“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.” (Ephesians 4:31, ESV)
Every now and then, you will get sick. Sometimes, that sickness may be due to a virus. Viruses attack the immune system, especially when your bodily defenses are low.
I remember taking a “Learning Biblical Greek” course in January long before I was ordained as a pastor. I wanted to be able to study the New Testament in its original language. The class was held in January. In the month before I took that Greek class, I spent many hours cramming for my Fall Semester finals. I replaced meals with study time, went to lectures, and grew ragged. I wrote and edited an essay that took me days to hone. I couldn’t sleep well because of the stress. I poured over my books, spent many days in the library, and grew very tired. I figured that with Christmas break, I would recover.
As Christmas rolled into early January, I hadn’t gotten much better. Instead, I went out with friends and family. I attended Christmas and New Year’s parties and spent long hours with a close friend. As January began, I hadn’t given my body and mind time to recover whatsoever. I hadn’t eaten well. I hadn’t exercised in weeks. I wasn’t sleeping well. As I looked in the mirror, my eyes were bloodshot. My face was pale.
One week into the Greek Class in January, I was feeling exhausted. In the second week, I got sick with the flu. My closest family were an eight-hour car drive away. I didn’t eat for two days. The nausea made getting out of bed a struggle. Going to the bathroom tired me out completely. I didn’t have the strength to even go to a pharmacy for some medicine. I stayed in bed and suffered, unable to go to class, unable to study, barely accomplishing anything. It took me weeks to recover from the flu and my studies suffered. My body ached. I lost something like ten pounds. I felt weak all over. The flu virus affected every area of my life. It took a long time to shake that illness.
Looking back, I had not taken care of my body and soul all December and throughout my Christmas break. It came back to bite me later with that flu. When you don’t nurture your body and soul, they suffer. When you do not take the time to let your soul catch up after a difficult time, your body will struggle right along with your heart. Not eating well, not exercising, studying all hours of the day and night, not taking time to sleep fitfully… it all weakened my immune system and stressed both body and soul. That flu virus was the end result of weeks of overdoing it.
Spiritually, the same thing can happen to you. If you neglect your emotional needs, starve your soul of prayer time, don’t eat healthy foods, and neglect physical exercise and work, you can set up your soul for a spiritual virus. That spiritual virus may not come with fevers and chills, but it will often be accompanied with a poor attitude, anger, resentment, selfishness, even addictions. If your soul is surrounded daily with negativity and evil, it will weaken unless nurtured by the Holy Spirit through prayer, worship, along with times of meditation and peace. Without a hefty dose of God’s Word to center your soul, its easy to stray into bitter territories in mind and heart. Then, spiritual viruses will take hold, and you will suffer spiritual illness.
Ephesians 4:31 lists some things that can cause spiritual illness. Like germs infect the body, the things in this list may infect the mind and heart and soul. That is why this scripture warns us to “put them away” or “keep them away” depending on your Bible translation. Paul, in Ephesians 4:31, wrote to “let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander…. along with all malice"... “be put away from you”. Everything in this list carries negative connotations. Bitterness comes from holding a grudge or negative emotion too long. Wrath and anger are intense emotions that are often the result of repressed regret or overly critical thinking. Slander is caused by envy or jealousy with an intent to cause emotional upheaval. Malice is an intentional desire to cause injury or harm to another person. Taken together, this list of emotional traits are spiritual precursors to sin. They cause spiritual weakness and harm in you and in others. They are spiritual viruses that cause spiritual illnesses that affect body, mind, and soul.
Prayer, meditation on the Bible, and time with God are antidotes to spiritual viruses. Over time, spiritual viruses cause spiritual and moral lapses. If you spend too much time being angry, feeling jealous, living with regrets, having a desire to hurt another; all these spiritual viruses will cause spiritual sickness and depression and regret. With an exposure to God and God’s word, with added prayer and fasting, the soul can be healed. Your soul can be protected from spiritual viruses. You can be made whole. Is it any wonder that decades ago the American Medical Association found that prayer acted as an antibiotic in the body? It is also an antibiotic for the soul!
What does your soul crave today? Are you spiritually tired from some spiritual battle? Have worldly issues infected your heart and mind? Do you need alone time with God? Spiritual illnesses are real and dangerous. They can make you feel lonely, depressed, or defeated. Spiritual viruses can attack your peace. Take time today to evaluate the needs of your soul. Take time to restore your inner peace. Take some time out of your busy life to heal with God’s gracious help!
