In my posts over the last few weeks, I have shared with you the struggles of being a feeler. I
did this so you thinking folk might have some insight to our worlds. But now, for my final feeler post, I
want to tell you why the world needs feelers and why I’m glad God made me
one. Here goes:
It really goes back to Genesis 2, where God created
Adam; Adam had just finished
naming all the animals that God had created, but found no suitable helper for
himself. Then God created another
person—this time, Eve. Eve was
perfect for Adam; she was his perfect complement.
com·ple·ment
noun
ˈkämpləmənt/
a thing that
completes or brings to perfection.
As his
complement, Eve completed Adam and made him a more proper reflection of the
Father. God is a
multifaceted being and we reflect Him most accurately when we live in community
with others in a harmonious way. As feelers, then, we show a part of the
Father that cannot be reflected by our thinking friends. And when we live with them in understanding
and unity, we show humanity a fuller picture of God Himself.
In a world of thinkers alone,
processes would be efficient and logical, but much of the flavor and beauty of life would
be missing. Feelers add color
and depth. Their perspective on God helps us to see Him as Fatherly,
compassionate, and approachable. Many passages
in the Bible that show us how God feels. His great
sadness is shown in Hosea 11 when the people He formed reject Him:
“When Israel was a child, I loved him,
and out of Egypt I called my son.
But the more they were called,
the more they went away from me.
They sacrificed to the Baals
and they burned incense to images.
It was I who taught Ephraim to walk,
taking them by the arms;
but they did not realize
it was I who healed them.
I led them with cords of human kindness,
with ties of love.
To them I was like one who lifts
a little child to the cheek,
and I bent down to feed them.”
God cries when he must punish His people and He says through
Jeremiah (14:17):
"Speak
this word to them: "'Let my eyes overflow with tears night and day without
ceasing; for the Virgin Daughter, my people, has suffered a grievous wound, a
crushing blow.
We know that God demonstrates joy because
we are told in Nehemiah 8:10 that
“The joy of the Lord is [our] strength.”
God is a feeler too. We can see him feeling and
thinking throughout the entire Bible.
We feelers reflect Him most accurately when
we:
·
Feel loved by
the beauty of a sunset or the remembrance of God’s faithfulness
·
Write a card
or say a prayer for a friend because we truly feel their pain
·
Cry when we
sense injustice or oppression
·
Love our
children powerfully and understand God’s love for us because of this
·
Have joy
bubble up in our souls for simple things like fireflies and snowflakes and
flannel sheets
·
Have faith in
God because we trust Him and we don’t need everything to make sense
·
Feel the
nudging of the Holy Spirit and step out of our comfort zone
·
Call our
Father “Abba” because we feel His abiding love for us
·
Commit to
others, deeply and from the heart, and serve them because we love them.
·
Enjoy
relationships and harmony over isolation and productivity
·
Despise
conflict and desire peace
·
Include
others when we notice them feeling left out
·
Use our
idealism to serve God and others despite popular opinion
·
Bring great passion
to relationships, projects and performance
·
Use warmth
and sweetness to draw others to ourselves and God.
As feelers, we are able to experience some
of the deep sadness that God expresses in the Bible. We can also embrace the palpable joy spoken of so
often in the Psalms (although we must be careful not to make OUR joy our only
goal). God has made us just as He wanted—a perfect
complement for His thinking children. When we use these
powerful emotions to show what is Good about God and not what is evil about
ourselves, we are operating within His original design. Anytime
we do things the way that God wants them done, there is rest—not
restlessness—and contentment.
So…feeler rejoice! God has rescued you from yourself! And when you
give Him all of yourself, He can make you into what He has always intended you
to be—completely beautiful—inside and out. He did this because
He loves you. And you are precious
to Him.
Choose Him;
FEEL rightly;
God will be glorified.
But now, this is what the Lord says—
he who
created you, Jacob,
he who
formed you, Israel:
“Do not fear, for I have redeemed you;
I have summoned you
by name; you are mine.
When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep
over you.
When you walk through the fire,
you will not be
burned;
the flames will not
set you ablaze.
For I am the Lord your God,
the Holy One of
Israel, your Savior;
I give Egypt for your ransom,
Cush and
Seba in your stead.
Since you are precious and honored in
my sight,
and because I
love you,
I will give people in exchange for you,
nations in exchange
for your life.
Do not be afraid, for I am with you;
I will bring your
children from the east
and gather you
from the west.
I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’
and to the
south, ‘Do not hold them back.’
Bring my sons from afar
and my
daughters from the ends of the earth—
everyone who is called by my name,
whom I
created for my glory,
whom I formed and
made.”
Isaiah 43:1-7