A Mixed Bag

I loved Disney’sMary Poppinsmovie when I was a kid. As the nanny who cared for the Banks’ children, Mary Poppins had a super cool bag with all sorts of unimaginable stuff inside. It was mesmerizing to watch as she reached into the bag and pulled out a pair of shoes, a lamp, and a plant, as she set up her new room. Mary Poppins’ bag was undoubtedly a mixed bag of sorts. You never knew what she was going to pull out of it.

When we’re going through a divorce, we have our own kind of mixed bag that we carry around too — that is, a bag of mixed emotions. In addition to anger and guilt, there’s a whole other gamut of emotions we can feel, often in the same day. Sometimes we feel deep sadness as we grieve our losses, sometimes fear as we face a new world, then, sometimes peacefulness, knowing we no longer have to contend with the difficulties of our marriage anymore. Yet, being on an emotional roller coaster can be quite unsettling, debilitating, and exhausting. So, what do we do when our emotions are all over the place?

The apostle Paul gives us two great suggestions. In 2 Corinthians 10, Paul encourages the Corinthians to “…take captive every thought,” and in Philippians 4, he encourages the Philippians to think on things that are "excellent or praiseworthy." Then he presents a host of spiritually uplifting items we could add to our mixed bag. In Philippians 4:8, Paul writes— “…whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable…think about such things.”

Despite how we feel about all that has happened in our lives, the truth is we get to choose which emotion we’ll pull out of our mixed bag each day. On those days when your emotions are bouncing all over the place, stop, pray for God’s help to take captive the thoughts that are triggering those emotions, then choose an item from Paul’s list to think on. Meditating on those things that are excellent and praiseworthy helps steady our emotions and returns us to a sense of normalcy. Think on these things.

Today’s Promise:He will keep in perfect peace all those who trust in him, whose thoughts turn often to the Lord! (Isaiah 26:3 TLB)