Devotionals for the Heart: Thoughts on How to Satisfy Soul Hunger

Spiritual Olestra
A devotional by Chaplain Paul Anderson

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled.” 

–Matthew 5:6 (KJV)

Recently, I went on a retreat. It was not a vacation.

I was depleted, physically, emotionally and spiritually. I did not know why I felt so drained. I am healthy. I’m overweight, but vibrant and strong. In my devotional quiet, I came to the awareness that my soul was empty. I had a clawing, soul hunger.

My thoughts were: How could my soul be empty? I have an active devotional life.

I would pray and listen to hear God speak. I knew that even though I was in the right space, personally and professionally, I was in a wrong place on the inside. God called me to explore my inner life.

The vacuous gaps in my soul confronted me. My unconscious tics and subconscious habits became visible to me. Then I became aware that some of my conscious behaviors were counterproductive to my spiritual growth.

I used to love Pringle’s Potato chips, until I found out that they were produced with Olestra. Olestra is a chemical compound that is used as a fat substitute that prevents absorption of fat and some nutrients during digestion. Some of my life habits were like Olestra, in that they prevented my soul from digesting the goodness and graces that God was granting, new every morning.

God confronted me that it was time to let go of some of my old pacifiers. I was led to a blog post written by Rachel Foy that listed “11 Signs of a Hungry Soul.” I was inspired to inventory the idols/vices that blocked or stole my spiritual fiber and left the hunger in my soul. Because drugs and alcohol were not vices that I embraced, I had to search a bit deeper in my core. It was there that I found 12 of my own.

My exercise in transparency below may be instructive and inspirational for you. If it drives you to reflect and create your own list then my writing and your reading will have been successful.

My "spiritual Olestra" included:

1. Insatiable appetites

2. Self-medicating behavior that soothed the soul pains of my childhood and youth.

3. Buying stuff that I could afford but didn’t need.

4. Overwhelmed and stuck

5. Pensive and irritable

6. Boredom with unwillingness and inability to be creative

7. Mindless TV watching and flights of fantasy

8. Emotional doldrums

9. Unrefreshing sleep

10. Inexplicable anxiety

11. Hollow expectations

12. Intentional isolation excused by natural introversion

The remedy to my “soul hunger” was discovered by addressing the list above with spiritual conviction. Shifting from one side of the continuum to the other was where I regained my stride and found my soul hunger could be satisfied and my spirituality reinvigorated.

If you are moved by my list then I advise you to make one of your own. Put the depleting behavior on the left side of a horizontal line. Ask yourself what the opposite or desired behavior would be. Place that on the right end of the horizontal line.

By creating that continuum, you can begin to visualize and quantify the journey to wholeness that you must now begin. Remember, soul hunger is not a sin. In fact, the texts above promise a blessing to those who admit, identify and share their hunger with God. He promises not to leave us famished and will give us the desires of our heart.

Evading the signs of soul hunger may lead to sin. Don’t settle for spiritual junk food or devotional fast food. Go to the God’s Table instead. After dining there, Psalm 23 in The Holy Bible assures us that goodness and mercy will follow you. Then, you will dwell in God's peace with inexplicable joy.

I think that is where Heaven on Earth is found. I’ll see you there.

~*~
Author Bio:

Chaplain Anderson served for 20 years as a U.S. Navy Chaplain. Over 26 years of active duty, he was promoted through the ranks from Seaman Apprentice (E2) to his final rank as Commander (O5) in the Chaplain’s Corps. 

Prior to his Naval career, Chaplain Anderson pastored in the Allegheny East and Potomac Conferences of Seventh-day Adventists. His undergraduate preparation for ministry was completed at Washington Adventist University in Takoma Park, Md.

He has subsequently earned four graduate degrees: a Master of Divinity from Andrews University in Michigan, a Master of Education in Counseling and Personnel Services from the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland and a Masters of Sacred Theology in Religion and Culture from Boston University. His Doctor of Ministry degree was conferred by Wesley Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C.

Chaplain Anderson also completed four units of Clinical Pastoral Education at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. He also holds certifications in Suicide Awareness and Prevention, Civil Mediation, Alternative Workplace Dispute Resolution, Temperament Analysis, Marriage Enrichment, Workforce Diversity, and is a certified Life Coach.

Devotionals for the Heart: Restoration

Restoring your soul
A devotional by Melissa Henderson

“He restores my soul.” ~Psalm 23:3 (ESV)

Every moment of each day has the potential to be filled with hope or filled with despair. Daily living may include activities which give us joy or bring on stress. Smiles one moment and tears the next moment. From employment worries, financial concerns, health issues, relationship challenges and “to do” lists invading our thoughts and making the heart beat faster and the pulse feel like you're running a never-ending race. We can become consumed with worry.

