Do you often talk to your soul?
- AK
- 8 mars
- 7 min de lecture
Do you often speak to your soul when you know it is saddened deep inside?
Do you also speak to her when you feel within yourself that she rejects a principle or a prescription coming from God?
David spoke to his soul very often. In the psalms he wrote or in those written by other authors, I understood that they were not only speaking to God, but also to their souls in moments of sadness:
“ Why are you cast down, my soul? Why do you groan within me? Wait for God, for I will still praise him. He is my salvation and my God. ” Psalm 43:12
Or, to remind them who God is and what he has done and continues to do.
“ When a man looks toward him, he will be full of joy, and his face will not be ashamed. When the poor man cries, the LORD will hear him and save him out of all his troubles .” Psalm 34:6-7
To put Psalm 34 in context; David wrote it when he pretended to be a fool in the presence of Abimelech so that the latter would let him go. It was during the period when David, the king chosen by God, was hiding from Saul, still king of Israel at that time because the latter was trying to kill him. Writing such a psalm in such circumstances when his life was in danger and everything seemed contrary to the promise received from God: it's incredible! I think that if David was the man after God's own heart, it is probably also because during the difficult trials he went through, he continued to bless God and to recognize him as the author of his salvation. But also because he did not fail to remind his soul who God is, what he says and is capable of doing. Because, we must recognize that, whether we like it or not, whether it is while waiting for the manifestation of God's promises in our life, or when we go through trials or difficulties, our soul tends to forget who God is, what he is capable of doing and even our identity in Christ. I myself have surprised myself a few times. Also, I think it is necessary to remind our soul of this quite often in adversity.
My soul had forgotten that “I am a child of God”
A few years ago, I had a special experience at a youth meeting. As I was holding the microphone and praying out loud, I remember exactly the words that came out of my loop at that very moment when I was not praying about this subject: “ Listen to me, my soul. You are a child of God. I say, you are a child of God. And it does not depend on what you do or do not do, or what you are able to do or not. You are a child of God.” And I repeated it several times with emphasis. And at that very moment, I knew deep down that it was my spirit led by the Spirit of God speaking to my soul these words based on the Word of God: John 1:12-13
“ But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become children of God, even to them that believe on his name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
And as far as I can remember, nowhere is it written in the Bible that becoming a child of God would be conditioned by our efforts or our actions. While in this period, my soul had begun to doubt its identity as a child of God. Because not understanding why as such, I could not live and act in a way that was pleasing to God, but on the contrary it was easier for me to do what was not pleasing to Him. The Lord took the time to explain this inconsistency in me (You can read my testimony by clicking on this link 1 and this link 2 if you wish). My soul therefore needed at this time to remember who I was in Christ but especially to remember this fundamental principle according to which my identity in Christ is not a function of my efforts, nor of my actions; But rather because I have accepted and believed in Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh, and have confessed with my mouth and my heart that he is my Lord and my Savior.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9
This declaration made to my soul during my prayer had come to me to overthrow a lie, a fortress that had begun to settle and that prevented my soul from accepting the word of God as the truth. It is therefore from this moment, which was also a decisive turning point in my relationship with God that I understood that it was necessary for me to speak often to my soul so that it does not forget who I am in Christ and even less who is this God that I have chosen to love and follow regardless of the circumstances or experiences of life.
Talking to your soul, OK, but talking to it about what?
Have you ever heard of the positive thinking statement?
It's about declaring positive thoughts, that is, what you want to obtain and letting the law of attraction draw them to you. Or focusing your thoughts on everything that is positive by making declarations of positive thoughts every day at a certain time of the day. Ultimately, it's about learning to have a more positive outlook on life.
Personally, I don't believe in the declaration of positive thoughts. Why?
First, because they have no power in themselves for a total transformation of the heart, nor for a complete restoration of the soul. Second, because they are for the most part half-truths. However, I have found that the principle itself is taken from the word of God: Philippians 4:8
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good report, if there is any excellence, if there is any praise, think about (the New International Version says "feed your thoughts on").
But by being diluted to make it acceptable to the world, that is, to those who do not know God or to those who have rejected Him, its power has been taken away: the truth which is the word of God and the giving free rein to the working of the Holy Spirit in us. Hebrews 4:12:
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts of the heart.”
So we must set our minds, not on what is positive, but on what is first true ( Philippians 4:8 ) . And what is true for us is what God says: His Word. And it is the word of God through the action of the Holy Spirit in us that is able to save our soul, to teach it to continue to believe, to persevere in the test, to always wait on God concerning his promises in our lives; So that this also creates in our soul faith because it comes from what we hear and what we hear comes from the Word of God. And God, who is the rewarder of our faith comes to honor it when what we desire or ask of him is in accordance with his will for us.
So I believe in declaring what God says in his word in our life, especially to our soul so that it receives it and accepts to let itself be transformed, renewed and restored by the Word and by the power of the Holy Spirit. We must therefore learn to exhort ourselves by speaking to our souls of the word of God as David did in the psalms, and also other servants like Jeremiah.
They encouraged and strengthened themselves with the word of God: Psalms 27:3 / Psalms 27:14 / Lamentations of Jeremiah 3:21-24
They reminded their souls of what their God was able to do: Psalms 33:8-9 / Psalms 135:5-7 / Psalms 103:2-5
They reminded their souls who they were in God: Psalms 9:4-9 / Psalms 139:14-16
And they did not fail to tell their souls to continue to hope in God and to trust in him: Psalms 13:6 / Psalms 28:14
Meditating on the Word of God also means ruminating on the Word in one's thoughts and in one's heart. Speaking to one's soul by declaring the Word of God to it is therefore also a way of meditating on it.
So declaration yes! But declaration of the truth which is the word of God, alone capable by the action of the Holy Spirit to truly save our soul from the assaults of the flesh and its very often erroneous interpretations of the circumstances of our lives. Be careful, I said erroneous and not "unreal". Because the reality that we can live is often far from the truth, and the interpretations that we can have by reading our circumstances are real, because it is what we live at the moment, but are very often false because contrary to the truth of the word of God.
It is also important to remember that all the positive affirmations that we can read or hear can be real because they are drawn from life lessons and experiences but are not necessarily true. So before declaring them, before our souls accept them as a principle of life, even if they sound pleasant in our ears, it remains important and preferable to put them through the scanner of the Word of God. I assure you that this will save us from unnecessary fights in the future.
“Therefore, lay aside all filthiness and excess of wickedness, and receive with meekness the word implanted in you, which is able to save your soul.” James 1:21
Let us pray together
Father, may your name be blessed. We thank you for this sharing.
Grant us the grace to speak to our souls about your word, about who you are and what you say you are through your word.
Give us the grace to strengthen ourselves with hymns and psalms taken and inspired by your word and not to accept in our hearts all the positive affirmations which are not in conformity with your truth in our life,
In the name of Jesus Christ.
May all the glory be to you.
Amen
To Edify, Encourage, Inspire, Grow together
With all my love
✍🏾AK
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