Participants: John Bradshaw
Series Code: IIW
Program Code: IIW001460A
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01:13 ♪ [It is Written theme]
01:23 ♪ [It is Written theme] 01:43 ♪ [It is Written theme] 01:50 This is It Is Written. 01:51 Thanks for joining me today. I'm John Bradshaw. 01:54 Today a subject that touches the life of every breathing person 02:00 on the planet. We've been made a certain way by 02:04 a creative God who's given us a mind with which to think, 02:07 and he's made us to be emotional beings. 02:11 And you know that there are some people who just don't seem to be 02:14 able to control their emotions. Or perhaps, perhaps I'm talking 02:18 about you and me. There are times when our 02:20 emotions just seem to get the better of us. 02:23 So how can we be emotionally intelligent? 02:27 There's somebody who's going to guide our thinking on this 02:29 subject; that's Dr. Neil Nedley. He's the president of 02:32 Nedley Health Solutions. Dr. Nedley, 02:34 thanks for joining me today. NN: Thank you. 02:36 Great being here, John. JB: How do we analyze 02:38 our thoughts? NN: Well, we have to actually 02:40 put them into our frontal lobe to analyze them. 02:43 In other words, when we feel emotional some way, we have to 02:47 be aware that that's happening. Then we need to look at the 02:52 belief or the thought that is causing us to have the emotional 02:57 consequence, which then has a behavioral consequence. 03:00 We call it the ABCs of emotional intelligence. 03:04 The A is the activating event, or being aware. 03:07 The B is the belief. And the C is the consequence. 03:11 And a lot of people think it just goes from A to C. 03:13 Now, we have a role to play in regard to our emotions, 03:16 and that's our belief about the A that brings about 03:21 the emotional consequence. JB: So when things happen, it's 03:24 wise that we become or that we choose to be the type of person 03:27 that says, wait a minute, what's really going on here, 03:30 and how should I be thinking? NN: Exactly. 03:33 JB: Right, we don't do that when suddenly we just react 03:36 in a rage. NN: That's right. 03:37 JB: Lose our temper, fly off the handle. 03:39 NN: Exactly. JB: When people 03:41 aren't thinking straight, their thoughts are distorted. 03:43 What are common distorted thoughts? 03:46 NN: Well, one of them is magnification and minimization. 03:51 We have a tendency to major in minors and minor in majors. 03:57 And an example would be Saul. When Samuel came to him and told 04:03 him about the problems of why he hadn't done 04:07 all of the instructions, he minimized it, 04:10 acted like it wasn't a big deal at all, 04:13 explained it away. JB: This is when Samuel said, 04:16 look I asked you to wipe out everybody. 04:18 Why didn't you do it? Oh, it's not such a big problem. 04:20 We brought those animals to sacrifice to God, so we're okay. 04:23 NN: Yeah, exactly. JB: It wasn't okay. 04:25 NN: And then he only became concerned when the consequences 04:29 came down for that action, and we know 04:31 God is the righteous judge, so it was appropriate 04:34 consequences, and he began to dwell on the unfairness 04:38 of that punishment. Really, it all started as a 04:42 result of magnification of self. There's a book that you might 04:47 want to pick up. We mentioned this in our book 04:51 "The Lost Art of Thinking," but there's another psychologist 04:54 who picked it up, called "What Your Counselor 04:56 Never Told You: The Seven Sins 04:58 That Lead to Mental Illness." And the first sin that 05:02 he mentions that leads to mental illness is the sin 05:04 of pride. That's when we 05:06 magnify ourselves. Then he gives you a little test 05:10 to see whether you might have it: trying to be noticed, 05:13 craving attention, itching for compliments, 05:16 needing to be important, detesting the idea of being 05:19 submissive, flaunting your individual rights, 05:23 thinking you have excellences you don't have. 05:27 Those are all indicators of pride, and when an inflated 05:32 sense of self comes about, you will then eventually have 05:36 wounded pride, and then you're going to end up with feelings of 05:40 worthlessness, which is also the other side of the equation. 