Soul Comfort, Soul Help

Soul Value

God values us enough to wait for our choice. During the week before His death and resurrection He has a poignant moment of deep grief.
”O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together…and you were unwilling.” Matthew 23:37 NASB

Not that He was powerless to change things but somehow God limits Himself by handing choice to His human creation. He offers truth, help, wisdom for what is best for them. He gives, shows, warns, waits and weeps. At times He agonizes over our choices and over choices made by others that deeply hurt us. He weeps knowing what could have been.
Yet in His sorrow is awakened a fierce and loving redemption that can bring about “new creation” (Galatians 6:15). So much so that evil is reversed, defeated, overcome. He makes a way humbling Himself to a “system” He set up for the sake of love.

By His power and resurrection evil no longer has sway over us. We now have the choice to overcome with Him by His love! (Romans 8:37)

Where are you overcoming with Him in your life?

Soul direction

YOLO Soul

“I used to rule the world; seas would rise when I gave the word. Now in the morning I sleep alone, sweep the streets I used to own.”

Viva la Vida by Coldplay

They thought the world was theirs. They struggled, rose, and reigned. They paved, proved, and played. Enjoyed the good old days. They were young and sure to have their way…

They fought and won, had a son, grew cold to pain; morals down the drain

Going after their own gain, peace, and prosperity at another’s disdain

Some did well, sent the evil to hell; brought back some sensibility

Lifted up those in captivity. Honored the One who had fidelity

Most pushed it too far and wept seeing the scar,

Of senseless devotion to wood, wind, and stone

Instead of the Maker who was God alone

The kings of Israel; each given a paragraph of what summed up their life and memory

Myriad years fly by in a reading and all we know of them is a summary,

That gives the gist of what their lives consist

Evil, good, pretty good, bad; some started right but finished wrong

Few started and finished well. Then they were gone

And the text moves on to the next who hopefully went back to the Source with remorse,

And then believed in Him who gave them the choice

A paragraph. Your life in a paragraph. Plopped on a page. That’s all they’ll know of your stage

Whose lead are you following? How clued-in are you to what time is swallowing?

 

What will your paragraph say?

 

“For David had done what was right in the eyes of the LORD and had not failed to keep any of the LORD’s commands all the days of his life—except in the case of Uriah…”

1 Kings 15:5 NIV

“In everything he followed the ways of his father Asa and did not stray from them; he did what was right in the eyes of the LORD…”

1 Kings 22:43 NIV

“He did evil in the eyes of the LORD, because he followed the ways of his father and mother and of Jeroboam…”

1 Kings 22:52 NIV

“He followed the ways of the house of Ahab and did evil in the eyes of the LORD…”

2 Kings 8:27 NIV

“He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, just as his father Uzziah had done.”

2 Kings 15:34 NIV

Rev 14:13 “…their deeds follow them…”

“I beseech you, remember this, that life on earth is a bewilderment and an enigma for which there is no solution, a long piece of irony unless beyond the grave there lie fields for nobler work for which we are being trained here.”

MacLaren on Rev 7:9

Soul Cries, Soul Joy

Unveiled

 “…the veil was torn in two…”

Luke 23:45

How can it be?

The Holy of Holies exposed; A crime unstyled!

Did they rush to repair the broken veil, beguiled?

An act so wrenchingly wrong, insolent, defiled

Who did this? Disrespect gone wild!

“We’ll die at the sight; it’s not ours to see this light.”

Enveloped in the old, the new is too bright

The heavens – dark at mid-day; the earth in a whirling sway

Could this act betray our sacred fray, such disarray?

Did He not say

“You know how to read the sky, why not read the signs of the day?”

The shock of their paradigm unveiled

A Glory beyond us assailed

An eternal undoing for our renewing?

How can it be?

“…when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.”

2 Cor. 3:16 ESV

 

js 3/24

photo from STREETLIFE post

Soul direction

Soul Hack

If the process of hacking means gaining access to a data system to undo or redo something, let’s venture into our souls that way.

We have an inner data system of “spirit, soul and body” (1 Thessalonians 5:23) that includes mind, will, and emotion; the intricate and mysterious human system. I wonder if we can “hack” it to begin to undo what’s embedded and bring in new data.

I have a friend who had a sad miscarriage and swam in grief for about a year. It began to define her. She couldn’t seem to get above water. They couldn’t get pregnant again. It was drowning her, sloshing her usual outgoing self. In a prayer time with someone, she decided to give the miscarried baby to God. She felt that opened up space in her heart.  They conceived shortly thereafter! Of course, this isn’t and won’t be everyone’s story.

But I’m interested in going after the expectations or demands that we unknowingly hold in our souls and that consequently keep us from joy. We all hold expectations that aren’t unveiled until we find ourselves in deep disappointment. Then we can decipher our assumptions.

