When I’m Feeling ___________________

Our best research is telling us tiny changes can have remarkable results. Gratitude has been called a miracle. We’re not entirely sure the reasons why, but the practice of giving thanks for small, specific things can have a dramatic impact on our entire beings: physically, mentally, emotionally. And for that matter, stopping to practice breathing affects us more than we might realize as long as we have these bodies.

In the same way, there is something magical about creating the space to recognize our feelings and developing the learned skill of naming our emotions.

That deceptively simple light-bulb moment, “A part of me is feeling ________________,” can alter your mood and mindset far more than you might think.

We say “a part of me,” because as Susan David points out, the secret here is realizing that you are not your feelings. A part of you may feel or think a certain way. But that doesn’t define who you are.

You’re not angry. A part of you is angry.

You’re not a liar. A part of you is afraid and is avoiding the truth to protect yourself.

This might sound like mincing words. But learning to engage with your emotions can be life-changing for many of us.

Emotions are data; they are signposts, and we need to learn how to read them because they affect us far more than we are consciously aware. Our thoughts affect our emotions, and our emotions affect our thoughts.

Emotions are what Martha Nussbaum called “geologic upheavals of thought.” That is, if you want to understand what’s happening under the hood of your heart, emotions are your most helpful diagnostic tools.

Emotions are like the check-engine lights on our dashboard. Our emotions help us understand what’s driving us. They are, after all, called e-motions. Where there’s energy, there’s an emotion. So it’s always good to stop and ask, “Where’s this energy coming from?”

The quest to grow in self-awareness is not possible without developing our emotional vocabulary. Unfortunately, for many of us, our emotional vocabulary is limited to mad, sad, glad, and scared. Just four words. While most of us can list more than four emotions, few of us have the practiced skill to identify and name the varied, precise emotions we are feeling in a given moment.

Naming is an essential part of awareness. “Name it to tame it,” Dan Siegel wrote in his parenting book, The Whole-Brain Child, about helping young children learn to regulate their emotions. But naming doesn’t just help small children. Brene Brown says naming is like an emotional super-power.

Like gratitude and breathing, naming may seem like a small thing but it has a profound impact. When it comes to learning how to name our emotions, we need help.

You could put an Emotional Awareness Wheel on your refrigerator. You could start keeping a feelings journal.

Most transformative, you can begin training to name your emotions in God’s presence. We can learn to pray our emotions.

If all of this sounds new-fangled, the Bible is our ancient and trustworthy guide in naming the full spectrum of human emotions. If pouring out your heart and soul before God sounds easy, then you’ve probably never done it in a meaningful way. But there’s something remarkably freeing about turning to God’s word to give voice to the cries of our hearts.

No matter how we feel, we find in the Bible not only a vocabulary but also the promise from God that He meets us in sympathy and solidarity in our distress. His word gives us an anchor to soothe and steady us when we feel tossed and turned by the waves of our emotions.

And feelings are much like waves. We can’t stop them coming. But we can choose which ones to surf. We can choose to ride them out or let them rise and fall and wash over us, without overwhelming us.

Sometimes we fear that naming our worst fears, our most unpleasant emotions, or talking about them openly, may give them power. But just the opposite is true.

Naming defuses the power of our emotions to unconsciously hijack us. Naming disarms and helps regulate our emotions. Mr. Rogers understood this. He famously said,

“Anything that’s human is mentionable, and anything that is mentionable can be more manageable. When we can talk about our feelings, they become less overwhelming, less upsetting and less scary.”

We put the following lists together so that when you find yourself feeling a certain way, you might find new language with which to talk about your emotions, as well as comfort in God’s promises and presence.

When I’m Feeling Stressed or Anxious 

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you…¹⁰ And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.

1 Peter 5:7,10

This is what the Sovereign Lord, the Holy One of Israel, says:

“In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength

Isaiah 30.15

But those who wait on the Lord

Shall renew their strength;

They shall mount up with wings like eagles,

They shall run and not be weary,

They shall walk and not faint.

Isaiah 40:31

⁵ For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh,

but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

⁶ For to set the mind on the flesh is death,

but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

Romans 8:5-6

⁶ do not be anxious about anything,

but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving

let your requests be made known to God.

⁷ And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:6-7

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:13

Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me.

John 14.1

You will keephim in perfect peace

Whose mindis stayed on You,Because he trusts in You.

Isaiah 26:3

Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts.

Colossians 3:15

²⁵ “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life,

what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.

Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?

²⁶ Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns,

and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?

²⁷ And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?

²⁸ And why are you anxious about clothing?

Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin,

²⁹ yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

³⁰ But if God so clothes the grass of the field,

which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,

will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

³¹ Therefore do not be anxious,

saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’

³² For the Gentiles seek after all these things,

and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

³³ But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness,

and all these things will be added to you.

³⁴ “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow,

for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

Matthew 6.25-34

¹⁶ But I call to God, and the Lord will save me.

¹⁷ Evening and morning and at noon

I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.

¹⁸ He redeems my soul in safety from the battle that I wage,

for many are arrayed against me…

²² Cast your burden on the Lord,

and he will sustain you;

he will never permit the righteous to be moved.

Psalm 55:16-18, 22

¹⁸ When I thought, “My foot slips,” your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up.

¹⁹ When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul.

Psalm 94:18-19

¹The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

²He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.

³He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.

⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

All the days of my life;

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord. Forever.

Psalm 23

When I’m Feeling Afraid 

¹⁰ Fear not, for I am with you;

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you, Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’…

¹³ For I, the Lord your God, will hold your right hand,

Saying to you, ‘Fear not, I will help you.’

Isaiah 41.10,13

¹  The Lord is my light and my salvation;

whom shall I fear?

The Lord is the stronghold of my life;

of whom shall I be afraid?

Psalm 27.1

When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.

⁴  In God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. 

Psalm 56:3-4

²⁷ Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you;

not as the world gives do I give to you.

Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.

John 14.27

¹ God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble…

¹⁰ Be still and know that I am God.

Psalm 46.1,10

⁴   I sought the Lord, and he answered me

and delivered me from all my fears.

⁵  Those who look to him are radiant,

and their faces shall never be ashamed.

⁶  This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him

and saved him out of all his troubles.

Psalm 34:4-6

⁷  The Lord is my strength and my shield;

in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;

my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him.

⁸  The Lord is the strength of his people;

he is the saving refuge of his anointed.

⁹  Oh, save your people and bless your heritage!

Be their shepherd and carry them forever.

Psalm 28:7-9

“Be strong and courageous… It is the Lord who goes before you.

He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”

Deuteronomy 31.8

The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears,

And delivers them out of all their troubles.

Psalm 34:17

² When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you;

when you walk through fire you shall not be burned,

and the flame shall not consume you.

³  For I am the Lord your God,

the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Isaiah 43:2-3

When I’m Feeling Angry 

⁵ Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.

⁶  He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday.

⁷ Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him;

fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way,

over the man who carries out evil devices!

⁸  Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

Psalm 37:5-8

²⁶ Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,

²⁷ and give no opportunity to the devil.

Ephesians 4:26-27

⁴  Be angry, and do not sin;

ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent. Selah

⁷  You have put more joy in my heart

than they have when their grain and wine abound.

⁸  In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 4:4, 7-8

¹⁹ My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this:

Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,

²⁰ because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.

James 1:19-20

A fool gives full vent to anger, but the wise quietly holds it back.

Proverbs 29.11

The one who is slow to anger has great understanding,

but the one who has a quick temper exalts folly.

Proverbs 14.29

Do not say, “I will repay evil”; wait for the LORD, and he will help you.

Proverbs 20.22

¹⁸ If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.

¹⁹ Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God,

for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.”

²⁰ To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him;

if he is thirsty, give him something to drink;

for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.”

²¹ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

Romans 12:18-21

¹⁷  A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.

Prov. 11.17

Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near.

Philippians 4.5

¹ What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you?

Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?

² You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain,

so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.

³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.

James 4:1-3

³⁸ “You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’

³⁹ But I say to you, Do not resist the one who is evil.

But if anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

⁴⁰ And if anyone would sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well.

⁴¹ And if anyone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.

⁴² Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.

⁴³ “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’

⁴⁴ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

⁴⁵ so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.

For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good,

and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.

⁴⁶ For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?

Do not even the tax collectors do the same?

⁴⁷ And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others?

Do not even the Gentiles do the same?

⁴⁸ You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

Matthew 5:38-48

¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,

²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,

²¹ envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before,

that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.

²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

²⁵ If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

Galatians 5:19-25

²⁵ And whenever you stand praying, forgive,

if you have anything against anyone,

so that your Father also who is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses.

Mark 11.25

²² But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment;

whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council;

and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.

²³ So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember

that your brother has something against you,

²⁴ leave your gift there before the altar and go.

First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

Matthew 5:22-24

²¹ Then Peter came up and said to him, “Lord, how often will my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? As many as seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you seven times, but seventy-seven times.

Matthew 18:21

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Proverbs 15:1

¹⁶  The vexation of a fool is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult.

