Devotional
Feelings are real. Nobody is going to tell you they are not. But feelings are not always reliable guides, and building your life on them is like building a house on shifting sand. Elijah called down fire from heaven and then, just days later, collapsed under a tree and asked God to let Him die. John the Baptist baptized Jesus and still later sent messengers to ask if He was truly the One. These were not weak people. They were giants of faith who still had moments of crushing doubt and exhaustion. That should encourage you. Your hard moment does not disqualify you from God’s faithfulness. It just means you are human. What carried these men through was not a feeling. It was a choice to keep trusting even when everything inside them wanted to give up. The Bible is clear on this. The just shall live by faith, not by emotion. Faith is not the absence of doubt. It is the decision to trust God in spite of it. You may not feel His presence today. You may not see how things are going to work out. But He is still there, still working, and still faithful. Your feelings do not change that truth one bit.
Bible Verse
“Will the Lord cast off for ever? and will he be favourable no more? Is his mercy clean gone for ever? doth his promise fail for evermore? Hath God forgotten to be gracious? hath he in anger shut up his tender mercies?” – Psalm 77:7-9
Reflection Question
In what area of your life are you currently letting your feelings lead instead of your faith, and what would it look like to flip that around?
Quote
“The Bible never talks about us living by our emotions. Your emotions will let you down. No, what the Bible says is the just shall live by faith. Even when I don’t feel it, I still know I’m saved. Even when I don’t see it, I still know he is with me.” -Dr. Tom Madden
Prayer
Father, when my feelings tell me You are far away, help me to choose faith over fear. Remind me that Your faithfulness is not tied to how I feel. Amen.