Land Beyond Emotions…
to The Oasis of Peace Psalm 23:2 TPT
It is a journey that every human and everything that attempts to echo humans takes.
Think about Data from the Next Generation television series. There was a story arc of the different nuances that come with interacting with humans and it all circled around emotions. Humor was one that was shown along with anger, empathy, sadness, and laughter.
I was raised in a season where I was told that emotions were lies. Cannot be trusted. There was a Bible verse to back that up:
Jeremiah 17:9 (KJV)
“The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?”
Without the proper filter, that can be very true. If one engages their emotions as though they are the final and only authority—absolutely. What if…
Emotions = The Check Engine Light
When driving a car, there is a check engine light. It lets you know that something serious is going on and the engine needs to be looked at immediately. Yet, that does not necessarily equal engine failure. Instead, it is pointing to the path that it is headed for without course correction.
The light simply means: take this seriously and check the engine NOW, before serious damage occurs.
Emotions are just like that check engine light on the dashboard. They are a warning light on your emotional dashboard.
I was taught to put them aside when I was trying to deal with them as a warning light that they are.
The Explosion of Emotional Work
There has been an explosion of treating and dealing with emotions in recent decades. Yet in an area where Jesus Followers should be leading, we are following the mainstream—whether that be modern psychology, what often amounts to New Age, or the recent growth in neuroscience.
There have been pioneers that have gone outside the church walls—Dr. Caroline Leaf for one. Why? At the root, people are looking for relief from emotions that feel like a burden, an affliction.
Truth that many sought within the body of Jesus Followers and instead got a lie “masked as” Truth.
The Filter for Emotions
Why do I say masked? Because ANY verse or quote narrowed down WITHOUT context is the same as a lie—because it is FORCING a conclusion.
So, what is THE FILTER for EMOTIONS?
The Word of God. In Simple Context.
Which leads to the next question:
What is the context of the Bible?
The Bible is the story of a King and His Kingdom, where God is restoring His image in us so we can live as His beloved sons and daughters. Every page is a treasure map showing the flip from Opposite World’s lies to Kingdom truth, leading us back into peace, joy, and love in Him.—Stella M Smith
📖 Context for Jeremiah 17:9
Jeremiah 17:5–10 (NASB 1995)
5 Thus says the Lord,
“Cursed is the man who trusts in mankind
And makes flesh his strength,
And whose heart turns away from the Lord.6 For he will be like a bush in the desert
And will not see when prosperity comes,
But will live in stony wastes in the wilderness,
A land of salt that is not inhabited.7 Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose trust is the Lord.8 For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.9 The heart is more deceitful than all else
And is desperately sick;
Who can understand it?10 I, the Lord, search the heart,
I test the mind,
Even to give to each man according to his ways,
According to the results of his deeds.
In simple context, the verse reveals the contrast of a heart that is in alignment with trusting mankind/self (Opposite World) versus one that is in alignment with trusting God. (Kingdom)
🌿 The Solution Already in the Old Covenant
Jeremiah 17:7–8
7 Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord
And whose trust is the Lord.8 For he will be like a tree planted by the water,
That extends its roots by a stream
And will not fear when the heat comes;
But its leaves will be green,
And it will not be anxious in a year of drought
Nor cease to yield fruit.
Ezekiel 36:26–27 (TPT)
26 I will give you a new, tender heart and put a new spirit within you. I will remove your stubborn heart of stone and give you a tender, responsive heart.
27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and keep my laws.
📖 Context for Ezekiel 36
Ezekiel 36:22–28 (TPT)
22 “Therefore, give the people of Israel this message from Yahweh, the Lord: ‘You have brought disgrace on my holy name everywhere you have gone, and so I am going to do what I am about to do—not for your sake, O Israel, but for the honor of my holy name.
23 I will demonstrate the holiness of my great name—the name you have brought into disrepute among the nations. And when I reveal my holiness through you before their very eyes, says Yahweh, then the nations will know that I am Yahweh.
24 For I will gather you up from all the nations and bring you home again to your land.
25 Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. Your filth will be washed away, and you will no longer worship idols.
26 I will give you a new, tender heart and put a new spirit within you. I will remove your stubborn heart of stone and give you a tender, responsive heart.
27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and keep my laws.
28 And you will live in Israel, the land I gave your ancestors long ago. You will be my people, and I will be your God.’”
🔑 In Case That Felt Like a Firehose…
Here’s the simple flip:
Opposite World (Jeremiah 17:5–9)
Trusting in man/self
Relying on my own strength
Result:
Heart bends and becomes:
Crooked
Anxious
Barren
AKA Survival Mode
Kingdom World (Jeremiah 17:7–8 & Ezekiel 36:26–27)
Trusting in the Lord
New heart, new Spirit
Steady, fruitful, peace-filled
AKA Oasis of Peace
💎 That’s how we go from the wild-wild west of emotions (Opposite World) to the Oasis of Peace (Kingdom World) — where we finally discover What’s Good About Us and begin the biblical journey of emotions as a gift, part of our original design in the image of God.