Man oh man, have I been getting stirred up over some things lately! Social media posts seem to be a driving force behind so much unrestrained anger and hate, with unnecessary and unresolved, emotionally charged debates on hot topics of the day, such as: politics, differences in opinion, injustices done, or whatever I feel spurs this heart to step up to the proverbial podium and speak my mind freely about, are all factors of me being stirred up, but not necessarily for the good. Also changes within the church, Biblical doctrine discussions with vastly varying interpretations, and even some false teachings boldly proclaimed to be truth push me to the point of being borderline of ‘loving’ my neighbor as myself!

What I am learning is that I can easily get stirred up for either good things or bad things. The trick is to identify ‘why’ am I feeling stirred up, ‘who’ is doing this, and ‘what’ to do about it, if anything. The hardest part – to act or not to act – is the question.

Determining the Why’s, the Who’s, and the What’s is how we need to proceed before we follow only our emotions and pounce, yell, deny, debate, or say something we might regret later.

So when determining the answers to these 3 questions, a general rule of thought is:
A stirring from Satan ONLY leads to negative results.
A stirring from the Lord leads to Godly results, IF we obey Him.

The Scriptures speak frequently about people getting stirred up and explains what this can lead to: a good vs. bad result, or a positive vs. negative outcome.
Proverbs shares the most examples of this.

A few verses of a BAD stirring:
“.. a harsh word stirs up anger.” Proverbs 15:1

“Hatred stirs up strife,…” Proverbs 10:12

“An arrogant and greedy man stirs up conflict..” Proverbs

“A hot-tempered person stirs up conflict,….” Proverbs 15:18

A woman can certainly stir up a man:
“… Ahab did wickedness in the sight of the LORD, …because Jezebel his wife stirred him up.” 1 Kings 21:25

A mob can stir people up inciting rage, even religious leaders:
“… certain Jews ..stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin.” Acts 6:11-12

“But the Jewish leaders… stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas,..” Acts 13:50

“But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.” Acts 14:2

On the other hand, there are plenty of verses of people stirring up others for GOOD reasons:
“Therefore I remind you to stir up (fan the flame) the gift of God which is in you..” 2 Timothy 1:6-7

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,” Hebrews 10:24

“I think it right, … to stir you up by way of reminder,” 2 Peter 1:13

“And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works,”
Hebrews 10:24

But most importantly, as believers in and followers of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit stirs us up to do specific tasks too:
“So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, the spirit of Tiglath-pileser king of Assyria, and he took them (the Israelites) into exile,” 1 Chronicles 5:26

“And the Lord stirred up against Jehoram the anger of the Philistines and of the Arabians …” 2 Chronicles 21:16

“In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the Lord stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing: “Thus says Cyrus king of Persia: The Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem, which is in Judah.” Ezra 1:1-2

“Then rose up the heads of the fathers’ houses of Judah and Benjamin, and the priests and the Levites, everyone whose spirit God had stirred to go up to rebuild the house of the Lord that is in Jerusalem.” Ezra 1:5

“And the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people. And they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God,..” Haggai 1:14

“And Moses called Bezalel and Oholiab and every craftsman in whose mind the Lord had put skill, everyone whose heart stirred him up to come to do the work”. Exodus 36:2

“All the women whose hearts stirred them to use their skill spun the goats’ hair.” Exodus 35:26

“And they came, everyone whose heart stirred him, and everyone whose spirit moved him, and brought the LORD’s contribution to be used for the tent of meeting, and for all its service, and for the holy garments.” Exodus 35:21

What are we to do with this? How do we respond? Again, God’s written word tells us:
“A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
Proverbs 15:1

“Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.”
Prov 10:12

WHY respond like this? Because GOD controls His emotions toward us, we should as well toward others.

Yet he (God), being compassionate, … restrained his anger often and did not stir up all his wrath.
Psalm 78:38

Think of God’s stirring us like a can of paint. It requires many individual colors to create 1 new, beautiful color. But if someone doesn’t stir up the paint, then the individual colors remain separated and we miss out on the greater result.

Consider a recipe for, say, dough. You need to mix or stir up the separate and necessary ingredients for them to become dough. The baker’s goal and purpose of selecting, stirring and baking said ingredients results in something exquisite to see and delicious to taste.

When God’s Spirit stirs us up, it is for us individually to contribute to something far greater than just us alone, but as a whole. It is because He has a goal or purpose which He asks us to participate in. We are one of the ingredients GOD desires to use to fulfill His plan of unity of mind, purpose, and heart.

Food for thought: Ultimately, check your spirit and attitude.
If this stirring be from the Holy Spirit, listen to it and obey it. It is likely a call to action – to give money, to beautify the church or church body, to speak truth, or to do acts of service in His name.

Fun facts: The bitterness of coffee and the sweetness of creamer and/or sugar make for a perfectly blended, pleasant cup of coffee. I recommend adding ‘Hazelnut’ by Nestle Coffee Mate to your black cup o’ Joe.

Photo by: Kari Wiseman – The Stirring of Creamer and Coffee