Feeling our feelings

These days i find the need more and more to 'discern my feelings'. Must be mid life when the hormone and energy levels drop and the very lowering in the physical sense brings about some lowering of mood. Feeling good and uplifted is not so common these days.....not so much sadness but just a tiredness........Now i realize the importance of dealing with this maze of feelings carefully, in order not to allow myself to be swept away by them.

I am assisted by something I learnt from the Ignatian tradition: to pay attention, to understand and to act.......as a way to keep on level ground.

Paying attention is assisted by spending time reviewing the day - what are all the feelings that came and went, or perhaps stayed a while longer.....to be aware and name them; not in order to judge initially, but just to be aware. For they are part of who i am right now, and where i am in my journey with God. I may be in consolation or in desolation.
Then we try to understand. Where might these feelings be coming from? If they are desolation are they indications of a physical disorder, of over tiredness, of an emotional block in our lives? If they seem to be consolation, are they true spiritual joy or just happiness and pleasure that could come from purely self centered ways? These all need attending to as they can become stumbling blocks in living out our journey of intimacy with God.

Finally we act on the feelings. If they lead us toward God - in faith, hope and love, we receive them with much gratitude. If they lead us away from God and others, we do what we need to do with God's help and grace, to find a resolution for them. In this way we live our lives more and more in resonance with "life in all its fullness" as described by John in his gospel.