Mona Selden writes daily devotions for her church, Marion Baptist, in south-central Virginia. She is co-host with her pastor on The Mosaic of Marion podcast. Her writing and teaching are done with the desire to help others get to know God better through His Word. Her blog, Filled to Overflowing, combines her passion for photography and writing. Mona’s husband is USAF Retired. They are enjoying their nearly empty nest with a married daughter and a son in college.
Come and hear, all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul.” – Psalms 66:16, ESV
Today’s relationships are all about social media. We live in a world of insta-worthy photos with the perfect hashtags. We relate to our “friends” (some of whom we don’t even know) by posting about every detail of our lives. We tweet with limited character counts. Texting has become sufficient because we’re too busy for phone calls. The depths of most of our relationships are shallow at best.
As a part of the church and other ministries, we must do better. The words of the psalmist and his desire for soul-deep conversations ought to ring true for us. Those soul-deep conversations ought to define our relationships.
At the beginning of the psalm, the psalmist wants to recount the deeds done by God on his behalf. Then it was time to go deeper, it was time to tell what God has done for his soul—for his inner being, the inner place where his thoughts and his emotions are found. We see him calling a certain people group to come and hear. He is specifically asking those who fear God to come. They are the ones who will understand what they hear. Those who do not fear God, who do not have a relationship with God, cannot understand the things of God (1 Corinthians 2:14). He asks them to come and hear because he desired to tell of the mercy and grace that God had poured out on him. He desired to tell of the forgiveness he found and the never-ending love he has experienced.
When we experience God taking care of our weary souls with tenderness and compassion, we need to tell others what He has done. When we experience God satisfying our thirsty souls as only He can, we need to tell of that. We invite our fellow believers to come and hear what God has done for our souls when He fills the emptiness with His presence and our longings with His joy. We ask them to listen when He has lavished our souls with His love.
Sharing what God has done for our souls creates deeper relationships. It brings encouragement to others. It edifies and lifts up. We share what God has done for our souls so others will know He will do it for their souls as well. We rejoice and weep together, for our God is not an impersonal God. Soul-deep conversations give glory to God for being intimately involved with us—an involvement that goes down to our very souls.
Be encouraged today to begin having soul conversations. Ask someone what God has done for their souls and then listen. Tell others what God has done for your soul and see how that encourages them.
