More than five years ago, someone gave us an electric steamer. As kitchen gadgets go, it's one of the best. You can pour in a few ounces of water, then lay some broccoli in the basket at the top and a few minutes later the tender vegetables are ready to eat. Recently, we finally took the time to read the instructions about cleaning the machine. I'm afraid we are among those who believe "when all else fails, read the instructions." The manual describes procedures for cleaning the heating element. Of course we haven't done that in at least five years. The manual also has a warning. If you don't clean the residue off the heating element, it could hinder the machine's ability to do its job. After reading the instructions, we set out to clean the heating element just as the manual had recommended. Guess what? Most of the residue didn't come off. The longer it stays, the harder it is to remove. Some of us have emotional residue in our lives and that's the subject of our feature article today.

We have such a deep appreciation for Mikal and the contributions she makes to our newsletter. I never continue to be amazed at the marvelous things the internet can do for us. This week Mikal is in Nicaragua attending the annual Pan American Lectureship, but she didn't miss her deadline. She simply took her laptop along and here it is, all the way from Central America. Norman wrote his article before he saw Mikal's or even knew her subject matter. To us it seems our minds were all running down the same track.

Norman and Ann

The human mind is a strange thing. Recently, a thought popped into my mind while I was in the car. I have no idea what stimulated the thought, but I vividly recalled a childhood incident, one in which I was ashamed of my actions. The incident occurred more than fifty years ago, but I replayed the scene in my memory as vividly as if it took place yesterday. Some time later I ran across the phrase "emotional residue" in my reading. I thought that was a pretty good label to place on my not so pleasant trip down memory lane.

Are your thoughts ever interrupted by emotional residue from the past? Most of us don't talk about it much, but it seems to be a common problem. Emotional residue is like a stain on your carpet. It's hard to get out. In my case, I learned that it still lurks somewhere in the recesses of my brain after a half century. It's not in the forefront of my consciousness everyday, but I'm amazed at how vivid a negative mental picture can be after the passage of a long period of time. Emotional residue is a potential happiness robber, a prospective relationship destroyer, and a latent family killer. While emotional residue may lie dormant for many years, if you stir it up, it can create havoc. When you start digging up the past, you bring a lot of baggage along with the event - feelings of guilt, inadequacy, failure, blame, projection and who knows what else.

So what can you do about it?

• Deal with it. Stop trying to cover it up and pretend its not there. It's not going to leave if you ignore it. It's like the distant unemployed relative who shows up on your doorstep and eats your groceries while never contributing a dime to the food budget and then refuses to leave. You need to recognize the fact that those unwanted memories are messing up your mind and could damage. If it involves sin, you need to admit it and repent of it if you haven't already done so. The statute of limitations doesn't run out on sin. Time doesn't erase our sins, but God does. The Bible says, "If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. (1 John 1:8).

• Accept God's Forgiveness. Unfortunately, emotional residue crops up in the lives of people who have indeed repented and whose sins are covered by the blood of Christ. The problem lies in our unwillingness or inability to feel God's forgiveness. If he has forgiven you, why do you keep beating yourself over the head with it? Again John proclaims, "He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins" (1 John 1:9). And here's a word of encouragement to those who have never been able to totally feel forgiven. It is not necessary to feel forgiven in order to be forgiven. In 1 John 3:19-20, the apostle wrote, "This is how we know we belong to the truth, and how our hearts are set at rest in his presence, whenever our hearts condemn us. For God is greater than our hearts and he knows everything." That was a tremendous encouragement to me when I was suddenly attacked by emotional residue.

• Get on with your life. Work on building healthy relationships. Work on developing wholesome character traits. Work on deepening your relationship with God. You are still a valued and worthwhile member of your family. Your family needs you. It's not a time to evade family responsibility. That emotional residue is probably a message from Satan designed to interfere with your family relationships. The event that produced the emotional residue must not be allowed to hinder your growth. It must not be allowed to drive a wedge between you and your spouse or between you and your children. You have worth in God's sight. Let him make something better out of you. None of us are sinless, but we are making process toward a better time. Again John helps us out, "Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when he appears, we shall be like him for we shall see him as he is" (1 John 3:2).

Several years ago in the heyday of the Dallas Cowboys, Tom Landry had coached these athletes again to the Super Bowl. While aboard the plane Roger Staubach and Bill Bates were playing a game of tic-tac-toe. They played nine or ten games, and Staubach won all but two. Their plane landed in Florida and soon it was time for the first kick off of the game. Staubach led his team to a decisive win, of course. Yet, he was still smarting. He was still agitated about the loss of those two tic-tac-toe games, even as the team deplaned in Dallas with one more Super Bowl ring on their fingers.

No, that is not a true story. But wouldn't we have thought Staubach foolish over such an insignificant incident if this had happened. It does seem to me that many of us who claim a relationship with Jesus Christ are just that foolish. Those of us who are walking in the light have already won the big ballgame. And if we have already won the big ballgame, any conflict here is really quite insignificant in the light of that gain. In Ephesians 1:18-19, Paul writes, "I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe."

God tells us in Galatians 5:22-23 that the "Fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control." When I use this verse in my practice, I frequently introduce the scripture and explain to my client/clients that this is unconditional. No matter what state we may find ourselves in, this is our option, unconditionally. I had a couple in my office the other day that were, at that very moment, experiencing a severe conflict. I had met with them many times before, but turning loose of their battle to determine the status of the relationship was very difficult for them. The man, I will call him John, was anguishing over something his wife said. As I reached out to touch his arm, I said, "John, claim your peace and joy." I know this is very difficult to do, and I would not have said this to him in one of our early sessions. But it was time for this pair to turn the corner in their conflict and recognize they were each responsible for their own peace and joy.

There are several steps that are necessary to get to where we can always experience the fruit of the spirit and enjoy and celebrate the certain expectation of our glorious inheritance. We must speak the truth in love (Ephesians 4:15), practice agape, and change some basic beliefs that lead to dying to self over and over before we arrive at the place where we experience peace and joy under any circumstance.

Truly owning our glorious inheritance creates a new perspective and a new existence. We must learn to see every minute corner of our world through the lens of the new experience and new existence created by the knowledge of our glorious inheritance.

Following are some examples of practical application of walking in the knowledge of our glorious inheritance.

1. It will not matter who ruins the budget. This may be a longstanding issue, but decide that if it means you have to curl up under a bridge and die, you still have your glorious inheritance.

2. One lady wanted a divorce because her husband was missing a Wednesday night here and there. She was not considering the promise of her glorious inheritance, but was allowing something her husband chose to make her miserable.

3. How your spouse expresses his/her affection to you will not determine your mood for the day. In the greater scheme of things how important is this compared to your glorious inheritance?

4. If a brother beats you out of some money, consider it in the theme of your glorious inheritance.

5. If you are accused unjustly, consider it in the theme of your glorious inheritance.

Every problem here on earth pales when juxtaposed to our glorious inheritance. The only exception is an issue that could separate us from our glorious inheritance. And that can only be done by your own hand and turning your will against your lord and savior, Jesus Christ.

Who is in control of your home? Dad? Mom? The Kids? Christ? I heard of a young man who discovered the "Children's Bill of Rights" in his Civics Two class. You'll most certainly want to read about what happened next