05:44 So it always starts out with too much pride, before we get to the 05:50 very poor self-esteem, poor self-worth, feelings of 05:54 worthlessness, which then, of course, results in severe 05:56 depression, suicidal thoughts. JB: We see how fundamental this 06:00 is just by thinking about that common expression, 06:02 "What was he thinking?" NN: Exactly. 06:06 Yes, exactly. JB: And if only the individual 06:08 had stopped to think--people in a rage grab a gun, or so on--in 06:12 and at the same time tyrants and despots. 06:15 NN: Yes. JB: They get to where they get 06:18 because of this very distorted thinking, not looking at things 06:22 really rationally or accurately. NN: Right. 06:26 And they tend to be very egotistical individuals. 06:28 In contrast, we have the life of Christ. 06:31 One of the best biographies states him this way: 06:34 "He was never elated by applause, nor dejected 06:38 by censure or disappointment." Among the greatest opposition 06:43 and the most cruel treatment he was still of good courage. 06:46 Why was that the case? Because he was never elated 06:49 by applause; he never allowed himself 06:51 to have this egotistical self as being the rule. 06:56 And that's a key element of having emotional 06:59 intelligence--to know what our weaknesses are, to be humble, 07:04 to give deference to others. That's one of the things that is 07:08 important in emotional intelligence, and certainly 07:10 not magnifying self. JB: Now, you look at another 07:13 person in the Bible, Solomon. Now, it seems almost that 07:18 Solomon might have suffered from depression. 07:21 NN: Oh, He did. JB: Well, talking about 07:23 distortions, what was his big distortion in his thinking? 07:26 NN: Emotional reasoning. It was different from Saul's. 07:29 Emotional reasoning leads people to seek things that 07:36 cause others pleasure. And so they want to be happy, 07:42 and actually more pleasure leads to less pleasure. 07:46 JB: How's that? NN: Solomon tells his story 07:48 in Ecclesiastes. He says how he used alcohol, 07:51 I think opium was involved, so there was alcohol, 07:53 there were drugs, and then he said, 07:56 I didn't allow myself to not view anything. 07:59 In fact, anything that caused me pleasure I would go for. 08:02 So there was pornography, and then there was live pornography. 08:06 Those are all false ways of altering the way you feel. 08:10 The way of altering the way you feel is to actually change 08:13 your thoughts. But when you go for substances 08:16 or events to try to alter your feelings, 08:22 first you get a high from that, but then as you do it more, 08:26 you actually get less of a high, and in between times you have 08:28 severe distressing sense of deprivation, even though 08:32 there's nothing going wrong in your system. 08:36 Solomon had everything going right for him; he was the 08:38 wealthiest man on the planet, he had a lot of things 08:41 going right, but he ended up severely 08:44 depressed from actually going through frontal lobe 08:48 suppressing activities to try to get happiness. 08:51 JB: So many examples of people who seem to have it all, 08:54 but their lives are miserable because in their own minds 08:58 they don't have what's most important. 09:01 NN: Well, emotional reasoning goes something like this as 09:03 well, it will progress to this. First you seek pleasure in any 09:07 way that you can find it, and then you get to the point where 09:11 you're saying, "I feel like a dud; therefore I am a dud." 09:15 I feel overwhelmed and helpless; thus, my problems are impossible 09:19 to solve. And so just because you feel 09:22 that way, you conclude that it has to be true. 09:25 And you know, feelings come and feelings go, and feelings can be 09:28 quite deceiving. JB: We'll talk more about this 09:31 in just a moment. Thinking straight, thinking 09:33 healthfully, so very, very important when it comes to a 09:37 person's relationship with God. We'll have more 09:40 in just a moment. 