Don't take on the responsibility of others' emotions

Maybe you’re in the middle of a work situation and you can feel the escalated tension. You want team unity so badly so you take on the emotional burdens of those around you, hoping to help them find solid ground.
Maybe you’re navigating an uncertain situation with your spouse and you can’t discern the line between your role + their feelings. The gray area leaves you feeling resentful + confused.
Maybe there’s a friendship that you’re struggling with because walking on eggshells has become the norm. You’ve chalked it up to an “unusual season” but you’re tired from carrying the emotional weight their moods, words, and actions willingly lay on you.

The truth is—only YOU can decide not to own the emotions of others. Because despite the progress you convince yourself is possible in doing so, thinking that you control or have authority over the inner workings of someone else’s heart is false responsibility.
Sometimes, I struggle with knowing the line between being a humble, listening ear and being a rack others lay their wet clothes on and walk away. The difference? It’s how I choose to hear it, receive it, and then what responsibility I take with it. For you, too.
Wisdom recognizes that caring for the soul of another is always to point them to the Keeper of their heart as they sort through emotions and seek for level ground; spiritual maturity understands that it is most loving to offer all the warmth you can wrapped in all the gentleness possible, canvased in grace + truth, and then for you both to sit at the feet of the Shepherd. There, authority is realized.

If you’re worn out from holding onto the emotions of others too tightly or letting their moodiness/flakiness determine your steadiness, decide to operate differently.
Many times, others are unaware of how their worries + wounds press up or pull at others; chances are, you do the same with your own.

Do your best to represent the heart of Jesus—reminding your heart first + foremost that it is responsible for its own emotions + temperament and secondly, that it has no business trying to do so for others.
It’ll bring FREEDOM, release new joy, and apply weight to where it belongs 🤍