There is a logic to every dysfunctional behavior. There are essentially four components to this psycho-logic: beliefs, perceptions, feelings, and actions. Each component builds consecutively on the component preceding it…
Suffering begins with a belief system—about life, people, relationships, success… From these building blocks of personal truth, we form perceptions or interpretations about our experiences…
Our perceptions give way to feelings. Generally, when we feel out of control it triggers a self-protective and aggressive emotional response—fear, frustration, anger, bitterness, resentment, etc. …
These emotions become the fuel and motivation for our subsequent behavior, which is the final component of suffering. The actions that evolve out of our psychological need to gain control or equilibrium are always some kind of compromise — that is, they are not the direct actions we wish we could take.
– Kevin Scherer, Truly Human
We may have a thousand and one plausible explanations for our sinful acts, but none of them has any effect in remitting even one of our sins or changing our conduct the least bit. God doesn’t excuse our sins either. He forgives them.
– Jon Braun, Divine Energy
