EXPLORING YOUR SOUL: TEACHING (PT. 2)
BEFORE YOU WATCH:
Which of the next three parts of your soul are you most interested in learning about: mind, body, or relationships? Why?
Which of those three are you least excited about?
AFTER YOU WATCH:
Which of the stories were you able to identify that had shaped your soul?
How might realizing that your body affects your spiritual life change the way you treat it and use it?
Which relationships have impacted you most negatively?
Which relationships have been a huge blessing to you?
ONCE YOU HAVE WATCHED THIS VIDEO, WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO GO THROUGH THE GUIDED PRAYER NEXT.
· [8]HOW’S YOUR MIND? THESE ARE THE STORIES WE RECEIVE AND THE STORIES WE BELIEVE.We are hard-wired as creatures to see our lives in terms of a story. We answer the questions of “who am I?”, “why am I here?”, “Am I valuable?”, “Am I significant?”, “Am I safe?” in terms of our story. Most of these stories we don’t think about, but they shape how we see the world and how we fit in it. They are unconscious beliefs.
o FAMILY NARRATIVES: If you follow the rules or achieve, you’re good, you’re loved. You’re not wanted. You’re the man of the house. (I’m the ________ of the house.) You can’t do anything right. You’re going to have to take care of yourself. Don’t be like/be like your Dad/brother/mother/etc. You must meet expectations/ or you’re never going to meet expectations. Your role in the family is…
o RELIGIOUS NARRATIVES: God is angry/disappointed in me. God has more important things to focus on, my needs are insignificant. If I’m good God will bless me, if I’m bad he’ll punish me. I have to work hard for God (servant mentality). God is love- your sin isn’t a big deal. I’m a sinner. A pastor carries the burden of people’s spiritual lives and is responsible for their transformation.
o CULTURAL NARRATIVES: Success is (good job / vacations / car / promotions / Instagram / Hustle & Grind / Fame / Big Church/ Reputation) Be true to yourself (define yourself, be rugged, be tough, be self-sufficient, don’t be weak, don’t be vulnerable) The Pursuit of Happiness ( sex, attractiveness, pleasure, escape) Truth is relative and subjective. Make this world into heaven through politics and power (causes) Be on the right side of history. Science answers all questions. Material universe is all there is.
o PAIN NARRATIVES: (Inner Vows: Mark Driscoll) Betrayed? “I’ve been hurt too much & will never trust anyone again, including God” Lonely? “Since God & people abandoned me, I need to just take care of myself” Abused? “I should have kept my abuse a secret. Now others know and are upset” Victim? “They are getting away with it, so I need vengeance to make them pay” Controlled? “I need to be the controlling one in my relationships to protect myself” Traumatized? “If I avoid and ignore it, it will go away as time heals all wounds”
THIS IS A BIG AREA/WHERE DO I START? The best way to figure out what story you’re living by is by PAYING ATTENTION TO WHERE YOU YOU’RE YOUR PAYING ATTENTION. Where is your focus first thing in the morning? Do you wake up and check social media? Do you wake up and check your calendar or email? Is it the news? Where is your focus last thing as you lay down? What keeps you up at night? (Each of these areas are telling you where your significance comes from, or what makes you valuable, or where you belong.) Productivity, people’s opinion, likes, etc.
· [9]HOW IS YOUR BODY? This is probably one of the most overlooked parts of soul care. We usually feel like the body is at best a tool to be used, and at worst, something to be escaped when we finally get to heaven. However, the bible speaks of our bodies as created by God and good. They are called “temples where God dwells”. [1 Cor. 6:19] Any place called good and a place for God’s presence is not unimportant or to be dismissed or minimized. Think of it this way. Your body is the intersection between your inner world, and the world around you. Unsurprisingly, it often helps us identify something inside us that needs attention. WHAT IS ON THE INSIDE OFTEN SHOWS UP ON THE OUTSIDE. As we look at our bodies we need to ask…
o AM I RESTED OR EXHAUSTED? The amount of rest we get affects everything! It affects our hearts, our minds, our attitudes, and our actions. Think of Elijah who has the most amazing experience of seeing fire fall from heaven one moment and then is crashed under a bush and crying out in desperation telling God he wants to die. God feeds him and tells him to sleep. Twice. Here’s some questions.
