The Oneness of Mind, Body and Spirit

Ask your pastor if spirituality and your mind and body are related?  If her or his answer is “yes”, then you and your church could be on your way to explore important understandings about the powerful ways that paying attention to the health and well-being of people together is also a way to enhance spirituality  --  and vice versa!   The pieces of our life with one another work together to frame the whole – each part of our mind-body-spiritual life affects how we see and understand the other parts.

As we hear and truly pay attention to God’s story of The Good Samaritan for instance, we are more likely to offer our time and resources to helping those who struggle;  and in the process we will gain positive emotions that in turn can open our hearts yet further to noticing the “spiritual” in life all around us.

As we hear and truly pay attention to stories of people who’s actions empower others, we are more likely to bring to mind the Biblical lesson from Luke, “Do onto others that which you would like them to do to you.” and thus be reinforced to encourage yet more people as they develop their own sense of competency, confidence and community. 

To argue for a one-sided focus on, say spirituality, is to try to speak only to one part of a person – one part of a congregation.  Why would we choose to do that just because we are in a church?    Church should expand our lives, join us with others, empower our energies and offer comfort when we struggle, not limit our focus.   These are Biblical lessons, not just those of psychology.

Bruce