On living too much from your mind, emotions and heart...

On living too much from your mind:

 

The mind is an amazing thing. The capacity to rationalize, to think, to make sense of things, to order, to categorize, theorize, prioritize, and organize can really make things efficient. But the mind does not know how to love. The "mind gone mad" is when it decides that efficiency or order are the highest priority of life. When the mind decides to organize things from the idea that the mind is the highest authority available to a human being, watch out...that person will run over people and "think" they are loving people and "helping them" by doing so. There is such a thing as living with too little mind...but that is not the subject of this note. People who live too much from their mind, however, quickly and conveniently judge anything that disagrees with them as doing so...keeping their own little efficient, boxed-in, orderly perspective safe and secure from the wild and chaotic world where real life is lived. Ironically, the person who lives too much from the mind usually condemns emotions while using the emotion of anger to sustain it's own perspective and existence in the face of anything outside of their comfort zone. Again, the mind is not the source of love, and living this way is much less than the abundant life available.

 

On living too much from emotions:

 

Our emotions are amazing things. Their capacity to activate, to move, to propel, to change the course of things, to shut down or wake up people, to take over, to energize, empathize, sympathize, and mobilize can really make things exciting. But the emotions do not know how to love. Emotions alone are as selfish and self-centered as the mind. They think they rule and should be catered to. When the emotions are submitted to without the application of wisdom in a human being, watch out. That person will run over people and "feel" that they are loving people and "being real" with them by doing so. There is such a thing as living with too little emotion...but that is not the subject of this note. People who live too much from their emotion, however, quickly and conveniently judge anything that disagrees with them as doing so...keeping their own indulgent extreme behaviors safe and unchallenged from a world with natural laws and order where real life is lived. Again, the emotions are not the source of love. Ironically, the person who lives too much from the emotions usually use their minds to condemn "unemotional people" to sustain it's own existence in the face of anything that would challenge them to use their emotions effectively. Again, the emotions are not the source of love, and living this way is much less than the abundant life available.

 

On living too much from your heart:

 

You can't live too much from your heart. This is the goal of God for every human being. The heart is where Christ takes up residence. This is the area where an all or nothing attitude is actually healthy. Since we are all creatures of habit and have addictive natures, this is the habit we should develop and the addiction we should get hooked by. King Solomon, considered by the Bible to have wisdom matched by no other mortal man, said that the highest priority of every person should be his heart (Proverbs 4:23). King David, described by Scripture as man after God's own heart (would being a man after God's own head ever a compliment He used?), says that his important ideas and guiding thoughts come from within the heart (Psalm 27:8).

 

The Hebrew word for heart is "leb," (pronounced "labe") and it is used holistically as a description of the very essence of the entire human being, encompassing the feelings, the will, and the intellect. The heart is the source of love. I'll say it again, the heart is the source of love. Living from the heart can not be overdone.

 

A survey of the book of Matthew reveals that the Son of David agreed with King David's idea that the heart is the very "wellspring of life" (Proverbs 4:23). Jesus said that if you want to see God, you can't unless you have a pure heart (Mt 5:8). He said that it is the focus of the heart that is of consequence (Mt 5:28; 6:21). He told the hurting that the solution to their problems was to "take heart" (9:2 & 22). And when convincing people that following him was the best, most productive, most restful and life-giving way to live, he totally disarmed them by exposing the contents of his heart (Mt 11:29). He says that our mouths (that is, our word choice, conversation topics, tones of voice, and speaking truth or lies) are merely a reflection of what resides in our hearts (Mt 12:34).

 

Need I go on?

 

If you, dear reader, are reorienting your "thinking" and "feelings" to become humble, obedient and loyal servants of your heart, then you need not read on. There is an actual sensation reported by those who have learned this majestic truth...they call it "thinking from the chest" (rather than from the head). Likewise, there is another called "feeling from the heart" (rather than from the gut). If these are not sensations you are familiar with, or agree with, or believe possible, or are operating out of right now in this moment as you read, then I think I might need to go on (if for no one else, for me)...because this is doggone important.

 

Your life, the quality and abundance of it, and of those all around you depend on you spending your life learning this. It's worth the "mental" or "emotional" energy required of you.

 

So, continuing, Jesus said that when the heart is being under-utilized it causes people to hear things wrong, see things wrong, and walk around not understanding people (how many times have you heard someone shake their heads and say, "I just do not understand them"? This is not because they are not capable, it is because they are not willing...people of the mind think it's too inefficient, and people of the emotions would have to accept responsibility, and neither want to be bothered). He then goes on to say that these calloused hearts are the reason they are not healed (Mt 13:15). When our hearts aren't right, he says, our lives aren't right (Mt 15:18-19).

 

When Jesus himself gets planted in a human being, according to him, that event is occurring in the heart, whether he remains there, in the heart, determines whether that life has any Kingdom worth (in terms of effectiveness) at all (Mt 13:18-23).

 

And finally, the most-coveted gift of forgiveness isn't forgiveness unless it is done from the penetrating, comprehensive depths of the heart, Jesus says, and he adds that God will treat you in the exact way you deserve (rather than with grace) if you don't forgive from the heart (Mt 18:23-35). Figuring out this heart thing, without question, is the mandatory and much neglected business of the human race. 

 

Because love, my friends, is a heart thing. And God is love (1 John 4:8). So THE thing that you possess that has the capacity to be like Christ, like God, is your heart. The mind is God-given, but it is only useful as a tool of your heart. Your emotions are powerful gifts of God, too, but are only useful when they are utilized by the heart.

 

No one...no one...no one can be great, and be more head than heart. And no one...no one...no one...can be great and be more emotions than heart.

 

For you mind people who want to argue with Jesus, explaining each of his teachings away with with logic and reason, instead, put all that mind power into going and learning what this means (we need you! We need smart minds that can explain this). For you emotional people who just feel hurt or beaten up by this piece, instead, look for the value in this (We need you! We need powerful "feelers" that can fuel us to wise action). We need minds and emotions, and it is time for them to ally themselves within us, and among us, rather than compete with each other for supremacy on any subject.

 

And you will see them co-exist powerfully and humanly, but only in the people who will "live too much from their hearts.