09:42 ♪ [Gentle Melody] If you could just 09:50 go back in time and do things differnetly. 09:54 Perhaps you've struggled with regret, the added weight 09:56 of guilt. And while there's no way 09:57 to undo the past, God offers us a forgiveness so complete 10:02 that it comes with the promise of a life that will never end. 10:06 Sound too good to be true? Well, see what the bible says. 10:09 Our booklet, "Hope for a planet in Crisis" 10:12 will walk you through the bible's teachings about sin and 10:14 forgiveness, and show you how a new start can be yours. 10:18 Just call 800-253-3000 and request your free copy 10:23 of "Hope for a Planet in Crisis. If the line's busy, please do 10:27 keep on trying. Or write to It Is Written 10:30 P.O. Box 6, Chattanooga, 10:32 TN 37401. 10:35 We'll mail a free copy to your address in 10:37 North America. Again our toll free number is 10:40 800-253-3000 and our web address is itiswritten.com 10:50 JB: This is It Is Written. I'm John Bradshaw. 10:52 I'm glad you've chosen to join me today. 10:55 What a blessing to have Dr. Neil Nedley here. 10:57 We are discussing emotional intelligence and how to think 11:01 straight, thinking healthfully. It's true, isn't it, that when 11:05 we learn to think right, and even when we learn to think 11:08 right about our thoughts, we're going to do a whole 11:11 lot better emotionally and spiritually as well. 11:13 NN: Correct. JB: We see people in the Bible 11:16 who fought their way into difficult situations. 11:20 I'm thinking about Elijah. NN: Yes. 11:23 JB: You don't think about these great Bible heroes as being 11:25 emotionally weak, or at least momentarily messing up their 11:31 thinking processes, but it seems he did. 11:33 NN: Elijah was different from Saul and Solomon, which gives us 11:36 an example that people who have depression, there's always a 11:39 different set of causes that are there. 11:42 It's not always the same causes. With Saul it was magnification 11:46 of self. With Solomon it was 11:48 emotional reasoning. And Elijah was not a prideful 11:52 individual like Saul. He didn't do things for the sake 11:56 of pleasure only like Solomon did. 11:59 He was a very godly man, but he ended up with severe depression. 12:04 If you remember the story, God was trying to prepare him 12:07 for something great, for transforming the nation. 12:10 And first there was no rain, and then Elijah went to the brook 12:15 and was being fed by the ravens. He wouldn't believe until the 12:18 brook dried up, and even then he didn't leave until the Lord 12:20 told him to go to Jezreel, Jezebel's home town. 12:23 Then he was put on a plant-based, vegetarian diet, 12:27 trying to get him even better ready. 12:28 But even then he wasn't ready for Ahab until he proved that he 12:32 could live with an argumentative woman successfully, who'd lashed 12:36 out at him when things went wrong. 12:39 And when the Lord saw how calmly he dealt with that woman, 12:42 he said, okay, you're ready for Ahab. 12:44 And this tremendous event occurred, the beginning of the 12:47 transformation of the nation, and then Jezebel within 24 hours 12:51 threatens his life, and Elijah takes off running 12:54 to save his life. JB: And suddenly this man, 12:55 who'd seen God work incredibly powerfully, 13:00 fire from heaven, he's threatened by this 13:03 harridan, and off he goes with his tail between his legs. 13:06 NN: Yeah. Of course, he had reason to 13:07 fear, because she had feared other prophets, you know, there, 13:10 so he had reason to fear. But he didn't wait on God. 13:12 He went and started running, and then 30 days later he asked 13:16 for the Lord to take his life. He says, it's over with, 13:19 I'm depressed, just take my life. 13:22 And really, it was about as close to suicide as a godly man 13:25 would have. And the Lord had to put him 13:27 through a program. He had to, you know, 13:29 come and feed him food. I think there was some 13:31 flaxseed there. He had to put him on 13:33 an exercise program. He actually had to get him out 13:35 into the light, out of the cave. But what really helped Elijah 13:40 was the still small voice. That was what we call cognitive 13:44 behavioral therapy, where the Lord was coming to see what 13:47 thoughts were there, and to help Elijah analyze his thoughts. 