I remember taking a “Learning Biblical Greek” course in January long before I was ordained as a pastor. I wanted to be able to study the New Testament in its original language. The class was held in January. In the month before I took that Greek class, I spent many hours cramming for my Fall Semester finals. I replaced meals with study time, went to lectures, and grew ragged. I wrote and edited an essay that took me days to hone. I couldn’t sleep well because of the stress. I poured over my books, spent many days in the library, and grew very tired. I figured that with Christmas break, I would recover.
As Christmas rolled into early January, I hadn’t gotten much better. Instead, I went out with friends and family. I attended Christmas and New Year’s parties and spent long hours with a close friend. As January began, I hadn’t given my body and mind time to recover whatsoever. I hadn’t eaten well. I hadn’t exercised in weeks. I wasn’t sleeping well. As I looked in the mirror, my eyes were bloodshot. My face was pale.
One week into the Greek Class in January, I was feeling exhausted. In the second week, I got sick with the flu. My closest family were an eight-hour car drive away. I didn’t eat for two days. The nausea made getting out of bed a struggle. Going to the bathroom tired me out completely. I didn’t have the strength to even go to a pharmacy for some medicine. I stayed in bed and suffered, unable to go to class, unable to study, barely accomplishing anything. It took me weeks to recover from the flu and my studies suffered. My body ached. I lost something like ten pounds. I felt weak all over. The flu virus affected every area of my life. It took a long time to shake that illness.
Looking back, I had not taken care of my body and soul all December and throughout my Christmas break. It came back to bite me later with that flu. When you don’t nurture your body and soul, they suffer. When you do not take the time to let your soul catch up after a difficult time, your body will struggle right along with your heart. Not eating well, not exercising, studying all hours of the day and night, not taking time to sleep fitfully… it all weakened my immune system and stressed both body and soul. That flu virus was the end result of weeks of overdoing it.
Spiritually, the same thing can happen to you. If you neglect your emotional needs, starve your soul of prayer time, don’t eat healthy foods, and neglect physical exercise and work, you can set up your soul for a spiritual virus. That spiritual virus may not come with fevers and chills, but it will often be accompanied with a poor attitude, anger, resentment, selfishness, even addictions. If your soul is surrounded daily with negativity and evil, it will weaken unless nurtured by the Holy Spirit through prayer, worship, along with times of meditation and peace. Without a hefty dose of God’s Word to center your soul, its easy to stray into bitter territories in mind and heart. Then, spiritual viruses will take hold, and you will suffer spiritual illness.
Ephesians 4:31 lists some things that can cause spiritual illness. Like germs infect the body, the things in this list may infect the mind and heart and soul. That is why this scripture warns us to “put them away” or “keep them away” depending on your Bible translation. Paul, in Ephesians 4:31, wrote to “let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander…. along with all malice"... “be put away from you”. Everything in this list carries negative connotations. Bitterness comes from holding a grudge or negative emotion too long. Wrath and anger are intense emotions that are often the result of repressed regret or overly critical thinking. Slander is caused by envy or jealousy with an intent to cause emotional upheaval. Malice is an intentional desire to cause injury or harm to another person. Taken together, this list of emotional traits are spiritual precursors to sin. They cause spiritual weakness and harm in you and in others. They are spiritual viruses that cause spiritual illnesses that affect body, mind, and soul.
Prayer, meditation on the Bible, and time with God are antidotes to spiritual viruses. Over time, spiritual viruses cause spiritual and moral lapses. If you spend too much time being angry, feeling jealous, living with regrets, having a desire to hurt another; all these spiritual viruses will cause spiritual sickness and depression and regret. With an exposure to God and God’s word, with added prayer and fasting, the soul can be healed. Your soul can be protected from spiritual viruses. You can be made whole. Is it any wonder that decades ago the American Medical Association found that prayer acted as an antibiotic in the body? It is also an antibiotic for the soul!
What does your soul crave today? Are you spiritually tired from some spiritual battle? Have worldly issues infected your heart and mind? Do you need alone time with God? Spiritual illnesses are real and dangerous. They can make you feel lonely, depressed, or defeated. Spiritual viruses can attack your peace. Take time today to evaluate the needs of your soul. Take time to restore your inner peace. Take some time out of your busy life to heal with God’s gracious help!