What happens when God stirs up the soul?

My soul is like a pot of soup; if left unstirred, everything settles to the bottom. But if I let God’s word stir me up, things begin to float to the surface. And when the ugly things surface, I can either face them or shove them back down.

If we decide that our physical health needs improvement, we know it will take hard work and dedication. We will have to change bad habits and create new ones that will push and sometimes frustrate us.

It is no different when it comes to our spiritual health. We desire to experience change and growth, becoming mature in our faith, but we often lack the motivation to do the necessary work. Opening God’s Word, our “how-to manual,” is an excellent place to start and begin seeking, asking, and knocking.

With growth comes growing pains. 

I must be prepared that actively studying God’s Word will stir me like a pot of soup. Ugly things may be stirred to the surface that I would rather not deal with; a divided heart, secret sin, wrong attitudes, all the things that keep me stuck. And when my sins are revealed to me,  I can either deal with them or shove them back down.

The problem is that the ugly things are buoyant and will eventually resurface, often when least expected. God uses us despite ourselves, but He desires to heal the broken pieces, ​the hurtful attitudes and the selfish motives.

 It feels easier at the moment of self-reflection to ignore or push away the negative emotions, but as Sharon Garlough Brown puts it in the Sensible Shoes series, sometimes it’s good to sit with what causes you pain. Find the source of the conflict so you can deal with it instead of constantly trying to keep it from resurfacing.

May God’s Word be a stirring spoon that keeps stirring up my soul, removing the things that hinder my joy, sap my strength and keep me from loving Him. The skimming process is never done!