SOUL CARE
“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 1 Thessalonians 5:23
Newscasters are telling us. Social media influencers are telling us. Our doctors are telling us: Self-Care. Self-Care. Self-Care. But these days it seems as if self-care has been reduced to temporary, quick fixes. Perhaps a manicure, pedicure, massage, glass of wine, night with the crew will invoke happy feelings, but in and of themselves they are short lived. While spa visits and calm and relaxing moments are a sweet reprieve from the constant chatter of the world, in and of themselves they will not satisfy your soul’s need for care. This is why we must extend beyond self-care and embrace SOUL CARE.
Your soul is your mind, your will and your emotions. And God has given you a soul as a means of connecting with the natural world. But if you are not careful, you begin to live more out of our soul than out of our spirit. You are first a spirit being, don’t forget that.
Why do you need to care for your soul? Our life experiences directly influence the health of our souls. And when we are subject to hurts, disappoints, other trauma we end up with soul wounds. But there is good news. God has the balm to soothe and heal our wounded souls. But that requires us to present ourselves to Him. We must surrender completely to Him. So let us look at the three areas that comprise the soul.
Renew Your Mind
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind: that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.” Romans 12:2
Day by day, moment by moment we must renew our minds. We are bombarded by so much information that infiltrates our minds and much of it is untrue. Which is why we have to constantly feed ourselves the TRUTH of God’s word.
With all that we are experiencing in our world today: pandemic, civil unrest, unemployment, under-employment, health crises and more, it is easy to succumb under the weight of all that pressure. It is critical that we employ practices that support our mental health. Turning to the truth of God’s word is an effective strategy for managing our thought life. Unlock the promises of Psalm 46, strengthening your resolve that even in the midst of troubles, God’s peace will prevail. Let (“let” in the Greek means “yield,” so it’s a yielding to the mind of Christ that is in you) this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus (Philippians 2:5) as you keep your mind stayed on Him.
Surrender Your Will
“Jesus saith unto them, My meat is to do the will of Him that sent me, and to finish His work.” John 4:34
“For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” Philippians 2:13
Jesus is our example for living. And He emphatically stated that He lived to DO the will of the Father. Our will and God’s will tend to be diametrically opposed. We are naturally inclined to do what we want, when we want, how we want. But this is not God’s desire for us.
Through reading God’s word, prayer and times of solitude, God’s will becomes apparent to us. The onus is then on us to bring our will into alignment with His. And by the power of the Holy Spirit at work in you, you have divine enablement to do this. For He works in you both to will and to do according to His good pleasure (Philippians 2:13).
Manage Your Emotions
Your flesh and all it longs for is crucified and it is Christ that lives in you (Galatians 2:20 …. I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who love me, and gave himself for me), empowering you to manage your emotions. God’s gift of emotions is a beautiful treasure but if mishandled becomes problematic. When we are self-centered and self-focused we can easily allow our emotions to dictate our behavior. But when we are Christ-centered and Christ-focused, we allow the Holy Spirit at work in us to lead and He empowers us to manage our emotions through the spirit.
Your range of emotions is not a bad thing. In fact, emotions are a great tool for letting us know what we are sensing and experiencing at any given moment. Without emotions we would not know joy overflowing and abounding love. The key is to acknowledge the emotion we are feeling, to consider its source or root and to surrender it to the Lord. When you spend time strengthening your inner man, you abide in the spirit, you walk in the spirit, and are led of the spirit. In that manner, your spirit takes precedence and enables you to master your soul.
“(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty though God to the pulling down of strong holds (those lofty places of our mind where the devil works); Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ).” 2 Corinthians 10:4-5
Application
How can I grow in caring for my mind, emotions, and desires?
Related Reading
Psalm 62:1; Matthew 16:26; Galatians 2:20; Philippians 2:13