Proverbs 12.16

I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, ² with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, ³ eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

Ephesians 4:1-3

⁹  Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart of fools.

Ecclesiastes 7.9

¹⁵ See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God;

that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble,

and by it many become defiled.

Hebrews 12:15

When I’m Feeling Guilty and Ashamed 

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Romans 8.1

¹⁰ He does not deal with us according to our sins,

nor repay us according to our iniquities.

¹¹  For as high as the heavens are above the earth,

so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;

¹²  as far as the east is from the west,

so far does he remove our transgressions from us.

Psalm 103:10-12

He will again have compassion on us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot.

You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.

Micah 7.19

For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world,

but that the world through Him might be saved.

¹⁸ “He who believes in Him is not condemned;

but he who does not believe is condemned already,

because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

 John 3.17

I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions for My own sake;

And I will not remember your sins. 

Isaiah 43.25

I acknowledged my sin to You,

And my iniquity I have not hidden.

I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,”

And You forgave the iniquity of my sin.

Psalm 32.5

Whoever conceals their sins does not prosper,

but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

Prov. 28.13

He said to her, “Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?”

¹¹ She said, “No one, Lord.”

And Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more.”

John 8.10

²² Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith,

with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience

and our bodies washed with pure water.

 Hebrews 10.22

¹⁰ We have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

¹¹  every priest stands daily at his service, offering repeatedly the same sacrifices,

which can never take away sins.

¹² But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins,

he sat down at the right hand of God. Hebrews 10:10-12

²⁷ He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily,

first for his own sins and then for those of the people,

since he did this once for all when he offered up himself.

Hebrews 7:27

¹⁶ “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son,

that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

¹⁷ For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world,

 but in order that the world might be saved through him.

¹⁸ Whoever believes in him is not condemned,

but whoever does not believe is condemned already,

because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.

John 3:16-18

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places,

⁴ even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world,

that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love

⁵ he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ,

according to the purpose of his will,

⁶ to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved.

⁷ In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses,

  according to the riches of his grace, ⁸ which he lavished upon us

Ephesians 1:3-8

¹³ And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh,

God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses,

¹⁴ by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands.

This he set aside, nailing it to the cross.

Colossians 2:13-14

¹⁴ Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens,

Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession.

¹⁵ For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses,

but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.

¹⁶ Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace,

that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Hebrews 4:12-14

²⁵ I will sprinkle clean water on you,

and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses,

and from all your idols I will cleanse you.

²⁶ And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you.

And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

²⁷ And I will put my Spirit within you,

and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.

Ezekiel 36:25-27

²  I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame,

nor let my enemies triumph over me.

³ No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame

Psalm 25:2-3

51 To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet went to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba.

¹  Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love;

according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.

²  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!

³  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me.

⁴  Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight,

so that you may be justified in your words and blameless in your judgment.

⁵  Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

⁶  Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,

and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart. 

⁷  Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;

wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.

⁸  Let me hear joy and gladness;

let the bones that you have broken rejoice.

⁹  Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.

¹⁰  Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.

¹¹  Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.

¹²  Restore to me the joy of your salvation,

and uphold me with a willing spirit. 

¹³  Then I will teach transgressors your ways,

and sinners will return to you.

¹⁴  Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,

O God of my salvation, and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.

¹⁵  O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.

¹⁶  For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;

you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.

¹⁷  The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51:1-17

⁸ If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.

⁹ If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins

and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

¹⁰ If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

^2:1  My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.

But if anyone does sin,

we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.

1 John 1:8-9, 2:1

¹⁴  Sing aloud, O daughter of Zion; shout, O Israel!

Rejoice and exult with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!

¹⁵  The Lord has taken away the judgments against you; he has cleared away your enemies.

The King of Israel, the Lord, is in your midst; you shall never again fear evil.

¹⁶  On that day it shall be said to Jerusalem:

“Fear not, O Zion; let not your hands grow weak.

¹⁷  The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save;

he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love;

he will exult over you with loud singing.

Zephaniah 3:14-17

²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

²⁴ and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus,

²⁵ whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.

This was to show God’s righteousness,

 because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.

 ²⁶ It was to show his righteousness at the present time,

so that he might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.

²⁷ Then what becomes of our boasting? It is excluded.

Romans 3:23-27

When I’m Feeling Sad or Depressed 

⁶⁵ Great peace have those who love your law,

and nothing can make them stumble.

Psalm 119.65

¹⁸ The Lord is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit. 

Psalm 34.18

³ He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.

