Solomon tells us that “a happy heart is good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing” (Proverbs 17:22, AMP ). God undoubtedly has a sense of humor; we need only look at some of the animals He created (it’s hard not to smile at the sight of a hippo, a monkey, or a puppy). Or think of some of the married couples you know: don’t you think God was smiling at the wedding as He looked ahead to the interaction of the wildly different personalities that will be living together?Posts Tagged ‘emotions’
entering the presence of God
Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully. He will receive blessing from the Lord and righteousness from the God of his salvation. (Psalm 24:3–5)
Psalm 24 was part of […]
helping your soul to rest in peace
One of the aspects of The Little Book of Hours that I like best is that the morning and evening prayers end with this:
May the souls of the faithful by the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen.
This repetition of “rest in peace” was one of the first things that caught my attention when I started using the prayer book several years ago. Growing up, the only time I heard “rest in peace” was in regard to gravestones, so I wondered why this prayer was a a regular feature. I concluded that while the original intent of the prayer may have been for the “dearly departed,” I was going to speak it as a prayer for myself and my family…
got humility?
Shortly after writing yesterday’s post, I read 1 Peter 3:8: “Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” That pretty much covers it, right? If we have these five characteristics, we should not have many people problems. The last one — a humble mind — caught my attention.
Pride is the root of offense. It is only when we think something of ourselves that we can be offended. If my sense of self and my security come from and rest in God — that which is unchanging — then my sense of self and my security cannot be rocked or shaken by the behavior of others. As my pastor has said, “Dead people don’t get offended.” When I die to myself and find my life hidden in God, I’ve moved to another place where offense can’t touch me.
where are you living?
I’m reading Graham Cooke’s The Secret of a Powerful Inner Life — less than 60 pages, but slow going because there’s so much to think about. Here’s what caught my attention this morning:
How much of our “spirituality” is threatened by opposition? Do we feel the urge to control or dominate in human confrontations? How much of our peace is destroyed by conflict? How easily upset are we? How long does it take us to regain normal, good humor? How vulnerable are we to anger, resentment, and bitterness? How long do we hold a grudge? How quick are we to forgive? How willing are we to be restored?
If the answer to any of those questions is, in any way, negative, we are more likely living in our souls than in our spirits.
Ouch!
Lest this leave you feeling overwhelmed with your failures, Cooke offers hope in the next paragraph:
God is breaking our controlling selves by enabling us to submit to the spiritual fruit of self-control. Our dominatnig, manipulative selves must become humble and submissive to Christ. We must learn to reassert our wills as the vehicle of the spirit over our emotions and thought lives.
Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version ®, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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