Taming Your Elephant: Bringing Emotions Under Control
He's committed to a certain amount of Bible study and listening to sermons per week, a certain amount of miles ridden on his bike.
Taming Your Elephant
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Name the struggle
He's committed to a certain amount of Bible study and listening to sermons per week, a certain amount of miles ridden on his bike. It doesn't matter if he's sick or having ankle replacement surgery, as soon as possible, that's where he is.
So I like to hear him talk about that because I'm trying, but I'm nowhere near where he is.
Understand what feeds it
In each and every one of us, there is self-focus, this natural inclination to focus on yourself, to take care of yourself, to think about yourself, and to do things that are good for yourself. We can preach sermons that say, stop thinking about yourself, stop looking out for your own interests, get rid of that, make it all about Jesus and all about others, but the elephant will never leave the room.
I mean, even in the Bible, this is referenced multiple times.
Choose a steadier response
It is so much harder to make a job change, to find the right balance, to curb back your spending, to tell yourself no so that ultimately you can tell yourself yes, kind of the Dave Ramsey concept. By not spending, by working smarter, not harder, by finding the right avenues, you're actually serving your own interest, but in better, deeper, longer ways that will help people instead of hurting them.
In what ways are you serving yourself to your own demise when you really owe it to yourself to control that monster, to get that powerful creature that's leading you one direction, to lead you in another, in ways that are still good for you and still think about you, maybe even first, but in a way that ultimately is God's plan for you.
Move forward with hope
And that was kind of Ben's message for Luke and his message for me in really a way that he has always lived. If you ask Ben now, is it hard not to eat meat or to get on the bike and go 20 miles or whatever he might be doing?
I have trained myself, knowing that it is just the me monster in my life that I will always live with initial self-interest and even self-centeredness, not in a sinful way, just a natural way.
Take the idea with you.
- 01Where do I see the problem or opportunity described in “Taming Your Elephant: Bringing Emotions Under Control” in my own life?
- 02What Scripture or spiritual principle in this study most needs my attention?
- 03What one specific change can I make this week to put this teaching into practice?
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