Relational God, Relational Parenting: A Five Day DevotionalSample

Like traffic signs at an intersection, our brains are continually sending signals to help us react and respond to our environment. Unfortunately, we don’t always recognize what those signals mean. And just like with driving, people can get hurt when we don’t respect or understand the signs that help us know when to go and how to proceed.

When our brains sense danger, the brain stem takes control and sends us danger signals that tell us to have an emergency response; you might have heard this referred to as fight, flight, or freeze. Your heart starts racing. You can hardly breathe. Your blood pressure rises. You may be ready to explode with anger, lash out, slam doors, yell, and scream. You may feel scared, hypervigilant, and desperate to be anywhere but here. You may feel completely overwhelmed and unable to process or see what to do next. All of these things are your body’s way of sending you a signal.

When the brain stem takes over like this, it’s like a red signal at a stoplight.

We call it Red Brain.

This part of the brain takes over when something about the situation feels unsafe to us, whether consciously or unconsciously. It is telling us that it isn’t safe to proceed and that we need to stop.

I love that God knows this. He created our brains to react this way to unsafe situations, and He designed this system to protect us. But we don’t need to handle these situations on our own.

He calls us and says, “Come to Me—I am your safety and your Refuge. I am with you. You are SAFE!” Jesus knows how to speak to Red Brain, to be present with you. Emmanuel, God with us, tells you that you are okay—you are not alone.

It is so important that we recognize when we are in Red Brain and to stop when we recognize these signals. If we allow ourselves to carry on without stopping first, we will be unsafe to ourselves and others. We will do and say things that we will regret later. But the good news is that our God is a God of compassion and mercy. And even when we mess up, which we often do in that brain state, He still calls to us—offering forgiveness, mercy, and compassion.

Today's challenge is when you feel like you are going to Red Brain is to stop, breathe, and think about what your brain is trying to tell you and remember that God is with you.