ALL in…Soul Mates

In my studies and writing, I have to do what I call “deep diving” to really glean nutrition from the word of scripture. I always study and spend time praying and reflecting on whatever I pursue, but sometimes there are more significant challenges. When I started this meditation, I really had to review and go down deep into my theological foundation. I had to make sure I really believed and understood what I was attempting to write about. One might say that this is an odd occurrence, but I need to make sure I haven’t rearranged in my mind the truth of scripture to suit my circumstances. Remember me? The velcro Christian? 

As I progressed through these verses in Deuteronomy, I came to the portion where God commands us to love with all of our heart which I shared in my last blog. Then I came to the word “soul” and had to reflect on what part of me this really is. This is a complex word in scripture and it has morphed into many diverse understandings. However, I must move past the superficial cultural explanation and align myself with God’s truth about what it means to love with all my “soul.”  

I believe that man is three parts: body, soul, and spirit. This is supported in scripture in the fifth chapter of 1 Thessalonians, verse 23. Paul sharing his final words to the church, prays for and encourages them by saying, “May God Himself sanctify you through and through your whole spirit, soul and body.” This gives us a deeper definition of how we are made in the image of God. 

The trinity or the Triune Being (Father, Son and Spirit) is three parts, and we are made as well in three parts. The human spirit is the deepest part of me. This is the part that communicates with God in the spiritual realm. The soul is where the self is contained. My personality, emotions, imagination, intellect, mind, and creativity is expressed in this portion of my being. 

My body is the physical, tangible part of me that relates to the world around me through all my physical senses like sight, smell, vision, hearing, and touch. For me to confess that there is only one God, the true God, is the foundation of my relationship with Him. When I accept Christ and His all-sufficient sacrifice for me at the cross and receive Him as the mediator between a Holy God and me, it must be a decision that my spirit makes for me to be regenerated by God’s grace. This means it must be more than an intellectual choice. More than a mindset. Once I make this decision and experience regeneration, now my soul has a chance at being transformed. This is the part of me that contains my will, my talents, and the capacity to express love and receive love. Otherwise, I could believe in Christ and His redemption the way that I believe in Alexander the Great or the Aurora Borealis. 

Both have historical empirical data to support their existence but are finite in their manifestation. Neither really changed my essence and how God made me. This is why Paul talks so much in his letters about the old man(flesh) and the new man(spirit). The soul is the part of us that will either choose to align ourselves with the spirit of God or follow what Paul calls the flesh, the part that only dwells in the physical realm that is led by our senses and is directed by our physical drives. To love God with my soul is to surrender myself. To Him the part of me that is unlike all others. The unique personality and temperament God has placed within me make me…me. My soul is made up of my dreams, talents, and capacity to be a friend and have a friend. To love God with my soul in the daily looks something like this:

Lord, I hear the music in my head you put in me when you made me, and my fingers feel the call to travel across the keys of the piano. I want to be intentional with this talent…will you use it for my good and your glory? Lord, you have given me a capacity for creativity, a sound mind, a good memory. Take it and show me how to reach my maximum potential to better the world for you and for myself. Fill my mind with thoughts of you and the things you love. You, Oh Lord, have called me your friend. Let me be a friend to you. Lord, Let me be interested in you and the things that interest you in this world. And Lord, let me be loyal as a friend. Remind me of a love relationship. I need to always be on your side! Let the dreams of my soul reflect the vision you have for me because your word says I can’t even ask or imagine all that you have for me. (Ephesians 3:20) I love to cook, and while I know you don’t physically eat with me, will you help me remember you are the unseen guest in my kitchen and at my table as I bask in the joy of both preparing and consuming all that you provide? When I am cutting through the water in the lap pool or wading at the beach, let’s share the solitude together, Lord, because this is a part of who you made me be, and you desire my fellowship.

The writers of the bible use the word “soul” about 750 times in the Old Testament and over 100 times in the New Testament. The animated part came to life in Genesis when God breathed His breath (Ruach, wind or spirit of God) into Adam’s nostrils, and he became a living soul(nephesh). It is the part of me that God wants as a love gift. Given out of my free will for the refreshing of me and the enjoyment of both the Lord and I. I know in our culture that the word soul mate has taken on a dimension of its own. But in the truest sense of the word, The Lord has called me to be His soul mate for eternity. It is the part of me where He, the artistic Creator, placed His signature and has asked me to hang out in His gallery. Once my heart is surrendered to Him, letting my soul follow suit only makes sense because when I face death and my body is renewed, my spirit and my soul will be more at home than ever.

Lord, my soul is a deep place that you alone created so I could express myself to all that is around me. Let my relationship with you be the place where I invest it.

Come back to the vineyard as the 5 o’clock worker discovers it takes strength to work in the vineyard as the next part of the “All In” series continues.