Psalm 147.3

¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;

a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51:17

³ Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,

⁴ who comforts us in all our affliction,

so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction,

with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

¹ The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me

to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound;

²  to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of vengeance of our God;

to comfort all who mourn;

³  to grant to those who mourn in Zion—

to give them a beautiful headdress instead of ashes,

the oil of gladness instead of mourning,

the garment of praise instead of a faint spirit;

that they may be called oaks of righteousness,

the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified.

Isaiah 61.1-3

¹⁹  Many are the afflictions of the righteous,

but the Lord delivers him out of them all. 

Psalm 34:19

³³ “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace.

In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

John 16:33

⁷ But we have this treasure in jars of clay,

to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.

⁸ We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; ⁹ persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;

¹⁰ always carrying in the body the death of Jesus,

so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

⁷ So to keep me from becoming conceited

because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations,

a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan

to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.

⁸ Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me.

⁹ But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses,

so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

¹⁰ For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults,

hardships, persecutions, and calamities.

For when I am weak, then I am strong.

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord,

plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

Jeremiah 29:11

² Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,

³ for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.

⁴ And let steadfastness have its full effect,

that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

James 1:2-4

³ Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings,

knowing that suffering produces endurance,

⁴ and endurance produces character, and character produces hope,

⁵ and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts

through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

Romans 5:3-5

²  It is better to go to the house of mourning than to go to the house of feasting,

for this is the end of all mankind, and the living will lay it to heart.

³  Sorrow is better than laughter, for by sadness of face the heart is made glad.

⁴  The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,

but the heart of fools is in the house of mirth.

Ecclesiastes 7:2-4

When I’m Feeling Lonely

⁵ Be content with what you have, because God has said,

“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” ^s

⁶ So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.”

 Hebrews 13.5-6

¹⁸ I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.

John 14.18

⁶ Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them;

 for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you.

He will not leave you nor forsake you.”

Deuteronomy 31:6

¹⁰ When my father and my mother forsake me,

Then the Lord will take care of me.

Psalm 27.10

²⁷ My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me.

²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish;

no one will snatch them out of my hand.

²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all;

no one can snatch them out of my Father’s hand.

John 10:27-28

³¹ “ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours.”

 Luke 15.31

¹  Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer;

²  from the end of the earth I call to you

when my heart is faint.

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I,

³  for you have been my refuge,

a strong tower against the enemy.

Psalm 61.1-3

¹  For God alone my soul waits in silence;

from him comes my salvation.

²  He alone is my rock and my salvation,

my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken

⁸  Trust in him at all times, O people;

pour out your heart before him;

God is a refuge for us. Selah

Psalm 62:1-2, 8

³¹ What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

³² He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all,

how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?

³³ Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies.

³⁴ Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—

more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God,

who indeed is interceding for us.

³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?

Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? ³⁶ As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long;

we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.”

³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.

³⁸ For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8.31-39

⁵  Blessed are those whose strength is in you,

in whose heart are the highways to Zion.

⁶  As they go through the Valley of Baca

they make it a place of springs;

the early rain also covers it with pools.

⁷  They go from strength to strength;

each one appears before God in Zion

Psalm 84:5-7

¹  To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.

²  O my God, in you I trust;

let me not be put to shame;

let not my enemies exult over me.

³  Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame;

⁹  He leads the humble in what is right,

and teaches the humble his way.

Psalm 25:1-3, 9

When I’m Feeling Weary and Confused

³⁵ Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward.

³⁶ For you have need of endurance,

so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.

Hebrews 10:35

And let us not grow weary while doing good,

for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

Galatians 6.9

²⁴ Be of good courage,

And He shall strengthen your heart,

All you who hope in the Lord.

Psalm 31:24

¹⁹ And my God will fully satisfy every need of yours

according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:19

¹⁰ The young lions lack and suffer hunger;

But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing.

Psalm 34:10

¹¹ I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. ¹

² I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound.

In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret

of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.

¹³ I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:12

¹ Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me,

bless his holy name!

²  Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits,

³  who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases,

⁴  who redeems your life from the pit,

who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,

⁵  who satisfies you with good

so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Psalm 103:1-5

³ “You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope.

With less of you there is more of God and his rule.

⁴  “You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you.

Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.

⁵  “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less.

That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.

Matthew 5.3-5

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,

and I will give you rest.

²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart,

and you will find rest for your souls.

³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Matthew 11:28

“My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.”

Exodus 33.14

¹ So if there is any encouragement in Christ,

any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit,

any affection and sympathy,

² complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love,

being in full accord and of one mind.

³ Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit,

but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.

⁴ Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.