13:50 Elijah began to tell what was on his mind. 13:53 He said, I'm the only one that has not bowed the knee to Baal. 13:58 That's called overgeneralization. 14:00 JB: That certainly was not true. NN: He should have said, 14:03 I'm the only one I know of, maybe. 14:04 JB: Right. NN: But instead, he just knew he 14:06 was the only one. And the Lord let him get by with 14:09 that the first time, but the second time he had to stop him, 14:12 and he said, Elijah, you're wrong; 14:14 you're not only wrong, you're wrong by a factor of 14:16 seven thousand. JB: Yeah, now let me ask you 14:19 this question, because we're talking about a prophet of God, 14:23 a man who was taken to heaven. NN: Yes. 14:28 JB: ...without seeing death. And he suffered from depression. 14:32 NN: Yes. It tells you the sympathy that 14:34 the Lord has for people in depression. 14:36 JB: It's okay to be depressed, isn't it? 14:38 You understand what I mean. NN: Oh, absolutely. 14:40 It's okay to be depressed. But it's not okay 14:43 to stay depressed. JB: No, no. 14:45 NN: And if you just ignore it, and try to protect it, 14:51 without getting the actual help you need, 14:54 it can be a problem. JB: I want to clarify this. 14:56 It is acceptable for a believer in God to, to be suffering 15:02 from depression. I don't mean wallow in it, 15:04 but hey, it's okay. NN: That's right, Elijah had it. 15:07 JB: Yeah, there you go. So there's the proof 15:08 right there. NN: Yeah. 15:10 JB: So we want to learn to think straight and to be 15:15 emotionally intelligent. I have a feeling that emotional 15:19 intelligence has more to do with just thoughts, more to do 15:23 with--there's more to it than just thinking straight. 15:25 Perhaps in a moment we'll explore that. 15:27 NN: Good JB: Emotional intelligence. 15:31 Learning to think in such a way that you thrive emotionally, 15:35 and that you can have a strong relationship with God. 15:38 So often people who get into this "nobody loves me, 15:42 I have no value," they come to the place where 15:45 "not even God can love me and help me." 15:47 And you don't want to be there. More in just a moment. 15:51 "Every Word" is a one-minute, Bible-based daily devotional 15:55 presented by Pastor John Bradshaw, and designed 15:58 especially for busy people like you. 16:01 Look for "Every Word" on selected networks 16:03 or watch it online every day on our website, 16:06 ItIsWritten.com. [Music] 16:17 Life often throws up circumstances that provoke 16:20 a person to lose their temper. And I've often heard it said, 16:23 well, you can't blame him, or her, given the circumstances. 16:27 But look at this; it's Proverbs 16:32. 16:29 The wise man wrote, "He who is slow to anger is 16:32 better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who 16:35 takes a city." It's virtuous to control your temper, not to lose 16:39 it. The Bible never recommends blowing up, giving people a 16:42 piece of your mind, letting it rip. God's grace is given to us 16:45 so that we can be Christ-like. And Jesus was a model of 16:49 evenness every day of his life. The Pharisees plagued his steps, 16:53 he had Judas and Peter to deal with, demon-possessed people, 16:56 and yet he never lost it. Challenging, isn't it? But it's 17:01 what Jesus can do in your life, and he wants to do it today. 17:04 I'm John Bradshaw for It Is Written. Let's live today 17:07 by every word. This is It Is Written. 17:11 I'm John Bradshaw. Thanks for joining me today. 17:15 Today, controlling your emotions. 17:17 Dr. Nedley, a moment ago we talked about 17:20 really a surprising figure, the great Elijah, 17:23 taken by God to heaven in a chariot of fire, 17:27 and yet emotionally he was a wreck there for a while. 17:31 NN: Yes. JB: But God put Elijah on a 17:33 program that brought him back to emotional health. 