Abiding in the Prince of Peace | How to Win Your Mental War 預覽

How is Your Soul?

“Research tells us that as go our emotional self-awareness, emotional self-control and empathy skills so goes the quality of our leadership, our relationships and the quality of our life.” Dr. Gary Oliver

How is your soul? This question may seem odd. I know the first time it was asked to me, I thought it was strange. The person who asked me this has become a mentor and spiritual father to me. Every time we get together, he will ask me this same question. It has become so much a part of me that I now lead out many conversations with those I disciple with that same question. What exactly is meant by this question? 

Most people ask you questions like, "How are you doing?" "Or how are you?" We tend to answer a very surface question with a vague response. "I am fine" seems to be a typical response. We all know that we are not all right all the time, yet we respond this way mainly because it is socially acceptable. Do people want to know all the chaos that is going on in my mind? I don't think so. I think people are usually being polite and making small talk. 

When someone asks you about your soul, that makes things much more profound. That is a direct question that takes a thoughtful, transparent, self-aware, and vulnerable individual to answer accurately. It's much more difficult to gloss over that question. 

What is my soul? God created us in His image as spirit beings. We have a soul which makes up our mind, will, and emotions. All of this is housed in a physical body. The Bible teaches us that our spirit and soul are intimately connected and will exist forever. Our bodies are dying and will pass away, and our spirit and soul will pass on to our eternal home in God's presence or separate from Him. When someone asks about the state of your soul, they are concerned for the inner person. This includes your emotional and mental health. When you don't have peace in your soul, you are robbed of so many other things in life.

Years ago, many educational systems relied heavily upon the I.Q. of an individual when determining their life pursuits. In today's day and age, it seems intelligence has been replaced with emotional health when determining people's abilities in life. Many of the most intelligent people in our world do not have healthy emotional makeup, which holds them back from success. 

 At some point in our lives, I think all of us wrestle with questions like; am I loved? Am I liked? Am I accepted? These are valid questions, and in the sometimes dark world we live in, we can find brutal answers to these questions. Life is often not pleasant to us, and we find ourselves rejected by people, which leaves us hurt and damaged in our emotional makeup. This affects every area of our life, including our soul, a massive part of our being. 

 However, when we look to the Bible and see what God says about us, we can find healing and restoration from these hurts. Just because people have chosen to treat us a certain way does not validate their words and behavior. We want to take a look at the Bible and the keys to emotional health. When we use God's way, we will see emotional healing in our lives. Once we are healed, we can join God and empathize with others who have been emotionally hurt. 

Here are a few conditions of the soul we find in scripture.

• My soul waits for you (Psalm 130:5-6)

• Downcast soul (Psalm 42:11)

• Anxious soul (Philippians 4:6-7)

• Prospering soul (3 John 1:2)

• Rest for the soul (Psalm 62:1)

• Praise to God (Psalm 103:1-5)

• Expresses love to God (Matthew 22:37) 

• Refreshes soul (Psalm 23:3)

• Reviving the soul (Psalm 19:7) 

It's important to note how much the Bible speaks about the condition and significance of our soul. I glossed over these scriptures for most of my life because I did not have the emotional health to see it for what it is. If God addresses these conditions in scripture, then I think it's worth taking a closer look. How would you define the state of your soul in this season? As you read through this book, take notice of the overwhelming biblical evidence that God cares about your emotional makeup and soul health. 

Take Away:

1. What would you say is the condition of your soul currently? 

2. From the list mentioned earlier, what words would you use to describe your soul health? 

3. Prayerfully ask God to show you areas of your soul that need to be addressed for you to abide in His peace.