**********
"I have found that the first step in getting our souls to flourish in peace is to just get the soul to rest. Have you experienced those times when you just couldn’t shut off your brain? That’s the soul recognizing the potential for harm (big or little) in your life. When this happens the will, intellect and emotions are kicked into high gear in order to try and fend off potential harm."
As quoted from the book "Victor - Breaking Free From a Victim-Based Society" by John H. Hovis Page 113.
Don't you just hate those days when you just can't seem to get your mind to shut off. Worse than that, how about those nights when the same thing happens? Staring at that ceiling doesn't help one bit when your brain just won't quit thinking.
I believe that our sometimes overactive brains are a symptom of our souls being in charge of our existence. Our will, intellect and emotions are a powerful ally in the battles we face on a daily basis for sure. But, they can be a relentless enemy when we just want a little peace and quiet.
It is my opinion that our racing mind is a part of our soul trying to protect us from enemies and dire circumstances. It doesn't matter if the enemies and circumstances are real or perceived, our will, intellect and emotions are ready to jump in and save the day - even if it is in the middle of the night.
That's why I believe that God never intended for our souls to be running the show. Our spirits are suppose to be in charge. You see, our souls don't have that connection with God that filters things in a totally different way than does our souls. Our spirits are connected to a higher source of power that can discern right from wrong, good from bad. Our souls are kind of like a computer. They operate in, what I allude to as a binary system. They are either totally on or totally off. When our souls are on - they are on 100%. That's why falling to sleep and staying that way can be such a challenge when we feel threatened in one way or another by our world.
Check out what a young man said about the spirit in the Bible when he was speaking to a bunch of much older and supposedly wiser men in the Book of Job.
But it is the spirit in a person, the breath of the Almighty, that gives them understanding. Job 32:8 (NIV)
When God took mud from the ground and formed it into man, he then breathed into the image and I believe the spirit of God entered us all. This verse confirms this speculation. It is the breath of God that is the spirit in a person.
Look what it says about that spirit in today's reading. It gives us understanding. You see, our mind, our intellect and our emotions can't come to complete understanding. Yes the soul can wrestle with a situation and come to some level of understanding, but it just can't fully understand the way the spirit that is in man can. That's because that spirit is connected directly with God in live giving ways too wonderful for us to completely fathom.
God is in no way an enemy with the soul. Neither should our soul be an enemy of God. Want to know something, the soul is positioned to be an enemy of God if the soul hasn't learned that it is OK to follow our creator. Why does the soul ever want to consider God an enemy? Because God's ways are not our ways and circumstances God may direct us into through the spirit might be perceived as dangerous, unhealthy or not in the best interest of our body. The soul does its best to protect us from anything that might cause us damage in the future.
Unfortunately, God sometimes needs us to face danger in order for His plans of salvation to come to completion. Just think of Jesus. Don't you know His soul wanted to fight for His protection - and it did in the Garden. Jesus was able to quiet his soul and let God's will be done. Thank God He did, because our victor status was made possible by Jesus' spirit taking control over His soul in a way that let Him step into the very jaws of danger.
I don't know how much this discussion will help us sleep at night when our soul is charging off to fight for our protection. I do know that the more and more I get into touch with my spirit and enable it to lead my soul, the closer I feel to God Himself.
Here's something you can try as your soul gets riled up today or even tonight. Tell your soul to listen to the spirit. Give the soul permission to come under the authority and leadership of the spirit. This is the only way it can calm down to the point where it can hear from God and assist in the powerful work God is doing through you today. Though this might not help you sleep right away, it starts the training process we all need to live out this life of a victor God's Children have been called to live.
No comments:
Post a Comment