Our theme for this month: “Taking care of your soul”
Our Bible verse for today: “I am sure of this, that He who started a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 1:6 (HCSB)
Our thought for today: “God is in the process of developing your soul.”
Dallas Willard was a popular professor of Philosophy at the University of Southern California for decades. He was also one of the most profound and insightful Christian thinkers and authors of the last 100 years. Dallas’ many books about the deeper spiritual life have been carefully studied by Christians the world over, and they have influenced the thinking and the understanding of God of many of the greatest Christian leaders. One of the themes Dallas taught about the most was the formation of the soul – how it is that God molds us and shapes us into the people He wants us to be.
In his book “Soul Keeping” Pastor John Ortberg tells of his special friendship with Dallas which extended over several decades. Dallas was John’s mentor. John writes that one of the earliest and most oft repeated lessons Dallas taught him was “The most important thing about you is not what you achieve but the person you become.” That was an important lesson for John because he was quickly becoming a mega-church pastor, a best selling author, and a radio personality. He was a rising star in the Christian world and it would have been easy for him to get caught-up in his accomplishments. Dallas nipped that in the bud very early in their relationship. “The most important thing about you is not what you achieve but the person you become.”
That’s what caring for the soul is about. It’s about habitually placing ourselves in a position before God whereby He can mold us and shape us into the people He wants us to be. The busier you are, the more successful you are, the more accomplishments you achieve, the more time you need to be spending with God. Otherwise the busyness, the success, and the accomplishments can warp your soul and turn you into a very different person from what God intended.
After many decades of paying special attention to the health of his soul, God had developed Dallas Willard into a man who radiated peace, patience, and kindness. John Ortberg said, “There was a leisure of spirit to him … It was as though impatience and worry were simply not in his body … He was at ease with himself.”
The most important thing any of us can do in order to become who God wants us to be (and ultimately who we really want to be too) is to take care of our soul.
God Bless,
Oak Hill Baptist Church 