He who finds a wife

"He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the LORD." Proverbs 18:22

Minding Words

Words are powerful. They are a bit strange in that, physically, they are nothing more than wind expelled from our lungs, passing through our vocal cords, shaped by the movement of muscles in our mouths. More interestingly, they are the direct expression of our thoughts and what we believe. As free moral agents, we choose to transform the metaphysical what we think, into material sounds that have meaning. At the moment we speak, our thoughts are born into the physical world.

I sat at my desk working in the basement one afternoon, while Gabe and one of his friends were playing a short distance behind me. After a while, I could sense a conflict brewing and it wasn't long until unkind words were exchanged, which had me spin 180 degrees in my chair. After having the boys make apologies and ask forgiveness of each other, I decided to put the dry-erase board to use and teach the boys the power that words have.

I love James' illustrations of the forest set ablaze by a small spark, of the horse moved by a tiny bit in its mouth, and of the ship steered by a small rudder. I put these images on the board as best I could, and explained how little things can cause big things to happen. I then drew kids talking with each other, weapons coming out of their mouths instead of words. One with a sword at the tip of his lips, one with a gun and the other two with a knife and bow and arrow. Gabe and his friend were quick to ask what the kids on the board could possibly be saying to each other. They knew it had to be ugly. I then explained how small words can be as devastating as actual weapons and that they must be chosen carefully. That what they say to others has the same effect as pulling the trigger. To this day these illustrations have stuck in their minds. Thank God for His words to us.

Our words are more powerful than mere physical machinery. Our children need to learn that early on. The most effective warriors among us have trained themselves diligently and are able to transform non-physical thoughts into effective weaponery. Armed to the teeth, they are the ones making a difference in the spiritual warfare we find ourselves in. Their thoughts ricochet in the physical world with ripples that transform lives, for we are engaged in a battle of ideas, expressed by words.

Created in God's image, our ability to bring the non-physical into the physical should have us pause in amazement. Andi and I came from the airport the other day and as we were driving back, a plane with its landing gear out flew low overhead. We were in awe of the minds who invented such complex things as airplanes. Our minds are not equal to our physical brain, and hearing even Christians use the word "brain" interchangeably with the word "mind" is like a misguided missile causing who knows how many confused casualties.

I cringe when I hear such expressions as: "left brain, right brain" "brain freeze" "brainy person" "brain teasers" "brain dead" "thinking in my head" and the like. This stems from a misunderstanding that our thoughts are stored in our physical brain and that all of our abilities are headquartered in, and powered by, silicon-like grey matter. Thoughts cannot be stored in the brain as cells are biological things, matter, atoms with no capacity for emotion, desire or will, and are simply busy regenerating or dying continually. The emotionally charged memory of our first kiss has no physical location in the brain. Rather, our soul are able to recall that memory. It is crucial to know where non-physical thoughts, desires, will, emotions originate in order to be a responsible, self-controlled person. As Christians we believe in this dualism of body and soul, not only because the Bible teaches it but because it makes good scientific sense as well.

As human persons, we have both a soul and a body and they are meant to operate together in tandem. The soul is able to survive the body at death, with access to all of our past memories and in fact our whole personhood. The human body decays, and at death the brain rots but the soul stays intact. At death, our souls seem to be with God in an intermediate state. That is why the "you" cannot just be physical. Your personhood is grounded in the soul and is now with God waiting to be reunited with a new body (1 Corinthians 15).

A malfunctioning body part, a brain with Alzeihmer's for example, does not mean you are that part. In order to illustrate, picture being the driver of a car for a moment. If the alternator stops functioning and the battery dies, or if a tire is removed from the drivetrain, your inability to turn left or right, does not mean that you the driver and the car are the same thing. Likewise, a better fuel, use of synthetic oil or simple maintenance can make your car run better, just as food or exercise is to our bodies. If the car stops running, you can get out of the car. That is why Jesus promises his followers new bodies, as human beings are designed to function with both body and soul. It is unnatural to be disassociated from the body. Death is unnatural, and the body without the spirit dies (James 2:26).

It is even more fascinating to learn how the body develops and functions under the direction of the complex structure of the soul. The best book written on this subject is Body & Soul written by JP Moreland and Scott B. Rae.

"The brain controls 'higher' order, conscious activities, such as thought, reasoning and abstration." says Wikipedia. If the brain controls all that, then I'm at the mercy of my brain and can hardly be responsible for any of my actions, which couldn't be further from the truth. It is the Soul that controls all that.

Mind your words, will ya?