Many of us place a great emphasis on being careful not to hurt others. We choose our words and our actions to soften the blow when delivering difficult news. This is not a bad thing, in that we should consider others before considering ourselves, as Paul said in Philippians 2:3-4, "Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others." Some can overcome the natural tendency to feed our own selfishness by doing this. But how often do we consider the three Persons of the Godhead? It is so easy to view Father, Son, and Holy Spirit devoid of emotions. It is hard to fathom that our actions actually hurt Them. Though we can pull the wool over the eyes of others, nothing that we do or think escapes Their eyes. Do we care that we hurt Them? As parents we respond strongly at the entitlement and selfish actions of our own children, when without care they say or do certain things which hurt us. But, as God's children, do we not realize that we do the same things to God? He is not above this. Time and time again throughout Scripture we see the emotions of the three Persons of the Godhead revealed. Perhaps if we realize this, we would think twice before doing and saying certain things in private.

The shortest verse in Scripture is found in John 11:35, as Jesus arrives at the scene surrounding the death of His friend, Lazarus, as we read, "Jesus wept". Besides sorrow as evidenced here, Jesus in His three year ministry displayed the full range of human emotions. He reveals His disgust at the greed and hypocrisy in John 2:16 as He enters the temple area and sees what the temple had become, as we read, "Take these things away! Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!" He displays His righteous anger in Matthew 23:33, as He directs His words at the Pharisees, "Serpents, brood of vipers! How can you escape the condemnation of hell?" He was often moved with compassion, as we read in Matthew 9:36, "But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd." He experienced agony as we read in Matthew 26:39, "...O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will." It is so easy to minimize the emotions of Jesus, but a careful reading of Scripture shows the folly in this. As often as the Person of Jesus is often minimized, even more so is the Holy Spirit. Many consider the Holy Spirit as an impersonal influence or a force, rather than a distinct Person of the Triune God. Where does the Holy Spirit currently reside?

Inside the body of God's children, as we read in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's" Do our callous actions hurt the person of the Holy Spirit? We read in Ephesians 4:30, "And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption." Is the Holy Spirit distinct from the Father and the Son? Read John 16:13, as Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit, "However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to some." Concerning the emotions of the Father, it is displayed throughout Scripture, but for the sake of brevity, it is easy to look these up on your own."

As parents, we have made the conscious decision to have our children, fully knowing that in addition to the joys of parenthood, there would also be a host of other emotions. There are times that we grieve their decisions. There are times that our hearts are broken by their actions and words. But we love them. Our God, when He decided to create humanity knew the same thing. There are times that our actions bring them joy and pleasure, and there are countless times that our actions cause them sorrow. But through it all, they continue to steadfastly love us. Most of us when we get older can reflect back to times that our actions and words have hurt our parents, and these thoughts give us remorse. In reality, as human parents, we only know a portion of these actions and comments, many being hidden from us. May we all pause for a moment, and consider that our God is not devoid of emotions. That our actions, words, and thoughts of which all are seen, none being hidden, are seen and felt by a Holy and perfect God. He is so much bigger than we are, but we should never remove the Personhood of our God. We can and we do hurt Him frequently. May this realization reign in our careless words and actions, knowing the effect they are having on the One that we love, and the One who has done so much for us.