Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth. (3 John 1:2)

Have you heard the saying, “take care of yourself and the rest will take care of itself”? There’s a lot of truth in that statement. When we’re rested, well-fed, and in good physical condition, we have the energy needed to tackle life head-on.

Or, so it would seem.

Taking care of ourselves requires more than just taking care of our physical needs. We also need to nourish our souls.

Our soul is who we are as individuals, dictating our choices, feelings, and self-image. A healthy soul is not only a key component of our overall health but our eternal salvation as well.

While it’s generally understood what makes a healthy body, here are a few ways to recognize a healthy soul.

A healthy soul is right with God, which is achieved by placing our faith in Jesus (Romans 3:22). Pray regularly and include him in all of your daily decisions.

A healthy soul is renewed by the Word of God and transformed by His Spirit (Ephesians 4:17–24). Ask the Lord to guard your heart and direct your thoughts away from selfishness, greed, and any kind of impurity or sinful desires.

A healthy soul loves God and understands all things work together for the good of those who are called according to his purpose for them (Romans 8:28). Trust His ways and know that his plan is at work, even when you don’t see or understand it.

And a healthy soul is joyful (Nehemiah 8:10), no matter the circumstance. If we let the day get to us, we let Satan take advantage of our situation and exploit it for his gain.

What is ONE CHANGE you could make in your life today that would improve the overall health of your soul? What’s holding you back from making that change?

A prescription for your soul, what I love about this devotion is the fact that we are constantly hearing about being in good healthy condition, which is good, but with that comes the most important thing, above all else, the overall health of your soul. All it takes is choosing to make one simple change at a time. I pray you are encouraged today. 

Have a beautiful and uplifting day in The Lord! 

Today’s Reading is Psalm 62:1 

My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. (Psalm 5:3)

I don’t trust hotel wake-up calls. Whether you will actually receive one when you ask seems to depend on the state of mind of the person entering your request. If he’s just broken up with his girlfriend, for example, and her name happens to be Sheila, I’m either getting a call in the middle of the night or none at all. So I set my own alarm on my phone. I actually set two. The first is when it would be good to get up, and the second is when I’d jolly well better get up.

I’m just not a morning person, so I like to ease into a day slowly.

I used to crawl out of bed, check that our son was up and in the shower, turn on the television to the morning news, and make myself a cup of coffee.

It’s not a bad way to start the day, but I’ve found a much better way.

I realized that if the first thing I pay attention to is what’s happening in our world, those images and words impact my view of the rest of the day. But if the Word of God is the first thing I give my heart and mind to, I see everything as under the control of my all-good, all-powerful, and all-loving heavenly Father. It’s hardly surprising that this new start to my day has had a huge impact on my life.

The moment I awake, I say Psalm 143:8 to myself—or, if Barry is already awake, I say it out loud. I repeat the verse several times. It’s become a great way to start a day:

Cause me to hear thy lovingkindness in the morning, My love will fall and fail, but God’s love never will.

for in thee do I trust.
The psalmist is very intentional here: trusting God is an act of the will.

Cause me to know the way wherein I should walk, I pray, “Show me, Father, which way I should go today.”

for I lift up my soul unto thee.
I say, “My life is Yours, Lord, and I trust You with everything.”

Then I pray these simple words:

“Good morning, Lord! I don’t know where You are going today, but wherever You’re going, I’m comin’ with You!”

A good way to start the day every single day is to declare the Word of God and thank Him for it.

I love this devotion. What a way to start every morning. No matter how busy you find yourself you can find time to say that simple yet powerful prayer and scripture to start your day off right. I am going to print this off and put it on my night stand and repeat it every morning when I wake. I pray this devotion encourages you to start your mornings out just a bit differently with God. 

Have a beautiful and uplifting day in The Lord!

Today’s Reading is Deuteronomy 13:4