Exchanging my wants for His

We usually do this the other way around right? And when things don't go the way we want we become angry with the world, and with God.  This scripture in the 37th Psalm has given us the "secret sauce" to our happiness.  "Delight yourself in the Lord."  

 This means spending time with Him.  Read about Him.  Pray to Him.  Studying Him, asking Him questions, and WAITING for an answer. (This is always the hardest part).  We make our life about Him. 

 I know we have often asked: "What do I really want"?

I feel after we've gone around the mountain and back, we all will arrive at the same answer:  peace and happiness.  However, the means by which this happiness is delivered to us is what can muddy the waters.  We think we know what will make us happy so we put all of our energy into that "thing" we think will do it for us. Most of the time it's natural things: 

A house,  a car,  a person, or a relationship.  For all of you younger folks reading this, Spoiler alert: those aren't it! lol.  Although you may feel pretty happy in the beginning, all of these things will fizzle out and ultimately disappoint. 

Delighting in God first is going to save you a lot of time and frustration. 

We've got to put our wants to the side and start exploring what it is that God wants. And in doing this:  love, peace, and happiness will flow through you regardless of what is going on around you, and in your life. 

Be Blessed! 

My Soul Has Weight

Today as I was reading The 40 Day Soul fast, by Cindy Trimm I learned that there is this scientific study out there called 21 grams, have you heard of it?  This research shows that immediately after a person dies they lose 21 grams.  That’s 3/4^thof and ounce.  Wow!?  I’ve never heard of this experiment, but Duncan McDougal performed this back in 1907.  He would take a terminally ill patient and weigh them right before their passing, and then immediately after. He did this on six people, and several animals to confirm that there was a difference. There was no weight change in the animals but in the humans it was 21 grams!  I have never thought about they physical weight of our souls. 

My immediate emotion to this finding is that, the soul is extremely powerful! If you think about our personality, emotions and aspirations, which is the seat of where EVERY thing lies, it all weighs less than an ounce!  

My mind is really blown.  This says to me that I really have to put my self in an environment where I can tap into this very powerful piece of me.   We are Body, Soul, and Spirit.  The body, (which is dying daily) unfortunately gets all the attention, but the soul is eternal.  Ironically meaning, that although it cannot be properly measured by natural means, it carries the most weight. Our souls live forever. 

The soul is often starved or neglected and given the wrong diet. It is ignored and overlooked, under valued in our world.  The scripture even says, “Man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart.”  1 Sam. 16:7

This means God doesn’t judge us by how we look, what we own, or our connections. He judges us by what is inside. However,  we live our lives mostly taking care of what the world sees as if their vote matters. God’s Judgment is the only one that matters! He holds our eternal home. We should nurture from the inside out. 

Why do we give more attention to the flesh than our soul?  Is it because we care more about what people say and think, than what God knows about us? Does it make us feel accepted, likeable, or in-fashion? Those things fade.  When we give attention to our soul man we really begin to see how much weight 21 grams carries in the kingdom of God. 

Our soul is our inward compass, the rotor in our ship so to speak. From our soul (i.e. our heart) flows the issues of life. Where our heart is, there will our treasure be also. This is the Word letting us know just how much weight the soul carries.  

We must build up our souls and guard it! Protecting it with the hope of God’s word. Guard your soul against despair and hopelessness, negativity and complaining. All of these things poisons the heart and spills out into our daily life. Our soul is what dictates our path, and destination. 

It is hard to deceive the heart because it is who we are. If our soul is full of darkness our lives, our conversation, and choices will reflect the same. This is why God tells us to guard our hearts with all diligence.  Meaning put more effort into protecting your inner man, because it will dictate what happens on the outside. If you want to be happy, if you want to find joy, feed your soul the Words of God. They are hope, and They are life!