17:36 NN: Yes. JB: So we want to be the kind of 17:38 person who's emotionally healthy. 17:39 What was that program that God put Elijah on? 17:42 NN: It was good nutrition, it was exercise, 17:45 it was light therapy, and it was helping him to 17:50 analyze his thoughts and correct his distorted thoughts. 17:54 After that was done, it still wasn't complete until 17:58 Elijah actually carried out the instructions of God in areas 18:04 that he did not want to do. JB: Hmm, that's interesting. 18:08 Hey, first I want to ask you, light therapy. 18:10 What's that? NN: We actually need bright 18:12 light for our brains to function good every day. 18:16 And, you know, when we're depressed, we have a tendency to 18:18 get into a cave and, you know, just enclose ourselves in. 18:22 And that's why God sent the earthquake and the storm, 18:26 to try to get Elijah out of that cave. 18:28 He sent a fire. He kept trying to get him out 18:30 into the light. Finally, after he got him out 18:32 into the light for a while, that's when the still small 18:36 voice came, which was helping him to get rid of his distorted 18:40 thought. JB: Hey, isn't that interesting, 18:41 that it was key for Elijah to start doing the things that God 18:43 asked him to do? NN: Yes...yes. 18:46 JB: Why is that important? NN: Because God always wants us 18:50 to do things that are best for us and best for others. 18:54 JB: I wonder, too, if when a person knows they're not doing 18:57 God's will they're wracked by guilt and can't be healthy 19:00 emotionally. Is that part of it? 19:03 NN: Oh, it can very well be part of it. 19:04 I mean, that's why Jonah ended up, you know, very depressed in 19:08 the situation that he was in, and others as well. 19:11 If we are convicted that the Lord wants us to go this way, 19:14 and the evidence is in his Word to go that way, but we go 19:17 another way, that's self-sabotage. 19:20 JB: Okay, now, what's the path to emotional wellness, 19:24 the path to controlling one's emotions? 19:28 Perhaps what we might say is, what are the characteristics of 19:31 somebody who's got it figured out? 19:33 Because we want to be those people. 19:34 NN: Sure. Yeah, characteristics of people 19:37 who do have it figured out is they're actually going to be 19:39 curious about people they don't know. 19:42 They're actually going to be well liked by most people-- 19:45 not by everybody, we're not asking anyone 19:47 to be liked by everybody. You can't be liked by everybody 19:49 a hundred percent of the time. JB: Curious about people you 19:52 don't know? Why is that important? 19:54 NN: Well, remember, part of emotional intelligence is 19:57 managing relationships with others. 20:00 If you're not curious about people you don't know and want 20:03 to see what makes them tick and to help get to know them, 20:06 that's an issue. That's why you need to have your 20:08 thoughts corrected. We are social beings. 20:11 And actually, when we get into the social isolation mode, 20:14 that's going to hurt us, as well as hurt others. 20:17 So that's an important element. If you're on an airplane, are 20:20 you going to talk to the person next to you and see why they're 20:22 there, and try to get to know them some? 20:24 Emotionally intelligent people do that. 20:27 Then they also are very aware of their strengths and weaknesses. 20:31 They have a sense of humility about them. 20:33 They also know when to say no, but at the same time they will 20:37 slow down to help others. They will have an empathy for 20:40 others, so they'll even disrupt their schedule to help others, 20:45 but not in everything. Someone else might need help and 20:47 they realize they're not the best person for it, 20:49 and they're going to say no, I'm not going to do that. 20:52 When they do have a fall, due to a distorted thought 20:55 or due to something else, they actually take 20:57 responsibility for it, and they get back up, 21:00 instead of minimizing the importance of that fall. 21:05 And they are committed to improving. 