One of the vital lessons in life that few of us ever grow to fully understand and live has to do with emotional energy. The bottom line of emotions is this: either we learn to control our emotions, or our emotions will always control us. If we do not learn to master our emotions, they will master us.

Due to the traumas and tragedies of a lifetime, most of us have a boatload of emotions buried deep in our souls, and these need to be sifted through, settled and set out to sea, in order for us to be able to keep our sanity under stress or enjoy the serenity of a sunset. A great counselor and friend, Marilyn Murray, taught us that “emotional health and maturity is dealing with the events of today with the emotions of today, not the emotions bottled up from a life-time”. In order for us to live that way, we need a process to process them. Here is one process that she recommended.

Find a quiet place, and take time now to think back over your life, and write a list (it might be very long) of all the emotional trauma and hurt that you experienced from your earliest memory until today. Write the details (even the ones that you have never told anyone about before, and maybe have even hidden from yourself). Then assign a number 1-10 (10 being the most intense) to each experience to show the impact it had on you.

Now, read over the list, allowing yourself to fully remember and feel what you need to feel. Cry if you feel so inclined. Lay it all before God in prayer and meditation if you like, and don’t rush through the process. Like an infected wound, if you don’t open it up and get out all the emotional infection, there will be no real and lasting healing. If you are able, share this all with someone who you love and trust.

For true healing and emotional health, you will need to truly let go of all that happened and choose to forgive all who have hurt you. This may take time, but, at least, you can get to the place where you are committed to working towards forgiveness and inner freedom.

God created you as a beautiful, talented person with amazing potential! So, why not make the commitment to yourself to let go of all the past that keeps you from moving forward and making a future. Cast off your fear of failure and rejection, so you can even go out and attempt the things that scare your most.

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