One of my hacks from my early days of faith realigned my perspective. I had read of Joni Ericson’s accident that put her in a wheelchair for life and I wondered how I would have handled that. As I faced a new day, I would imagine this fate as an alternative to what God was holding before me that day. It shocked me into praise, accepting what my day held and walking into it with Him. It was a helpful exercise giving me perspective to choose what to allow in my thoughts and what attitudes to take on.

 

We can intentionally carve new pathways in our brains that defy our defaults. In my coaching practice, I often refer to carving out a new path in the jungle of our souls. The old path is still there luring us. It’s much easier, already beaten down from use. But if we want change we have a choice to carve a new path by new heart & mind habits.

“…to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God.”

Ephesians 4:22-24, NIV

Refusing the old path, we stand and consider the new way. (For example, instead of an uncontrolled outburst, we can pause to pray, ask a question, or breathe).

We can

  • reverse the spiral of self-disdain to value what God has made
  • flip the switch from self-protection to curiosity and care
  • triumph over triggers by acknowledging visceral reactions and looking underneath them to be transformed

Sounds easy until you try it! Our heart and mind habits are deeply engrained and will take work and practice to hack into our souls. Just as an athlete envisions and drills toward excellence, we will need to envision and practice a new path. We are given the choice and the power for this as we work together with God.

 “…present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification.”

Romans 6:19 ESV

 We are under obligation to live by the Spirit. It’s our choice to walk in His power! Romans 8:12

What is one spiral, switch, or trigger that you’d like to hack into in your soul data system?

“You [God] desire truth in the innermost being…”!

Psalm 51:6 NAS

Soul direction

Grasshoppered Soul

My soul was recently “grasshopper-ed” by looking at someone else’s work and comparing it to mine. I know better and came to my senses eventually but not without a bit of a fixation on the giant of “I should be doing more…”

As I sensed the condemning nature of that thought I clued into the deceit and lure to do more for God than He is asking of me and thus to detach from the Vine. Not a good prospect. Though I found that this led to some healthy reflection and self-examination where I let Him “test the attitude of my heart” (Jeremiah 12:3); where I got some clarity, received His love, and walked in faith in what I believe He is asking of me, trusting His redirection if I’m off. A joyous, freer, spacious place it was, trusting Him for His work of multiplying and using the bit I bring. This allowed more prayer, thought, and planning into what He has asked of me. Instead of pulling away diminished or rushing in with hubris, the giant was reduced in the fear of God.

The Israelites felt like “grasshoppers” when they encountered the people in the promised land. Their souls were diminished. (Numbers 13:33)

Of course, it was impossible for them to do it on their own yet they were acting like it would all be up to them. Their choice deeply disheartened God, along with Moses, Caleb, and Joshua. (Numbers 14:11) The people’s hope was in the wrong place.

I think they had misplaced assumptions as we often do: (Numbers 14)

  • That life in the new land would be easy
  • That God wasn’t really FOR them
  • The illusion that life before was better. (Romanticizing the past)
  • That our kids (the vulnerable ones) would suffer if they obeyed
  • That the land wasn’t good for them, but rather full of dangers
  • That they knew better than God and so didn’t heed Him

Then when they were rebuked and told that they’d have to wait 40 years, they wept and  swung the pendulum, deciding they would go, but on their own. They didn’t heed God’s warning. They were quickly defeated.

God rewarded the few who believed and feared God over the giants but they had to wait a long time.

How has your soul been tempted to grasshopper-ing?

 

How will you overcome your wrong assumptions?

 

 “These things were written for our instruction…” 1 Corinthians 10:11

Soul Warning

Soul Backdrop

Our souls grow in the swirling backdrop of wild philosophies that present themselves as new when they’re just coming around again deceiving, bringing regret and strife as they’ve done over the centuries.

If we could only see through it.

Their claims seem so virtuous and right but we forget how cunning our soul’s enemy can be. Ephesus was a city that 2000 years ago had a strong economy based on the commerce from their territorial goddess that “clearly fell from heaven” (Acts 19:35). Their cry, ‘Great is Artemis of the Ephesians,’ supposedly promised help with fertility and childbirth.

 

To speak or act against their god was blasphemous. That’s the context of the fledgling group to whom Paul wrote the New Testament letter to the Ephesians where he and his companions had caused a significant riot.  (Acts 19:32) These new believers were being called to live there, in the midst of opposing philosophies and powers; to live out their newfound faith and to love one another in that darkness and confusion.                                                                                                                                                                                                     Ruins – temple of Artemis

Paul’s charge to them was to begin to allow this scandalous notion of God’s choice of them, and His incomprehensible love for them to bring peace and reconciliation between centuries-old differences and prejudices.

