Each person is so unique! God gave each of us soul life, and this is a fascinating aspect of our lives. It’s recorded in Genesis 2:7 that God “breathed into his [Adam’s] nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” Because we have soul life, we are able to think, to act, and to feel. Our soul, or breath life, represents and is the basis of our mind, our personality, our emotions, our attitudes, our thoughts, and our capacity of will. Simply put, your soul is what makes you, you! You are one of a kind!
And because we have soul life, we are able to choose to believe and become God’s sons and daughters by receiving His gift of holy spirit. Then, as God’s children, we are able to achieve an abundant soul life—a life full of good health, prosperity, and plenty of room to express our own uniqueness! Our abundant soul life stems from directing our thoughts and actions to the greatness of God and His Word.
One part of our abundant soul life resides in keeping our thought life well arranged. During our day, there is a constant stream of thoughts running through our minds—thoughts that may focus on our family, our jobs, current news in the world, responsibilities, obligations. There are lots of things to think about, but in all our thoughts, we can keep God’s Word in our mind.
Deuteronomy 4:9:
Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen, and lest they depart from thy heart all the days of thy life: but teach them thy sons, and thy sons’ sons.
The way we take heed to ourselves and keep our souls diligently is by setting our thoughts (an aspect of soul life) on the Word of God. To have a prosperous soul life, we keep God’s Word in our mind and heart and we secure it like a treasure. It’s simple. We think the words of the Word and we do not let them go! If I owned rare and expensive precious metals like gold and silver, I would lock them in an impenetrable safe where they could not be taken from me. The thoughts from God’s Word are even more precious than silver and gold.
I had the opportunity to teach our daughter the importance of what we think when she was very young. One day she was being a little fussy and complaining about something. I simply said to her, “Remember that God’s Word says to speak loving and kind words. We want to edify each other with our words.” Our daughter’s response was very interesting. After I encouraged her to speak loving and kind words, she paused and thought for a moment and asked, “Well, can I think it?” I was amused with her question, and then I shared with her this great verse in Philippians chapter 4.
Philippians 4:8:
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
This was a wonderful teaching moment! She saw the importance of her words and her thoughts. Our thoughts are vital for a prosperous soul life. We keep our soul diligently by focusing our thoughts on God’s Word.
As we think the Word, our actions follow suit. Then, when we are thinking and doing God’s Word, our souls can prosper. In Psalm 111:10 we see that fearing, or reverencing, God is the beginning of wisdom, and by actually doing His Word, we have good understanding. Having wisdom and understanding is a big part of having an abundant soul life. When we take delight in thinking what God’s Word says and we do it (Psalm 1:2,3), then we are in a position to receive His promises of health and prosperity.
III John 2:
Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.
God wishes above all things that we prosper and are in health, even as our souls prosper! Our souls prospering also means that God gives us plenty of room to express our own uniqueness in our service to Him.
Many years ago, I was working as a commercial artist. One day, I went to take pictures of two new billboards that I had designed. I was thrilled to see my artwork displayed so prominently for all to see . . . but I also thought, “There has to be more to my life than this.” Sometime after this, I began attending a home fellowship, where I learned that there is more to my life. And I saw that I could prosper and utilize my unique abilities in service to God. Psalm 37:4 states that as we delight in the Lord, He shall give us the desires of our heart. We can enjoy using our abilities, as I do with my artwork, to reflect the Word we hold in our minds.
As we direct our thoughts and actions to God’s Word, we can have an abundant soul life. Each one of us is unique. As God’s children, we can achieve a life full of good health, prosperity, and plenty of room to express our own uniqueness! Let’s delight in the goodness of God, and He certainly will bestow an abundant soul life upon us.