Have you ever experienced one of those days? A day when everything seemed to be going wrong? A time when the car wouldn’t start, the bills are overdue, the dinner burned on the stove, the laundry machine overflowed onto the floor, the school is calling with news of a bad situation or any other worrisome event.

Pause for a moment. In those seemingly endless situations where you felt like all you could do was fall to the floor and cry, what was your initial reaction? What was your response to everything happening around you? What about things you have no control over? What about things you do have control over and they still went the wrong way?

Did you blame someone? Did you blame God? What were the first words out of your mouth or the first thoughts in your mind? Was your question something like, “Why God? Why do bad things keep happening to me and my family? What is the reason? How can we go on like this? I can’t take this anymore. I don’t know what to do.”

I have experienced those awful days. Times when my heart has broken into pieces and I felt deeply at a loss for a remedy to the situation. Through medical diagnosis of breast cancer and the after-effects of surgery and treatment, to the loss of both of my parents, to job changes and financial concerns and so much more, I have been that person who fell to my knees and asked, “Why? Lord, are you trying to teach me something? What is the purpose in all of this mess?”

The storms of life hit and thankfully, I have a way to find peace and comfort. Yes, I still encounter the storms and stumble through them. But, I am not alone. You are not alone.

Through learning to rely on God and not myself, I found an answer to help me. No, the problems aren’t all “fixed”. Yet, there is one response to my worry that comforts me the most.

You may ask, “What? How can anyone find comfort in the saddest of times?”

My answer is this. Call out to God. Cry to Him. Give Him your joys and your concerns. He knows your heart already. He is waiting for you. Share your thoughts and your pain with Him. Talk with God. He is ready to restore your soul.

Saying His name provides comfort for me. 

Father ... Jesus ... God ... Savior ... Creator ...

Those are just some of His names. Breathe in and say His name. Breathe out and say His name. Concentrate on Him.

Pause...say His name. Call to Him. He is listening. Let Him restore your soul.

Problems and stressful times will come and go. God will always be here for us. Remember that His love is overflowing and never-ending. He loves you.

Have a glorious and blessed day,

Melissa Henderson

~*~
Author Bio:

Melissa Henderson and her husband Alan live in South Carolina.

Married for over 38 years, they have one son (Mike) who is married to daughter-in-love (Christine) and now are blessed by precious grandson (Rowan). 

Melissa was taught the love of reading and writing at an early age from her parents. She is now working on her first inspirational fiction novel.

Her passions are volunteering, Bible Studies and reading and writing. Connect with Melissa online, https://mimionlife.wordpress.com.SaveSave

Interview with Summer Pearson, actress/singer/worship leader/missionary for God

Let's welcome my dear friend Summer Pearson to the blog today! 

She’s here to talk about her debut album, “Love Letters” and she’s including a treat for you!

What’s the treat, you ask? She’s giving away a copy of “Love Letters” to the winner of the CD giveaway contest! Enter the contest by filling out the Rafflecopter widget below.a Rafflecopter giveaway
So before we dive into the interview, let me tell you a bit about Summer. She’s a new Christian music recording artist and the mother of two adorable young boys. She works for the church as a worship leader, youth ministry director and leads a young adult ministry. She’s the host of SummerTime on Brite Radio. She’s an actress and servant of God. I am blessed to call her a friend and I believe what she has to share with you today will change your life for the better!

Today’s feature is Part I of a three-part interview series with Summer. Enjoy! 

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Interview with Summer Pearson about her debut album “Love Letters”:

Alexis: Congratulations on the release of your debut album, “Love Letters”! How do you feel?

Summer: Thank you! Oh, I feel amazing! I actually still kind of can’t believe it. But I’m really excited. It’s super exciting to see people responding positively to the music and letting me know how they’ve been blessed and healed and changed through the music.

Alexis: What’s the inspiration behind the album title?

Summer: “Love Letters” is a compilation of eight songs. There are eight songs that are my letters of love to God. So it’s like my love offering to Him. I wrote all of the songs and many of them, I wrote based on whatever I was feeling or going through at that moment. I literally wrote in my journal, so they were like journal entries and I’m a singer so I sing them. It wasn’t an intentional “let me make an album” thing. It was just these are what we call letters to God and it came together beautifully when He cast the vision of what this album was supposed to be.

Alexis: In what ways has your music changed people? Share stories.

Summer: I have a song on the album called “Release” and that song is really about my healing journey after a marriage that failed and going through divorce. It was before divorce that I actually wrote it and how you just have to release the bitterness and the frustrations and disappointment and forgive for your own sake as much as the other person’s sake.