1. Do I wake up in the morning feeling rested? How quickly do I fall asleep (or is it hard because our mind is restless) How much sleep have I had? How much sleep does my body need? Are there substances like caffeine or alcohol affecting my sleep? Am I constantly working and never stopping? Can I or better yet will I take a day off? When was the last time I felt great?
o AM I RELAXED OR STRESSED? This was my wakeup call 6 years ago. My jaw started clenching in time with my heartbeat when I relaxed my jaw. I couldn’t stop it. I felt jittery and my heart was beating hard. I had been pushing hard for years trying to achieve and exceed expectations and it finally caught up to me.
2. Are there any places where I’m experiencing tension? Do I have any physical symptoms of anxiety like pain in my jaw, fluttering or upset stomach, heart racing? Do I have regular heartburn or struggle shutting my mind off at bed? Can I sit and simply take in my surroundings? Do I have a sense of peace with things as they are? Do I feel like I have to constantly be doing something?
o AM I STRONG OR WEAK? As we age, we are often confronted with the reality of a body we haven’t cared for, or with a body that is simply not built for eternity.
3. Am I physically capable of doing the work God is calling me to? Is my body in a condition, that if he asks me to do something, that I can do it? Is there a pain in my body that causes me to be angry or doubt God’s love and purpose in my life?
· [10]HOW ARE MY RELATIONSHIPS? WHO WE ARE NOW IS LARGELY BECAUSE OF WHO WE’VE SPENT TIME WITH IN THE PAST. WHO WE BECOME WILL LARGELY DEPEND ON WHO WE’RE SPENDING TIME WITH NOW. We are made in the image of a Trinitarian God. We were made BYcommunity FOR community. We are shaped positively and negatively by the people we have been in relationships with. Our current relationships are often shaped by our past relationships. For us to allow Jesus to rule and reign in our relationships, we must examine…
o OUR PAST RELATIONSHIPS: Who are the major relationships in the past that have affected me? What are the positive ways they have impacted me? What are the negative ways they have impacted me? Do I have any anger or bitterness in my life that I need to process to make it possible to experience forgiveness? What people has God used to bless me and shape me for good? Our kingdom is shaped by our past relationships and…
o OUR CURRENT RELATIONSHIPS: Who am I currently spending time with? What ways are they shaping the things I love, the ways I think and act? What are the major issues I’m experiencing in my relationships right now? What people are helping me to love and follow Jesus well? What relationships are hindering my walk with Jesus? What relationships might God want to use me to shape someone else? Do I even have time for community? So we’ve talked about having a map of our soul. But we also need…[11]
(APP) A GUIDE & A SPACE TO SEEK GOD WITH US
WE NEED A SOUL GUIDE: Our souls are wonderfully made and complex. We’re used to fixing stuff, learning things, and running programs, but struggle with being able to discover and name what’s going in our souls or how to bring those things to Jesus. It reminds me of an episode of man vs wild where Bear Grylls took the football player Deion Sanders out into the desert. Deion is not a wimp. He’s not incompetent. But you take him out of the environment he knows, he was completely unable to survive without some guidance. Learning to explore our souls requires a “spiritual Bear Grylls.” Someone to point out the terrain and how to explore it. This is where a Spiritual Director comes in. They don’t do it for us, they simply walk us and point out things we might not know or miss along the way. A spiritual director is basically someone who has been trained to learn to listen to the Holy Spirit within them, Listen to others talk about their lives, and to help them both discover where God’s Spirit is already at work in their own lives, and then help them listen to what He wants to say. They create space for people to explore their souls with God and experience his transforming love. This is something that I have trained for and been certified to do. So here’s what I’d like to do. We’ve talked about our souls, but I’d like to create space for you all to explore your souls with God.
[12]Your soul is a temple of God. He dwells within you. He promises to meet with us and speak to us. We’re going to go ask God to do what David asked in [Psalm 139], Search us and know us, show us our souls. And trust that he is within us and working.
You can use the worksheet I provided to help you as you pray and write your thoughts to God.
