Pastor Speaks - October 7, 1999

Everyday when I get my morning paper off the front porch I see people jogging and walking. They remind me that I too need to be exercising. I do some, but not as much as I should. I suppose I’m like most people. I have good intentions but never the commitment.

It’s no secret that we need to keep our bodies in shape. You know, exercise, eat right, get lots of rest, all that stuff. Of course there’s the stimulation of the mind too, reading, writing etc. Why is it we never seem to have enough time?

Now along comes Jesus and he wants us to stay spiritually fit too. How can we ever find time to keep spiritually fit when it’s all we can do to stay physically fit? The problem is not how much time it takes, once again the problem is commitment.

In the gospel of Mark (Chapter 12: 28-34), Jesus told the scribe that we should "love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, with all our mind and with all our strength." When the scribe recited the spiritual disciplines back to Jesus, notice what happened. He left out the word, "soul." He was willing to give his heart, mind and strength but had conveniently left out the soul. To give our soul means to make a sincere commitment. Commitment stretches us. Commitment demands more of our time and resources.

There was a young man named, Johnny, who worked at a super market. He was inspired at a company meeting to add a "personal signature" to his work. Johnny was a bagger, a boy with Down’s syndrome. He decided he wanted to give more to his job and so he had an idea. He developed a list of "thought for the days" and put them in his customers grocery bags as they went through his line. About a month later one of the employees came to the manager and told her what was happening. Johnny’s check out line was three times longer than the rest. The manager went to ask customers to get in the shorter lines. But, they wanted to be in Johnny’s line because they enjoyed his thought for the day.

Johnny was putting his all into his job. And as a result, people went away feeling better. He was committed to his work and really put his "soul" into it. When it comes to our faith it is commitment that makes the difference. Most of us are willing to give our hearts and minds to something but are we willing to give our soul?

What did Jesus really mean by giving our heart, mind, soul and strength? I believe that the faithful are sometimes burdened by the fact that they feel they don’t do enough. Some even feel guilty about the lack of doing good for others. Love also means practicing self-control, having patience, being tolerant and showing restraint. Giving our love is the essence of giving soul.

Notice that Jesus does not separate love of God and love of neighbor. You do not love God at the expense of loving others. The two commands go together. They are integrated. We are to love our families but we are also to love our community. Love also includes love of nature, society and all the people of the world.

After the scribe had responded to Jesus he told him that, "he was not far from the kingdom." In other words, he was close but he had not arrived. Giving one’s heart, mind, soul and strength means one is totally committed. There is no way that a believer can say, "been there, done that." However, that is often how many express their faith. They say, " I did Sunday School, I went through confirmation, I read the Bible, I’ve done all I need to do." And then there are those outside the church who say, "I’m a good person, I believe in God."

Giving one’s soul requires a lifelong process. It’s not a matter of checking in and checking out at our convenience. It means including spiritual fitness in our daily lives. It means making worship a vital part of our weekly experience. To stay spiritually fit means to keep our lives in balance; spiritually whole, physically in shape, mentally alert and living with warm hearts. It means to give l00 percent of ourselves for the love of God and the love of our neighbors.

To give our all means to be connected to everything around us, not just our families and communities, but to society and nature. It means being active in the Church. It means constantly growing and learning all of our lives. And, it means loving our bodies, watching what we eat and getting plenty of exercise. God wants us to be totally committed. God wants us to live our lives with soul.

Dr. Keith Wagner, St. Paul’s United Church of Christ, Sidney, Ohio