I’ve heard a lot of testimonies for that song…One young lady heard it at my concert and wept in front of me. She told me how she had been having issues between her and her brother and struggled with unforgiveness and a really strained relationship with her brother. She told me how that song was really speaking to her in terms of her doing her part and letting it go to the point that it can move on to something more healthy.

There was a lady who came to my concert and she’s in her 80’s. She told me that song helped her in grieving the loss of her husband. She’s a widow and was married for 50 years. She was like, “It hit me in a different way. You went through a divorce but I had to learn to let go of the grief because it became all consuming, and I had to learn how to embrace life again for myself.”

I had somebody write me a card talking about the single called “Promised (Never Alone)”. He's a grown man who told me that he was in one of the roughest seasons of his whole life. He said that song met him right where he needed it in that season to be reminded that no matter where you are in life, God is carrying you and He sees the master plan. So I was like, “Wow!”

When you write things from the heart and it’s really your story, it’s blessing you and it’s therapeutic for you. But when you find that somehow what you’ve written translates personally to a lot of other people, that’s tremendous and that’s how I know that God did it.

Alexis: Let’s talk about your journey to becoming a recording artist. Did you always “know” that you’d be living your dreams one day?

Summer: No! I can think back now to when I was a child and remember that I had this dream to be a missionary. That’s my earliest memory of what I wanted to do when I grew up and I quickly had to let it go because people laughed at it. They wanted me to be a doctor or a lawyer, you know things that more people strive to be.

But I’ve always had this yearning to get out and reach people for Christ and the gift of music I believe does exactly that. It’s the gift that God gave me an anointing on me. So it’s really a dream come true to be able to use what He’s given me to reach people for Him. I’m very grateful that I have this opportunity even in this season of life because there was a time when I thought, “Oh, I’m too old. I’ve missed my window of opportunity. I’ll let somebody else do it.” I’m 37.

When I was younger, they always talked about singers being discovered in your teens. If you were 23, you were old. I think part of that was just the enemy trying to convince me to let go of the calling that was already cast on my life. So I’m learning that age is nothing to God. If He’s going to use you and you’re a willing servant, He can do it at any age whatsoever. 

Alexis: What or should I say “Who” gave you the courage to leave your lucrative career in law to pursue your dream of becoming a singer?

Summer: It was a journey. It wasn’t like I just woke up one morning and said, “I have the courage, I’m going to quit today.” It took a lot of prayer and a lot of fasting. I had people pray for me. God gave me visions and He would affirm and confirm those visions through what seemed like random interactions with other people. So I would say that it took about a year or two of hearing God speak to me loudly about my purpose before I left my job.

But eventually what gave me the courage to take the leap was a fear. But it wasn’t a fear of man or a lack of having things. It was literally a fear of being disobedient to God. What would happen if I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that He’s calling me to do something and I don’t do it? What would happen to me? Who am I supposed to be touching and inspiring? Who’s life might I be saving? I’m not going to take that route because I’m scared or because I have doubt. I felt like there was too much hanging in the balance to not obey Him.

Ministry, a lot of times we think is like making people feel good. You sing a song and they clap or maybe they cry a little bit. But sometimes it’s a matter of life and death. We have to remember that as ministers of music. Whatever kind of minister you are, there is somebody who literally could be hanging on by their last thread who needs what you have and if you don’t give it…I pray that God would use someone else to still reach that person but I can’t live with that kind of guilt.

Honestly, I’ve already been in positions where people have told me something life threatening, something really serious that was happening in their life. But then they tell me that something I did maybe a smile or through my music, helped them to put things in perspective and to see the light again.

*...to be continued, Part II of this interview with Summer will be posted tomorrow (Oct. 6).

~*~
Singer Bio: 

Summer is an outstanding recording artist, radio personality, actress, and speaker. Summer is skilled at performing many musical styles, especially Gospel and Contemporary Christian. Her vocals are often described as beautiful, powerful, heartfelt and angelic. 

In Summer, there also lies a wonderful speaker and actress who connects with audiences of all ages and conveys messages with conviction and grace. She is reliable and professional in presentation, timeliness, and responsiveness. 

Summer has experience performing for corporate events, weddings, concerts, funerals, retreats, church services, and other events. She is accepting bookings through 2017 and welcomes the opportunity to work with you on your event.

~*~

Buy "Love Letters":

Summer's music is available for purchase in your iTunes store. 

~*~
Connect with Summer:
Email - summerpearsonsings@gmail.com
FB - facebook.com/summersofficialpage
IG - summersofficialpage
Twitter - @summertimesings
YouTube- http://www.youtube.com/c/SummerPearsonsings