“The difference between talking to yourself and talking to your soul is that the soul exists in the presence of God.”

A thought by John Ortberg (2014-04-22) from his book, Soul Keeping: Caring For the Most Important Part of You (p. 92). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click on the title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

We hear a lot about the need for positive self-talk.  But John shows the need for soul talk and he shares, “you will see in the Psalms and elsewhere people speaking to their souls because when you speak to the soul, it naturally turns to prayer because in the soul God is always present.”

I like what John said earlier that “Habits eat willpower for breakfast.”  We need more than will power, we need God’s power in so many areas of our like and that comes through prayer. 

John says, “The next time you blow something — when you’re frightened, when you’re dissatisfied — instead of mindless self-talk, speak to your soul: ‘Why are you afraid, O my soul?’ At first it might seem a little silly, but remember, you are the keeper of your soul. Only you.”

He continued, “Not long ago I got really angry at somebody. Finally I literally stopped in my tracks because I was so immersed in anger and said, ‘Soul, why are you so angry?’ Something interesting happened. I found that I just began to pray, and it was like God saying to me, ‘John, you are not your anger.” It’s like my soul had a place to stand with God, and we could talk sensibly about my anger, even as it ebbed from my soul.”

Listen, “our soul is like an inner stream of water that gives strength, direction, and harmony to every other area of life.”

This is a very good insight that will make a daily difference in our life.

Why not try it today?