A U-Turn From Emotional IssuesSample

Emotions are to the soul what the senses are to the body. They reveal the way we feel about life’s circumstances. People who have gone the wrong direction with their emotions struggle to survive and may feel helpless, hopeless, and worthless. An emotional stronghold does not refer to having a bad day every once in a while. It refers to when you cannot shake the negative entrapment that has grasped your life, resulting in uncontrolled discouragement, depression, and sorrow. Instead of doing what so many people do (which is to try to deny or suppress emotional strongholds through pills, entertainment, sex, or spending), I want to help you discover the root behind what you are experiencing so that you can overcome it. The truth is that God did not create you to carry emotional strongholds for five, twenty, or forty years, or for any time at all. Rather, God has promised you, in Christ, a full life. Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (John 10:10b). He has not called you to live each day defeated. He wants you to know and trust that He is the One who is in control of all things, and that He is watching over the entirety of your life. If you are not experiencing the abundant life that Christ freely gives, it is time for a U-turn. Turn to God, and ask Him to reveal the areas where you are lacking trust and that an emotional stronghold may have set in. He wants to help you learn how to see past your sorrow—to view your life from His vantage point. He can make a miracle out of what looks like a mess. Are there emotions that seem to have a stranglehold on your life? Are you ready to turn them over to God?