What do you do to feed your soul?
That is, what do you do to insure that the information your encounter from the Bible (Sermons, ABF classes, devotional reading, etc.) not only goes into your mind but transforms your heart?
Is your soul/spirit refreshed or weary? Why?
Think of a time when your inner man (2 Corinthians 4:16; Ephesians 3:16) was joyful, energized, content in your walk with God.
What relational context are you involved that is helping encourage your soul satisfaction in God and life? How are they encouraging, promoting and energizing your soul satisfaction?
These are questions I have been asking myself and others. Below are some of the answers (in my own words). Not an exhaustive study, but then I don’t want to exhaust my soul, but refresh it.☺
What do you do to feed your soul?
Solitude–getting away from the every day “have tos”
Journaling
Keep a healthy balance between devotional reading of Scripture, prayer and mind stretching reading
Praise music
Read spiritual biographies
Cycle through different spiritual disciplines to maintain a freshness
Is your soul/spirit refreshed or weary? Why?
Causes for weariness:
Business/complicated life
Wearied by circumstances, including health concerns
Constant “giving”–emptying the tank without refillingCauses for refreshment:
Serving others–taking my eyes off myself
Maintaining spiritual disciplines even when I don’t feel like it, until I feel like it
How are/can your intentional relational contexts encourage, promote or energize your soul satisfaction?
Learning to be authentic, not allow people to remain shallow
Need for accountability in an authentic accepting environment
Knowing that people will not judge or condemn but help
Learning from others
Just knowing they care
What are your thoughts? What would you add?
Physical rest. When the body is tired or fatigued, the mind and heart struggle to be at peace. At intense times in my life, I have slept in God’s presence when on a Sunday afternoon my real intent was to spend time in the Word. First, God gave me rest and when I awoke I was eager and read to hear His voice through His Word.
Very true Sally.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Thanks for those encouraging thoughts, Mr. Kilgore.
I fully agree with Sally. It´s important we analyze our schedules and figure out what´s priority and what´s not. Maybe that´s why we don´t “find” time to be refreshed properly through the Word. Exhaustion makes it difficult to sit daily at Jesus´feet and learn from Him.
The great 20th century theologian, Vince Lombardi said that…
“Fatigue makes cowards of us all.”
Out of this overly sensitive philosophy welled up the thought that “I firmly believe that any man’s finest hour, his greatest fulfillment of all he holds dear, is the moment when he has worked his heart out in a good cause and lies exhausted on the field of battle – victorious.”
Seriously, I’m not saying that rest is not important. I’m also not devaluing the other comments.
In my own personal experience, the times in my life when I responded to the promptings of the Spirit and stepped out in faith when I was utterly exhausted, without any abilities left, all reserve tanks were poured out, were when I experienced the most refreshment, the most joy, the most…of what Lombardi calls…”victory.” I think only then do I have insight into “power, perfected in weakness. For when I was weak, then He was strong.”
Maybe Vince makes more sense to the committed Christian than on first read. Christ sacrificed it ALL for me…is my response to so great a salvation to be anything less?
Kevin,
I really appreciate your words. I agree–for me, there is a great need to surrender control to God. To fully depend on Him.
That surrender and dependence often comes when I finally realize I can’t do it myself.
But I also find there are time when I am weak, that rather than focusing on Him, I focus on me. I start defending myself, pitying myself and am prone to sin out of pride, out of weakness, out self-justification.
I think it comes down to understanding the two pressures of sin: omission and commission.
I’m writing on this for later in the week.