21:09 If you have all of those things, with intelligence you have the 21:11 ability to be a great leader. So often emotionally intelligent 21:14 people become very transformative in their 21:16 environment, and they can be a great leader for God. 21:20 JB: Help me to understand how we bring this into our relationship 21:25 with God, how possessing these characteristics can help me to 21:30 thrive as a believer and be a successful Christian. 21:34 NN: Well, it gets down to the sentence of the Apostle Paul, 21:38 who was also very emotionally intelligent. 21:41 Be transformed by the renewing of your mind. 21:45 If we're not willing to have our minds renewed, we're not going 21:48 to be able to be transformed into comprehensive emotionally 21:51 intelligent people. JB: I think it's important for 21:54 us to understand, and this is where the Word of God becomes 21:57 so very powerful. Anybody can achieve this, 22:03 with God's help. NN: That's right. 22:05 JB: Okay. Now, somehow an individual's got 22:08 to learn to go to God with their issues and their problems and 22:10 say, "God, help me through this." 22:13 NN: Yes. JB: Not everybody's able to come 22:16 back from where they are and say, God can help me. 22:19 It's remarkable that even believers get to the place. 22:22 I spoke with an individual very recently, and it was over for 22:24 this individual, because a mistake had been made, 22:28 and God can't help me now. Which is contrary to everything 22:31 you read in the Bible. NN: That's right. 22:33 JB: God even said to Israel, if you mess up, the consequences 22:36 are going to be so terrible for you. 22:38 However, if you repent, I'll take you back. 22:40 NN: Exactly. JB: And I'd like your thoughts 22:43 on this. Perhaps it's really important in 22:45 terms of emotional intelligence to have a clear understanding 22:49 of what God is like. NN: Absolutely. 22:52 JB: Have you seen in individuals who have a distorted picture of 22:55 God that it negatively affects them emotionally, 22:58 and if you have, how? NN: Oh, absolutely. 23:01 I mean, almost to a person, those that come for our 23:06 treatment-resistant depression and anxiety program have 23:10 significant issues with God. They think God has abandoned 23:13 them, or they maybe think, you know, 23:16 he doesn't exist anymore, because if he did, why isn't he 23:18 helping them? And they have significant issues 23:21 with God. And it's often due to 23:23 misunderstanding God. And that's why part of our 23:27 program that we utilize for mental health is a spiritual 23:32 congruence therapist, you know, someone who helps them to think 23:36 along a logical pathway. We don't necessarily change 23:42 their world view there, but we want them to be able to think in 23:45 a practical way where God can influence them in a positive 23:50 way, and that requires some consistency 23:52 and belief in thought. And the transformation that 23:55 takes place--these people in ten days become great advocates of 24:02 obeying as well as serving the Lord, 24:04 because they see him from a whole different perspective now. 24:07 And now he's able to influence them. 24:09 The reason why he wasn't able to influence them wasn't because of 24:11 God; it was because of them. JB: They weren't thinking right 24:13 about God. NN: That's right, yes. 24:15 JB: So if you were to list two, three, four, five points, 24:18 here's how a person ought to view God 24:21 in an emotionally healthy way, you would want them to know 24:23 that God is, or God does, or God is about, what? 24:27 NN: Well, God is about love, self-sacrificing love. 24:32 The Bible says God is agape, and so having that empathy, 24:37 self-sacrificing love for all of us. 24:40 Secondly, God is a God of truth, accuracy in thought. 24:44 And then thirdly, God is a God of freedom. 24:47 When we have emotional intelligence, we are actually 24:50 free to have complete self-control. 