We have been looking at ‘Soul Care’. We are talking about what the soul is, how it functions and eventually we are going to talk about how to care for it. One thought on the soul is that the word ‘soul’ describes the integration of various parts of a person. The soul is the merging of the mind, emotions, will, body, appetites, drives and needs. We can recognize each of these functions and parts of our lives. We know that our mind works or doesn’t work. We are well aware of our emotions, the strength and weakness of our will, body, appetites, drives and needs.
Each of these components can be looked at individually, but they are not in a segregated compartment. They are intertwined with each other. When my mind isn’t working correctly, neither are my emotions. If my body is in pain, my appetites aren’t firing correctly. The components are integrated.
When the Bible speaks of someone ‘losing their soul’, this is not a reference to where someone might spend eternity. Jesus is referring to something that happens to a person’s inner life.
If the soul is the integration of the various components of my being, then losing my soul is the disintegration of the various components of my soul. Losing my soul is the separation of my mind from my emotions, my will from my appetites, my body from my needs and mind. It is the process in which various components of the soul are being slowly and insidiously pulled apart.
What if I get something I want or I’m working for, but my soul starts to come apart?
What if I move forward in certain areas, but come apart at the seams?
What good is it in the end? What have I gained?
What is this doing to my soul?
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