Caring for Yourself Holistically
It's important for us to consider taking care of other parts of our being alongside caring for the soul.
In this blog, I write a lot about taking care of the soul. I do this for good reason: our souls are the part of us that will be joining our God in heaven one day. Jesus declared, "For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul?" (Matt. 16:26 ESV). Cultivating the soul—our relationship with Christ—is the most important thing we do in life. It is the part of us that will live on for all eternity. It's no wonder that Moses encouraged the Israelite people to be diligent with taking care of their souls (see Deut. 4:9). And so, it's no surprise that I write a lot about how we can be diligent with cultivating our souls by connecting with Christ through prayer and contemplation every single day.
Although the soul is the most important thing for us to take care of, this doesn't mean that we should neglect other parts of our earthly lives. We're still called to steward appropriately every gift and resource that God has given to us here on earth. This includes stewarding our physical bodies, our minds, our emotions, and our relationships with other people. God calls us to love Him with absolutely everything. The Greatest Commandment tells us to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (Mark 12:30 ESV). We're encouraged to love God in a holistic way—to love Him with every part of our lives.
It's important for us to consider taking care of other parts of our being alongside caring for the soul. This includes taking care of our bodies, our minds and hearts, and our relationships. These form important parts of who we are. And they aid us in our quest to serve God in His Kingdom work. In fact, if we neglect these parts of our lives, they can actually make it harder for us to care for the soul and serve God well. For example, if you don't take care of your body and you're tired and exhausted all the time, then it will be hard for you to concentrate in prayer or reading God's Word. How many of us have fallen asleep in the middle of prayer or reading Scripture? Or if your relationships with other people are in shambles, that's going to affect your mind and emotions. It's going to make it much harder for you to come before God to worship Him when you know that your relationships are broken. No wonder Jesus advised people to leave their gift at the altar and be reconciled with people first before offering it to God (see Matt. 5:24). Make no mistake: how we steward our lives will ultimately have an effect on how we live for Jesus.
Aside from caring for my soul, I have a concrete plan in place to care for other parts of my life too. I exercise on a regular basis. I spend time with family and friends. I grow my knowledge by reading books and listening to podcasts. I get enough rest. I believe that if I take care of myself holistically and appropriately, then I will be in a better position to connect with the Lord and serve Him well in His Kingdom work. Don't neglect the other parts of your life. Work on them too as you work on your soul.
Barnabas the Monastic
Servant of Christ. Husband. Dad. Modern Monastic. I have a wild ambition in life: get as close to the Lord Jesus Christ as I can while on earth. I explore and integrate ancient Christian monk wisdom in modern everyday life. Lives in Canada.
