When I was growing up, my mom used to say, “Boy, you keep carrying your feelings on your shoulder, and someone is going to knock them off.” This was said on more than one occasion when I would come home crying because someone had done something that hurt my feelings.
It is interesting because I never thought it was mean or even harsh. It was simply her way of preparing her son for the world's harsh realities.
Oh, how times have changed. Today, it seems that most people are led by their feelings, which leads to many sensitive people who are easily hurt. This makes it very difficult to talk openly about many things.
Knowing this is true has presented many challenges for someone who grew up like me.
How do we respond if people constantly carry their feelings on their shoulders? Do we empathize? Or do we dismiss them? I can feel the outrage at the thought of not being kind and gentle regarding someone else’s feelings.
Yet I wonder how my life would have turned out if I had been coddled instead of instructed about the issues I would have faced by carrying my feelings on my shoulders,
I suppose there is a middle ground somewhere between my mom’s teaching of her children and what our world is teaching its children today.
Another thing that concerns me in this world where “nothing more than feelings” seems to be all that matters is how we share our faith and speak the truth in a world where saying almost anything can hurt someone’s feelings.
What do we do when our faith is perceived as against people instead of for them? How do we share our beliefs when others only seem to hear an offense?
The answer lies in realizing that faith is not a feeling at all. Hebrews 11:1 says, “Faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” Faith assures us of a hope we must share with others. If we do not, what hope do they have?
When we accept Jesus as our Lord and acknowledge His presence in our lives, we must have the courage to express that faith lovingly while understanding that we may still hurt someone's feelings.
When we go through life only concerned with “nothing more than feelings,” we may seem kind and caring, but do we care at all if we are unwilling to speak the truth in love?
We should not struggle with the choice between hurting someone's feelings and telling them the truth because telling someone the truth, even if it hurts their feelings, may keep someone else from coming along and knocking those feelings off!
Ephesians 4:25,” Therefore, laying aside falsehood, speak truth each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another.”
Truth❤️