Chemicals are powerful. There. That’s it; that’s the blog post for this week (I’m kidding, of course). But truth be told, I’m not in the best of moods to be writing right now. Why? You guessed it - chemicals.
But I’m not just talking about the random chemicals that we interact with in our daily lives. No. I’m talking about medical chemicals. The pills and capsules and syrups and all that good stuff.
Because two weeks ago, I started taking a new medication. A type of SSRI, to be exact (and if you don’t know that means, consider yourself blessed).
Simply put, SSRIs are medications for anxiety, depression, OCD, etc. And wow, can they be potent…
As you you've probably gathered, I tried a new anxiety med in the hopes of lessening my anxiety, specifically the OCD tendencies I have.
But apparently, my brain does not like this new pill.
The past week has been full of epic highs and lows - panic in the mornings and evenings with happiness smooshed in the middle. It’s been odd (and a bit unsettling) to say the least.
I’ve been incredibly moody, obsessive, and more anxious; so, not looking good for this new pill. Thankfully though, my wonderful doctor has already switched me over to a (hopefully more helpful) medication to try.
But I digress.
Because yes, I’m talking about chemicals (isn’t it amazing how a single pill can impact your life so dramatically?), but in truth, this post is about emotions.
Specifically, the big ones...
You know what I'm talking about - the feelings that seem to control us, leaving us crying on the floor or dancing on the rooftops. The epic highs... followed by even epic-er (hey look, I made a new word!) lows.
(Cue the crying toddler as I write this. Wow, he has impeccable timing.)
Now, as I was saying, our feelings have a tendency to feel larger than life, don’t they?
Even more so if we’re stressed or tired or (like me) chemically affected.
Something I’ve been learning, however, is how the Bible describes our emotions.
Proverbs is full of warnings that urge us to avoid giving full vent to our emotions, but beyond this, Jeremiah states something quite powerful:
“The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” (Jer 17:9)
Depending on the translation you’re reading, deceitful can be replaced with proud, uneven, and rugged. I, for one, partially like the uneven translation because, wow, have I been feeling uneven!
Friends, our hearts, spirits, emotions, whatever you wanna call them, cannot be trusted to guide us. They are uneven—oftentimes self-serving, judgmental, and foolish—and incurable for any human hand.
But, thankfully God’s hands are not human.
Jeremiah goes on, a mere five verses later, in fact, to declare:
“Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for You are my praise” (Jer 17:14).
In our unevenness, our highs and lows (chemically induced or not), we can count on the Great Physician. The One who does not change.
Our emotions may be rootless, impacted so easily by the cares and burdens of this world, but our God certainly isn’t. He is trustworthy and dependable, deep and strong.
We can remain rooted in Him—His Truth, teachings, ways—and lean on His assurance... come what may.
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