八福
迈向成熟
经文
诗篇一三九1-24
1(大卫的诗,交与伶长。)耶和华啊,你已经鉴察我,认识我。
2我坐下,我起来,你都晓得;你从远处知道我的意念。
3我行路,我躺卧,你都细察;你也深知我一切所行的。
4耶和华啊,我舌头上的话,你没有一句不知道的。
5你在我前后环绕我,按手在我身上。
6这样的知识奇妙,是我不能测的,至高,是我不能及的。
7我往哪里去躲避你的灵?我往哪里逃、躲避你的面?
8我若升到天上,你在那里;我若在阴间下榻,你也在那里。
9我若展开清晨的翅膀,飞到海极居住,
10就是在那里,你的手必引导我;你的右手也必扶持我。
11我若说:黑暗必定遮蔽我,我周围的亮光必成为黑夜;
12黑暗也不能遮蔽我,使你不见,黑夜却如白昼发亮。黑暗和光明,在你看都是一样。
13我的肺腑是你所造的;我在母腹中,你已覆庇我。
14我要称谢你,因我受造,奇妙可畏;你的作为奇妙,这是我心深知道的。
15我在暗中受造,在地的深处被联络;那时,我的形体并不向你隐藏。
16我未成形的体质,你的眼早已看见了;你所定的日子,我尚未度一日(或译:我被造的肢体尚未有其一),你都写在你的册上了。
17神啊,你的意念向我何等宝贵!其数何等众多!
18我若数点,比海沙更多;我睡醒的时候,仍和你同在。
19神啊,你必要杀戮恶人;所以,你们好流人血的,离开我去吧!
20因为他们说恶言顶撞你;你的仇敌也妄称你的名。
21耶和华啊,恨恶你的,我岂不恨恶他们吗?攻击你的,我岂不憎嫌他们吗?
22我切切地恨恶他们,以他们为仇敌。
23神啊,求你鉴察我,知道我的心思,试炼我,知道我的意念,
24看在我里面有甚么恶行没有,引导我走永生的道路。
信息分享
好了,现在让我们继续思考处理负面情绪的正确方法。昨天我们说处理受伤害情绪的两种错误方法──否认和表达。否认是将情绪积压在自己内心深处,而表达是将它们抛给别人或其他事物。我认为两者都不是符合圣经所教导处理负面情绪的方法。事实上,一些心理学家近年的研究显示,不受控制地表达负面情绪可能加重而不是清除个人情绪上的困难。
我认为正确,以及合乎圣经的处理负面情绪的方式,是在神面前完全承认、并让祂分担我们的感受。请清楚理解我所说的话,因为很多人以为这意味着,当我们在受到伤害或哀伤时,便要来到神面前说:「主啊,我感到受伤,求您赦免。」我不是这意思。有一位基督徒心理学家提出一个很重要的原则,他说:「受到伤害的时候不要假装痛悔。」
当我们的胃因为哀伤、伤痛或伤害而搅动时,我们必须来到那看到和明白一切的神面前,这样祷告:「主啊,现在我受到伤害,比我认为自己能够忍受的更甚。我想呼喊,逃走或打人。我不愿意有这样的感觉,亲爱的主,但我确实有这股冲动。感谢您按我的本相爱我。求您帮助我以荣耀您、以及尊重您名字的方式来处理我的感受。」当我们作这样的祷告,并且是真心诚意地祷告的时候,我们就是在迈向成熟。
「来到那知道一切的神面前」
进深研究
诗五十一1-19,六十九1-36,四十六1-11
1. 大卫怎样处理自己的感受?
2. 写一首短诗表达你此刻内心的真实感受。
祈祷
天父,求您帮助我不是单单听到今天的讯息而不实践,而是能够在日常的基督徒生活中真实的行出来。奉主耶稣宝贵的名字和荣耀祈求,阿们。
The Beatitudes
Moving toward maturity
Bible reading:
Psalm 139:1-24
1 You have searched me, Lord, and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, "Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,"
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed body; all the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.
17 How precious to me are your thoughts,[a] God! How vast is the sum of them!
18 Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand—when I awake, I am still with you.
19 If only you, God, would slay the wicked! Away from me, you who are bloodthirsty!
20 They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name.
21 Do I not hate those who hate you, Lord, and abhor those who are in rebellion against you?
22 I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies.
23 Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.
24 See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
Message
We continue meditating on the right way to handle our negative feelings. We said yesterday that the two wrong ways to handle hurting emotions are to deny them or express them. Denial pushes them down inside us, while expression dumps them on to other people or things. Neither of these, in my view, is a Biblical way of dealing with negative emotions. In fact, recent research by some psychologists shows that the uncontrolled expression of negative feelings can compound, rather than clear up, one's emotional difficulties.
In my judgement, the correct and Biblical way to handle negative emotions is to acknowledge them fully before God and share with Him how we feel. Now understand clearly what I am saying, for at this point many have responded to this advice by coming to God when they are hurt or sorrowful and saying: "Lord, please for- give me for feeling hurt." That misses the point entirely. A Christian psychologist puts the issue most effectively when he says: "We are not to pretend that we feel penitent when we feel hurt."
When our stomachs are churning with grief, sorrow or hurt, we must come before the One who sees and knows everything, and pray a prayer something like this: "Lord, right now I am hurting more than I think I can endure. I feel like screaming, running away or hitting somebody. I don't want to feel like this, dear Lord - but I do. Thank You for loving me as I am. Help me now to handle my feelings in a way that glorifies You and honours Your Name." When we pray a prayer like that - and mean it - we are on the way to maturity.
"Come before the One who knows everything"
Prayer
O Father, help me not just to receive this concept into my mind and do nothing about it, but enable me to put it to work in my daily Christian living. I ask this for the honour and glory of Your peerless and precious Name. Amen.
Further study
Psalm 51:1-19; 69:1-36; 46:1-11
1. How did David deal with his feelings?
2. Write a short Psalm expressing your true feelings.
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