Saturday, January 8, 2011

Your Soul Knows What It Needs



     The other day I had the most piercing headache.  My family and friends know that I rarely get them, so if I complain about a headache, it is serious.  I took aspirin to address it but no dice.  I have been dieting lately, so I began to shovel down food, but to no avail.  I began to search online and found a host of possible reasons.  One stated that it could be lack of iron.  Another stated that I am not drinking enough water.  One stated that I need to get my eyes checked.  One stated that my bed needs to be addressed.   Another said my pillow was too hard, while another said my pillow was too soft.  One site had me laughing, which said I am sensitive to cologne or perfume.  I laughed because my wife always teases me about spraying too much on.  I refuse to give her the satisfaction.  After searching and contemplating which instruction I was going to follow, I fell asleep.  It was probably around 5-6pm.  I did not wake up until the next morning, which was around 8-9am.  I woke up shocked that I slept for so long.  Guess what?  My headache was gone.  My body told me that it was hurting.  I acknowledged it and was searching for complex remedies; however remedy came in the form of rest.
     In the book of Psalms, David said “I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Marvelous are Your works, And that my soul knows very well.” (Ps 139:14)  David pondered on the thoughts of how God formed him, and was astonished at the exquisite and delicate outcome of the human body.  He also stated that his soul knows very well.  In other words his soul bears witness as if a separate entity but one in the same.  The soul; that intangible force behind our existence that was a given to us by God.  Just as the body needs, the soul does as well.   David in Psalm 63 poetically and eloquently expressed his soul’s need for God.  He says his soul thirsts for God and his flesh longs for God.  (Ps 63:1)  He loves God so much that the thought of not giving him praise, the thought of not being able to hear a word, has now caused his physical body to be weary.  The only thing that can quench his thirst, that can satisfy his body’s hunger was to seek God’s power and glory in the sanctuary; the church (Ps 63:2).
     God created us for His glory.  He desire for us to be in communion with him.  By design, we are to seek His face.  Our soul desires to be fed with the word of God.  However, we become agitated when the soul’s need is not met, hence the phrase “a restless soul.”  You would become bored.  You will always feel the need to do something.  Just as I was trying to figure out why my head was hurting, you will find ways to try to satisfy that feeling you are feeling.  This is your soul’s way of saying “feed me with the word of God!”  An unfed soul is like an unguarded home open for the thieves to come and take away the possessions.   Listen to your soul and feed it what it asks for, the word of God!  Amen!

Friday, January 7, 2011

Your Mind, The Possible Root To Your Problem




        I used to love going to the club.  I would be in the club Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  Act III in the Bronx right off of E238th street and White Plains Rd was the spot.  I would bring my toothbrush in a bag, so when I leave the club, I go straight to work, hit the restroom, and brush my teeth.  I did this routinely for as long as I could remember.  Then one morning, a Sunday morning, when I was coming home from the club, I stopped and got some White Castles.  Something I normally would not do, knowing I was going to have Pizza later on in the day.  You see it was football season, and I had to have my Pizza when watching football.  I remember sneaking in the apartment, at least trying to sneak in, and my wife stuck her head out of the bedroom and looked at me with disgust.  She was pregnant with my daughter, and my little over a year old son, might have gotten up when I came in.  As I sat in the living room and began to check Cablevision to see who would be playing later, I heard his little feet coming down the hallway.  I could hear him sucking on his bop.  That is what he called a pacifier.  He came and joined me on the living room floor.  He spat the bop out as a cue for me to give him some of what I was eating.    I broke off a bit of the mini burger and gave him some.  I am not sure how much time had passed, but I remember just sighing.  My son startled me because he sighed also.  I looked down at him, and we stared at each other for a moment before he stuck his bop back in his mouth and fixed his eyes on the T.V.  At that moment by mental eye opened.
      I surveyed the room and began to feel disgusted.  I asked myself what am I doing?  This can’t be it.  I have a college degree.  Why am I living like this?  Why am I putting my family through this?  How is it possible for my wife and I to make $110-$120k together  a year and living from paycheck to paycheck?  It was God who answered my question in the form of a sigh from my son.  My mind was not right.  I had the wrong thoughts to serve as a guide to my actions.  I never went to a club again.  The bible states,  “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.  The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me, these do, and the God of peace will be with you.” (Php 4:8-9)
      The Apostle Paul gave us a checklist on what should be on our minds.  If our thoughts are structured around negative things, then our vision will be clouded.  The things we hear will be filtered.  These negative thoughts will then bring forth negative speech.  The bible states “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he” (Pr 23:7)  In essesence, negative thoughts will birth, negative speech, which will manifest into negative actions.  The Apostle Paul expressed to the Chruch of Philippi that if they practice what he taught, and mimic how he led by example, that the God of peace will be with them.  The God of peace.    My life was a mess.  What I thought was fun was ruining me financially.  I disregarded how I seen Christians live, and ignored when I was witnessed to.  Are things chaotic in your life?  Does it seem like you can never overcome?  What have your thoughts been like lately?    Have you been there before?  Are you there now?   It may just be that the God of peace is not with you.  If it is not the God of peace, then which god is it?  Amen!