Imagine, we are not just ordinary beings, but the very dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. This profound truth, though it may seem surreal, is what the Word of God reveals to us.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NKJV): "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's."
The Word of God holds a promise for us: if we earnestly seek Him with our whole hearts, we will undoubtedly find Him.
Jeremiah 29:13 (NKJV): "And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart."
Maybe some of you have pondered the question: If I am the temple of the Holy Spirit, the dwelling place of God, why do I find it so hard to locate Him even though I search for Him with my "whole" heart? Many of us have this struggle or have had periods where we want to have that intimate fellowship with our Maker and Creator, our Saviour and Lord, but we can't seem to "find" Him. Then we feel alone; maybe we feel abandoned by Him or that He does not hear us.
In my recently released manual, Take Up Your Space, I share what I have called "The Spiritual Integrative System" as part of my take on the spiritual integrative perspective. At the centre of this system is the heart. Now we know in the natural our heart is an organ of flesh and without it we will not be alive as it is an integral part of our functioning. But we also speak of our heart for something, something that we love or are passionate about. The Word of God often connects the heart to the spirit and the essence of who we are.
Proverbs 4:23 (NKJV): "Keep your heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life."
Psalm 51:10 (NKJV): "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me."
Matthew 5:8 (NKJV): "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."
Jeremiah 17:9-10 (NKJV): "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it? I, the Lord, search the heart, I test the mind, even to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings."
Psalm 37:4 (NKJV): "Delight yourself also in the Lord, and He shall give you the desires of your heart."
Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV): "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths."
Philippians 4:7 (NKJV): "And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus."
The above verses show that the heart is very important and significant to how we live our lives. The verses confirm that the heart and spirit are often connected. Our heart is where the root of many life issues flows from.
We are shaped by our experiences with others and our world. Many of us carry brokenness in our hearts that have stemmed from life issues. Much brokenness is related to our relationships. Much of what we carry in our hearts, what is written on our hearts because of our experiences, causes sickness in our bodies. Think about the fact that we are the dwelling place of God. How can sickness and God dwell in the same place? How can brokenness and God dwell in the same place?
Our heart is a central organ intricately connected to each part of our body - our kidneys (often referred to as the heart in the Word), our liver, other organs, blood, marrow, bones, etc. Our body will manifest what our heart speaks. By now, much research has shown that the mind-body connection is so real and what we think affects our physical health. Remember that the heart has the ability to think, feel, and carry memory, and therefore, it affects our bodies when we carry around brokenness, bitterness and other negative emotions.
Life experiences we have had that are experienced as traumatic often cause some form of fragmentation of the heart, soul and sometimes the mind, depending on the severity. These experiences may often involve others, which causes us to mistrust. So, how can we give God our whole heart if we do not trust? If our hearts are not whole due to our experiences, then we cannot give God our whole hearts. This may answer the question posed in the opening paragraphs.
Often, these experiences also cause us to carry offence toward others. This offence causes an opening in our heart or open door for darkness to come in. When darkness comes in then there is division. The enemy loves to bring division and disunity even within us so we cannot operate from a place of fullness. We need to make the decision not to take offence, not to carry bitterness or unforgiveness and resentment. It will be detrimental to our health.
Matthew 22:36-40 (NKJV): "Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbour as yourself.' On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."
In this passage, we see that loving God with our whole being is the greatest command, and in it is life - to our spirit, soul and body. Many of us find it hard to love God in this way, and we struggle to identify with Him in love or as a loving God because of the things that have happened to us. But we need to remember that God is not going to override the will of man. If we have been hurt by others, it is not His fault. It is through their inability to love or to understand His love for them.
The essence of love restores the heart. When we love God, and we love our neighbour, it brings healing to our hearts, and our hearts can once again be restored to wholeness. Until this happens, we will continue to carry brokenness that will cause some separation between us and God and the fullness that is in Christ.
True love always seeks a way to give to others, to go the extra mile, and to be willing to do more than what is expected. We should turn the other cheek and not always want justice and vindication for ourselves. God sees, and He will be the righteous Judge. Our job is to love and to give to others. Our fruit should be displaying Christ in us and we should show this to others. This is how we become sons of God. This is how we can walk in divine health that is our through the Cross of Christ.
Our sickness is often directly linked to our response to others. This sickness can be physical or in the soul or spirit. God does give us trials that teach us perseverance and other things that we need to grow in. He does test us. But we need to examine our hearts and be honest with ourselves and with God. Deal with the things that are keeping brokenness in place and let your focus be on loving God and the outflow of that, loving others and the outflow of that, and having divine health for your bodies. Don't let the enemy steal your focus any longer to waste time on the past or our hurts and perceived hurts, and I say I perceived because often our brokenness has caused cognitive distortions that distort the truth and nature of our relationships with others. Lies come in and we do not see the truth.
I pray this will bless and encourage you to seek God and ask the Spirit to reveal the brokeness that needs to be dealt with so you can be whole and be in divine health. He is waiting for you. He has never left you nor forsaken you; He is always faithful and full of grace and mercy.
1 Thessalonians 5:23 (NKJV): "Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ."