having a one-on-one Godly relationship with Him. There is such an extreme focus on religion, keeping up appearances, and putting others' needs before our own that we can lose sight of what is the most important! For myself, it is easier to keep a continuous line of communication open with God when everything is going well in my life. I can write in my journal and say thank you for everything! One of my favorite sayings to God is, "Thank you for all that you have done, all that you are doing, and all that you will do in the future!" I love it because it reinforces my belief that God is all-knowing and omnipresent. His hands have carefully woven each chapter in our lives, and because he was with us in the past and we survived, we can look up to him in our present day and know his hands are writing our future.
Sometimes, I do find myself struggling with giving up my anxiety about something I'm dealing with entirely to God. When life hits you, it's like a sharp, heavy wind on a dry, cloudy day where you are almost knocked off your feet. It's hard to maintain Faith when it looks like you aren't getting what you want when you lose a job or what you perceive as essential relationships in your life. We say rejection is God's protection, but dealing with feeling rejected, dejected, unappreciated, or taken advantage of is hard to swallow. Especially when you think you have been doing everything right. We can not let these feelings consume us; instead, we must acknowledge them, allow ourselves to feel them, and then move forward for that moment. In this article, I'll provide a step-by-step guide for transmuting negative feelings into Faith by learning how to displace those feelings into God's hands, thus allowing him to handle the rest.
Step 1: Identify the emotion
When you have a negative feeling, you can look up a feelings chart that shows the different feelings spectrum and helps you to choose the feeling based on the descriptor listed. There are many charts, so feel free to pick the best one that resonates with you! I've used smiley faces, color wheels, etc. Below is an image example of one of my favorite color wheels:
Step 2: FEEL the Feels!
After identifying the feeling, allow yourself to feel it ..whether that's anger, fear, doubting your capabilities, etc. Do not shame yourself or tell yourself you shouldn't be feeling it. In this step, you must allow yourself grace to be human! You are not a robot that has been programmed to be perfect 24/7. You can still be a good person to yourself and others even after feeling a negative emotion. It's what you DO with your negative feelings that may cause a little judgment from others, but if your actions are based on your morals and values and aren't hurting anyone, then so be it.
Step 3: Evaluate the WHY
Grab a journal or your online notepad if you prefer typing. Write out the feeling that you identified in Step 1. Then, write out 3 possible events/ thoughts/actions that recently happened that led you to feel the way that you do. These don't have to be complete sentences and don't have to become college essay-length paragraphs. This helps because if you do this step repeatedly and notice over time that certain events trigger you to feel this way, this can lead to a revelation. For example, if you leave feeling deflated or guilty every time you are around X person, it's time to reevaluate that person's footing in your life and be more selective with your time and energy.
Step 4: Communicate your feelings to God
After writing your feelings out and evaluating what possibly caused those feelings, you can now communicate to God, asking him to help you overcome the feeling. This communication can be done in different mediums per your preference. For example, when I'm anxious, I write in my journal and announce to God that I am giving this feeling and the situations that caused it to Him. Sometimes, the emotion is so heavy that it helps me to say it to him when I wake up, write it down, and then say it to him in prayer later that night. Doing this helps me to acknowledge that I cannot control everything or everyone in my life. I can only control myself and give everything else to Him.
After this step, you will feel immediately better about your feelings!
Step 5: Embrace your inner power
After you have identified and felt your emotion, reflected on what possibly caused it, and given the emotion to God, you can now step into your power! Choose to let go of the feeling because that IS within your control, and do something that brings you JOY! You can dance it out, listen to music, whatever your heart desires! This step helps you recognize that any feeling you feel is not a fact and can change over time. Don't let temporary negative feelings rule you and your potential; instead, remember you and God are the only co-creators of your life!
Leave a comment sharing your experience after following the guide, and you're welcome to read other posts on my blog! Wishing you well on your journey to keeping the Faith & believing in yourself!
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