How are you really doing? A soul check-up
How are you really doing? (a soul check-up) • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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INTRODUCTION
Happy Mother’s Day…I love this day…it is the second most important Sunday…moms have a way of being the same across the board about certain things…one thing they have in common is questions
Are you ok…how are you doing…are you felling well…do you have a fever…do you have the chills…are you achy and sore…is your throat sore…how are you really doing
We are going to ask that question for the next few weeks and try to answer it b/c I do not think we are doing very well
I am not talking about begin physically sick…I am not talking about your body…I am talking about your soul…how are you really doing deep down inside…is it well with my soul…many of us might answer “no”
Outwardly we are wasting away…my body is not what it used to be…I wake up sore because I slept wrong
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.
Are we inwardly being refreshed…it seems like many of us are not being renewed
The last 3 years has been rough…our souls are tired…anxious…joyless
Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.
Would you want that prayer for yourself…would you like to pray “I pray that your finances, marriage, kids are doing as well as your soul is doing”
IS IT WELL WITH MY SOUL?
God gave us a body and a soul…our souls are the center of us…our soul gets filled with God
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.
When can I go and meet with God?
The soul longs for more time with God
Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
The soul is that deep inner part of me that fellowships with God
Satan makes war against our souls…he knows this is where he needs to attack
We live in a world that is toxic to our souls…it is easy to see the evidence…depression…anxiety…substance abuse…acts of hatred and outrage…seeing PPL always exhausted in the inside…this is now normal
We are living in ways that is costing our souls and in turn we are losing our relationship with God
Would you want everything else in your life to be as healthy as your soul?
Good news…Jesus understands and He offers something better
MATTHEW 11:28-29 NIV KJV
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
This is not temporary relief but long lasting restoration…a better way to live that keeps our souls healthy
The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
We need to be really honest the next few weeks…is it well with your soul
(ILL) “the unexamined life is not worth living” Socrates
(ILL) “you better check yo self before you wreck yo self” Ice Cube
IS MY SOUL UNDERNOURISHED?
Most of the soul damage is self inflicted…we have frivolous and poisonous soul diets…phones are a big problem
I struggle with this…I am on this too much…it is filled with stuff that I do not need to see/hear/read…I am not able to process this the right way…it makes my soul very sick
Have you ever spent 30 minutes on this thing watching videos…playing games…checking social media…and then said “I feel so much closer to God”
Our souls are over gorged and undernourished
Sheep cannot rest unless they have a full stomach of good food…the shepherd does that
The law of the Lord is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
God gives us a good diet…it is right here…I spend way too much time surfing and not enough searching
I need to get more comfortable with being alone and quiet with God…I am addicted to noise…I need quiet
(ILL) We must empty ourselves of all that fills us so that we may be filled with what we are empty of. (Augustine)
Is your diet good enough to sustain a healthy soul
IS MY SOUL OVERANXIOUS?
In David’s day there were lions and wolves and bears all around sheep…they were restless…they could not defend themselves but they could run…but they never rested b/c they were anxious
Anxiety is a constant reality for us…we cannot escape the fact that this world is full of anxiety producing things
(ILL) Harper Collins word of the year 2022 - PERMACRISIS = there is always a crisis present
Pandemic…political unrest…war…inflation…school/mass public shootings…racial tension
These things are not going away…we cannot eliminate stress…sheep cannot get rid of wolves and lions
The only thing that could calm the sheep is being in the presence of the shepherd
Maybe the reason we are anxious is b/c we have stopped coming to Jesus…we go to Netflix..gym…fridge…bottle
We keep staying on this dead end road and we stay anxious
(ILL) 20 years ago…off the coast of NE 3 fishing boats sank and many men died…no leaks…veteran captains and sailors…on their way back home…clam traps weighed 300lbs…when filled they weighed 2000lbs…they had 10 more traps than what they were supposed to have…they had to make as much money as possible and it cost them all
Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
We can change the course of our lives…we can have a new normal…Jesus has the answer
Have you ever wanted something but you knew deep down that you were not going make changes?
I need to eat healthier…I need to drink healthier…too much sugar is not good…there could be a connection to short term memory loss…it makes you gain weight…it makes your body more sore…there could be a connection to short term memory loss…I need to make a change…I struggle with this…I want it I just don’t want it bad enough
Is that what you are doing to your soul
This is what the Lord says:
“Stand at the crossroads and look;
ask for the ancient paths,
ask where the good way is, and walk in it,
and you will find rest for your souls.
But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’
We will not do what we need to do to bless our souls…we are like children fighting a nap
AM I WILLING TO DO WHAT IT TAKES TO TAKE CARE OF MY SOUL?
Only Jesus can save my should for eternity but I must partner with Jesus right now to take care of my soul now
We lie to ourselves…this is just a season…I will get past it…I just need more time
We need to use the time we have now differently…we need to accept the yoke of Jesus
We cannot have the life of Jesus w/o the lifestyle of Jesus
We believe what He said we are not sure we want to live the way He lived
Can you imagine a stressed out Jesus…I am sorry, I am just too fried to help you, I don’t have what it takes
He was fully God and fully man…He intentionally took care of His soul…the next 3 weeks will be about that
He believed in sleep…even in a storm
(ILL) Before Edison the average person slept 11 hours/day…it was dark at home…they got up at 4:00 but they went to bed at 6:00
Sleep is an act of faith…taking care of my body and soul…God you got this, you are in charge
He believed in silence…He looked for solitary places to pray and recover
Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
We need to make time for God…we all love God we just do not make it a priority to be with Him
Our souls suffer to constant exposure to noise and rush
He believed in Sabbath…next week we will talk about this on Gradation Sunday…this is important
SABB was made for man…it was a gift of rest from God…we do not get our value from what we do
We live in a world where we can always be at work…it is hurting us
Which of the 10 Commandments will get applause from CHR when you break it…lie…murder…adultery…I will be applauded if I work myself to death all the time…he is doing great and making a name for himself
“The devil never takes a day off”…he is the Devil…the goal is not to be more like him
There is no quick fix to this…go on a retreat…worship encounter…see a therapist…restoring your soul is a lifestyle and that example is found with Jesus…make room for God…if we build it, He will come…He wants to fill us
100% of us agree with this message but I bet only a few of us will do something differently…we have accepted this world as the norm…the way we do life is killing our souls
Our soul will not scream at us if we ignore it…the world will always scream at you…we think if we can do better out here then I will have peace/joy in our inner world
What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?
What if this more than just eternity…what if this is about living right now
WHAT HAVE I REALLY WON IF I LOST MY SOUL IN THE PROCESS?
The most important thing is not what we do but what we become
The big exam will have 2 questions…did you love God passionately and did you love people consistently
We cannot do those 2 things if our souls are unhealthy…you cannot love if your soul is empty
Stop running after this world…it will not last…we need a healthy soul
Non-christians do not read Bible but they do read Christians…and they will notice…it is well with my soul
We need to be more soulful
(ILL) Bob Davie…England…died at age of 91…found an old church…it had been desecrated by Satanists…he spent the last 22 years restoring this church…he brought it back to life…they found paintings 1000 years old
Jesus wants to do that for you
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
for his name’s sake.
