Think About the Things You Think AboutSample

Think About Your Emotional Responses

Do you know what an emotional trigger is? 

It’s what people call it when a specific emotion usually causes an immediate reaction—without even thinking about it. Like when someone pulls a trigger on a gun, and a bullet flies. No pause; it happens automatically. 

For example: You see a fuzzy kitten, and your emotional trigger of adorableness makes you tilt your head and say, “Awwww!” That’s a fun emotional trigger! 

But, allowing a ton of emotional triggers to run your life can get, well, pretty rough pretty fast!

For another example: Your little brother destroys the project you worked on all weekend that you’re supposed to bring to school this morning! You might have an emotional trigger of anger that causes you to lash out with mean words or other, um, unkind actions. This kind of trigger? You’re going to need to work on putting a break between when you feel angry and what you do next. 

Watch Judo Bob. He’ll explain it better!

See? If Judo Bob can learn to put a break between his feelings and his actions, anyone can! 

He said a lot of good stuff to help you take control of your emotions. Here they are again so you can remember them! They’ll help you train yourself to slow down and obey Christ, not your feelings.

1. Don’t react right away. (Pause. Take a breath!)
2. Ask for divine guidance. (Pray! Ask God to help you know how to respond.)
3. Find a healthy way to release your emotions. (Take a walk, journal, talk to a trusted adult, listen to worship music, etc.) 
4. See the bigger picture. (Hint: Maybe you’re taking things too personally.)
5. Replace your thoughts. (Winner winner! Philippians 4:8 has your answer here!)
6. Detach from your emotional triggers. (Think: I’m not someone who reacts in anger. I respond to life, I don’t react to it. And go back to Judo Bob’s point number 1.) 

Ask yourself: Which one of the six steps above will help me to gain control of my emotions? Which one of the six steps am I pretty good at? 

Challenge yourself: Okay, it’s day 4 of this Bible Plan, and you can probably guess today’s challenge. Yup. It’s time to grab your journal and write one thing that happened today or one thing you noticed today that you’re grateful for. Write it down and put today’s date by it. 

Pray: God, thank You for helping me control my emotions instead of reacting to whatever feeling triggers a response in me. Help me to get better and better at putting a pause between what I feel and what I do. In Jesus’ name, amen.