Philippians 2:1-4

¹⁷  Though the fig tree should not blossom,

nor fruit be on the vines,

the produce of the olive fail

and the fields yield no food,

the flock be cut off from the fold

and there be no herd in the stalls,

¹⁸  yet I will rejoice in the Lord;

I will take joy in the God of my salvation.

¹⁹  God, the Lord, is my strength;

he makes my feet like the deer’s;

he makes me tread on my high places.

Habakkuk 3:17-19

¹  I love you, O Lord, my strength.

²  The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer,

my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

⁶  In my distress I called upon the Lord;

to my God I cried for help.

From his temple he heard my voice,

and my cry to him reached his ears.

¹⁸  They confronted me in the day of my calamity,

but the Lord was my support.

¹⁹  He brought me out into a broad place;

he rescued me, because he delighted in me.

³¹  For who is God, but the Lord?

And who is a rock, except our God?—

³²  the God who equipped me with strength

and made my way blameless.

³³  He made my feet like the feet of a deer

and set me secure on the heights.

Psalm 18:1-2, 6, 18-19, 31-33

²¹  When my soul was embittered,

when I was pricked in heart,

²²  I was brutish and ignorant;

I was like a beast toward you.

²³  Nevertheless, I am continually with you;

you hold my right hand.

²⁴  You guide me with your counsel,

and afterward you will receive me to glory.

²⁵  Whom have I in heaven but you?

And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you.

²⁶  My flesh and my heart may fail,

but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.

²⁷  For behold, those who are far from you shall perish;

you put an end to everyone who is unfaithful to you.

²⁸  But for me it is good to be near God;

I have made the Lord God my refuge,

that I may tell of all your works.

Psalm 73:21-28

¹¹⁴  You are my hiding place and my shield;

I hope in your word.

Ps 119:114

¹  To you I lift up my eyes,

O you who are enthroned in the heavens!

²  Behold, as the eyes of servants

look to the hand of their master,

as the eyes of a maidservant

to the hand of her mistress,

so our eyes look to the Lord our God,

till he has mercy upon us. 

Psalm 127:1-2

¹  O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;

my eyes are not raised too high;

I do not occupy myself with things

too great and too marvelous for me.

²  But I have calmed and quieted my soul,

like a weaned child with its mother;

like a weaned child is my soul within me.

Psalm 131:1-2

²⁵ For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.

Jeremiah 31.25

⁷  The Lord is my strength and my shield;

in him my heart trusts, and I am helped;

my heart exults,

and with my song I give thanks to him.

⁸  The Lord is the strength of his people;

he is the saving refuge of his anointed.

⁹  Oh, save your people and bless your heritage!

Be their shepherd and carry them forever.

Psalm 28:7-9

¹¹  He will tend his flock like a shepherd;

he will gather the lambs in his arms;

he will carry them in his bosom,

and gently lead those that are with young.

Isaiah 40.11

¹⁴  But I trust in you, O Lord;

I say, “You are my God.”

¹⁵  My times are in your hand;

rescue me from the hand of my enemies and from my persecutors!

¹⁶  Make your face shine on your servant;

save me in your steadfast love!

¹⁷  O Lord, let me not be put to shame,

for I call upon you;

Psalm 31:14-17

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

and do not lean on your own understanding.

⁶  In all your ways acknowledge him,

and he will make straight your paths.

⁷  Be not wise in your own eyes;

Proverbs 3:5-7

⁴  “Fear not, for you will not be ashamed;

be not confounded, for you will not be disgraced…

⁷  For a brief moment I deserted you,

but with great compassion I will gather you.

⁸  In overflowing anger for a moment

I hid my face from you,

but with everlasting love I will have compassion on you,”

says the Lord, your Redeemer.

Isaiah 54:4,7-8

⁵  Thus says the Lord:

“Cursed is the man who trusts in man

and makes flesh his strength,

whose heart turns away from the Lord.

⁶  He is like a shrub in the desert,

and shall not see any good come.

He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness,

in an uninhabited salt land.

⁷  “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord,

whose trust is the Lord.

⁸  He is like a tree planted by water,

that sends out its roots by the stream,

and does not fear when heat comes,

for its leaves remain green,

and is not anxious in the year of drought,

for it does not cease to bear fruit.”

Jeremiah 17:5-8

¹⁵ This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. ¹⁶ For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. ¹⁷ But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason,

full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

¹⁸ And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

James 3:15-18

¹⁶ But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

¹⁷ For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit,

and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh,

for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.

Galatians 5:16-17

²⁵  I will restore to you the years

that the swarming locust has eaten,

the hopper, the destroyer, and the cutter,

my great army, which I sent among you.

Joel 2:25