The Unsatisfied Soul
Each of us is made up of a body, a soul, and a spirit. In order for us to be totally satisfied in life, all three must find satisfaction. However, most people give themselves almost totally to satisfying the needs and desires of the body. Solomon and others in the Bible refer to this as our "mouth." When all we do is satisfy these needs, the soul goes unsatisfied.(Ecclesiastes 6:7) Let's consider what we need to do to have a satisfied soul, too, because none of us will be truly satisfied as long as our soul is lacking.
God speaks to our spirit to respond to Him in faith. If we will admit our sin, turn from it, and trust the Lord Jesus Christ as the only Savior for our sins and Lord of all, we have satisfied our spirit's need. Then, we can relate to God directly, and the Holy Spirit comes to reside in our spirit. However, we still do not have a satisfied soul. Our soul consists of our mind, will, and emotions. Each of these have been corrupted by sin before we came to know Christ, so they must be transformed into what God intended.(Romans 12:1,2) Once we present our mind, will, and emotions to God, too, He begins to change us into the image of Christ. We read His Word, pray, and serve Him, so that He can show us how to think, what to decide, and how we should feel. Once we become mature in Christ, our soul is satisfied, but until then, we have a void in our lives. Only God's power can meet those needs by transforming us.
Now, can you see why Solomon said that all the labor of man is for his mouth? Left to ourselves, we think our human needs and desires are what we really need, so we work to fulfill them. That leaves out the soul, which can only be satisfied by the Lord once a person surrenders to Him. I pray that we will all come to have satisfied souls. It is a wonderful place to be in life.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Ecclesiastes 7-9.
God speaks to our spirit to respond to Him in faith. If we will admit our sin, turn from it, and trust the Lord Jesus Christ as the only Savior for our sins and Lord of all, we have satisfied our spirit's need. Then, we can relate to God directly, and the Holy Spirit comes to reside in our spirit. However, we still do not have a satisfied soul. Our soul consists of our mind, will, and emotions. Each of these have been corrupted by sin before we came to know Christ, so they must be transformed into what God intended.(Romans 12:1,2) Once we present our mind, will, and emotions to God, too, He begins to change us into the image of Christ. We read His Word, pray, and serve Him, so that He can show us how to think, what to decide, and how we should feel. Once we become mature in Christ, our soul is satisfied, but until then, we have a void in our lives. Only God's power can meet those needs by transforming us.
Now, can you see why Solomon said that all the labor of man is for his mouth? Left to ourselves, we think our human needs and desires are what we really need, so we work to fulfill them. That leaves out the soul, which can only be satisfied by the Lord once a person surrenders to Him. I pray that we will all come to have satisfied souls. It is a wonderful place to be in life.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Ecclesiastes 7-9.