A new walk was called for. Walk in a new way, walk in love, walk in light, walk worthy of your calling, walk in good works, walk as wise, walk in God’s strength to fight against the prevailing philosophies and powers.

The letter is a treatise for living life against the backdrop of contrary forces.  Being rooted and grounded in God’s love (Ephesians 3:17) walking in and speaking the truth in love would bring a flagrant contrast to their old manner of life. This would get the attention of evil forces that they would need to “withstand in the evil day” (Ephesians 6:10-13). Not an easy notion that called upon His power in their inner beings. (Ephesians 3:16)

What is the backdrop of your soul growth?

How will your rootedness lead to a new walk that goes against the flow of the present day?

Soul Searching

Soul Ironies


Some ironies of the Passover Week when Jesus was falsely accused and killed:

1. During Jesus’ unjust trial the Jewish leaders wouldn’t go into the Gentile palace because they wanted to keep themselves pure. (John 18:28)

Keep themselves pure? While they carry out their deceitful plot to kill the only one telling the Truth? They were anything but pure. Here on display is ritual gone awry.

Where in our lives has a ritual or habit overshadowed the significance of that very habit for our own convenience or lack of understanding?

2. They were celebrating the historical Passover while condemning the actual Passover Lamb. They forgot that John the Baptist called Jesus the Lamb of God who would take away the sin of the world. (John 1:29)

Do we celebrate an event in history without acknowledging or reflecting on the deep meaning for us?

3. They entirely missed the timing and symbolism of the blood of the lamb shed from the ancient outset of their relationship with God when they left Egypt in ~1400 BC.

What in the history of our relationship with God can we easily forget?

4. They could only fathom their own agenda while God so deeply uses them to carry out His agenda for their good! They were so clouded by what they wanted they could not hear truth.

Could there be a place in my life where I’m missing God’s agenda?

5. While thinking they were honoring God by calling out a blasphemer, they condemn God himself.

Where might I be pointing fingers or holding grudges that are actually blaming or condemning God?

Let’s examine our souls for any of these ironies and rejoice in His mercy, kindness and forgiveness toward us!

Soul Growth

Inner Soul Work

Discouraged with their new life back in the ruins of Jerusalem in 520BC, the returned exiles turn their focus to building their own houses while neglecting work on the house of God due to opposition, weariness, and low yields of their harvests. They are discouraged by the inferiority of the new temple compared to the past one.

We may wish for past encounters with God.

As we move into the rubble of our own or someone else’s mess, we are easily detracted from the building of the inner temple where God dwells. Discouraged, we can focus on outward endeavors that may bring more immediate returns; whether ministries that make us feel good or outward appearances that gain the praise of others.

God pleads through Haggai, “Consider your ways…!”  Stop and notice your neglect of Me in the inner place. Reflect on these matters. Then God stirs the leader, the priest, and the people to turn toward Him and engage in the temple work, putting their attention there. (Haggai 1:14, 2:4)

Haggai sees the greater glory coming in the future, pulling them from dwelling on the past as wonderful or terrible as it was. He lifts their eyes to the need for God’s presence now, highlighting His divine overcoming of oppressors. “The latter glory will be greater.” (Haggai 2:9) The remnant of God’s people would be established in the midst of turmoil. Their eyes would become fixed on an Eternal King and kingdom.

As we work with Him on our temples (souls) we are lifted above our internal enemies. We name and renounce the shame of our past, defeating its power over us. We can look ahead with hope and endurance even through the “shaking of the nations,”  fixed on the Greater One among us.

This powerfully speaks to those in the rubble of life, dwelling on how it used to be or should be. There’s a time to release that, consider our ways, and hear what God is saying, attending to the “now” of our inner temple, where God dwells.  Let’s work with Him in that place. Build there and begin to see your hope and glory in Him. He is establishing you, grounding you for a better future and hope, even amid the turmoil.

What might be an external focus that needs to be put aside to “heed the voice of the Lord”?

 

photo by Cheri Magerell

 

artwork – ALEXANDRA DE BASTO

Soul Growth

Reflective Soul

It’s worth taking a look at your soul for 2023

 

“Once we accept the gospel of grace and seek to shed defense mechanisms…,  honesty becomes both more difficult and more important. Honesty involves the willingness to face the truth of who we are, regardless of how threatening or unpleasant our perceptions may be. It means hanging in there with ourselves and with God, learning our mind tricks by experiencing how they defeat us, recognizing our avoidances, acknowledging our lapses, learning completely that we cannot handle it ourselves. This steady self-confrontation requires strength and courage.  We cannot use failure as an excuse to quit trying.”  Ragamuffin Gospel, Brennan Manning, p. 86

What would you like to see at the end of ’23?

Reflection Guide 2023examine our ways