24:54 The Lord wants us to be in control of ourselves and to have 24:57 a balanced mind. And that means we're not a slave 25:00 to any habit. That means we're also not 25:02 coercive to others. We want to influence others, 25:05 but not control others. And we become empathetic 25:08 individuals who can help others think truthfully as well. 25:12 JB: So for the person who continues to lose his or her 25:15 temper, the person who is governed by very sensual, 25:19 over-sensual way of thinking, somebody who's exceedingly 25:23 jealous, someone who's very, very greedy, that person can 25:27 learn to, with God's help, control his or her emotions, 25:32 be a far more happy and productive person, 25:35 and a Christian thriving under the love of God. 25:39 NN: Yes. Absolutely they can be 25:41 transformed. Nebuchadnezzar himself was 25:45 transformed, but it required a process and, you know, a change 25:49 in his diet, and a change in, you know, his activity. 25:53 And then a change in his thoughts. 25:55 So if we are willing to, as individuals, 25:58 with all of those problems, submit ourselves to a... 26:02 to God's process, we can be completely transformed. 26:08 JB: This is part of what Jesus said. 26:09 They asked and they tried to trick him, what's the great 26:11 commandment and the law? Jesus said, first one, love the 26:16 Lord your God with ALL your heart, soul, mind and strength. 26:19 It seems that if we want God to really transform us and make us 26:23 what we can be, we've got to be prepared to be all in with God 26:26 and let him have everything that we are. 26:28 NN: Exactly. JB: And when we're all in with 26:30 God, that's when we enjoy not only the blessing of God, 26:33 but the peace that passes all understanding, the peace that 26:38 comes from allowing God to work in us to control our emotions. 26:44 ♪ [Musical Interlude] 26:53 Our booklet "Hope for a Planet in Crisis" 26:57 will walk you through the Bible's teachings 26:59 about sin and forgiveness and show you how a new start 27:02 can be yours. Just call 27:05 800-253-3000 and request your free copy of 27:09 "Hope for a Planet in Crisis". If the line's busy, 27:13 please do keep on trying. Or write to It Is Written, 27:16 P O Box 6, Chattanooga, TN 37401. 27:21 We'll mail a free copy to your address 27:22 in North America. It Is Written is a 27:25 faith-based ministry, and your support makes it 27:28 possible for us to share 27:29 God's Good News with the world. Your tax-deductible gift can be 27:33 sent to the address on your screen, or through our website 27:36 at ItIsWritten.com. Thank you for your continued 27:39 prayerful support. Again, our toll-free number is 27:43 800-253-3000, and our web address is ItIsWritten.com. 27:51 JB: Dr. Nedley, again thank you so very much for 27:53 joining us today. This has been 27:54 a wonderful discussion. NN: Thank you. 27:56 JB: I've been blessed. We've all been blessed. 27:58 Thanks so much. NN: Thank you. 28:00 JB: We'll go to God and pray now. 28:02 Would you join me in praying? We'll thank him for his goodness 28:04 and pray, and pray expecting God to control our emotions. 28:09 ♪ [Tender melody] Our Father in Heaven, we thank 28:11 you so very much that God is love, you are love, that God is 28:15 good and ready to forgive, that God is able to transform 28:20 us by the renewing of our mind. You are good. 28:23 We thank you for Jesus, who died for us, and your Holy Spirit; 28:27 it brings to us your very presence. 28:29 Lord, with your presence we don't have to be controlled by 28:33 our emotions, but we know that, yielded to you, you can bring 28:39 our emotions to where they need to be, liberate us from the 28:43 thralldom of self-centeredness, and enable us to live under the 28:48 shadow of your wings. We look forward to the day when 28:51 we'll be with you forever in your very presence. 28:54 Let that day come soon. And until then, keep us, 28:57 in Jesus' name we pray, Amen. 29:00 NN: Amen. ♪ [Music rings out] 29:19 ♪ [Theme Music] JB: Thank you for having joined 29:22 me today. I'm looking forward to seeing 29:24 you again next time. Until then, remember, 29:27 It Is Written: Man shall not live 29:30 by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds 29:34 from the mouth of God. ♪ [Theme music continues] |
Revised 2017-03-25