The Bible with Nicky and Pippa Gumbel, Classic Version, 2015Mfano

How to Refresh Your Mind, Heart and Soul

The former televangelist, Jim Bakker, in his autobiography I Was Wrong, tells the story of his descent into ignominy, impoverishment and imprisonment. He lost his freedom, his sanity, his dignity, his confidence in his faith, and eventually even his wife. Inmate 07407-058, one-time confidant to presidents, had hit rock bottom.

At his very lowest point, a prison official came to him and said, ‘Billy Graham is here to see you!’ He thought, ‘Billy Graham has come here ... to this place ... to see me.’ When he walked into the room Billy Graham turned towards him and opened his arms wide.

He said at that moment he felt total acceptance and love. ‘I will never forget that the man who had just been voted one of the most influential men in the world and who has ministered to millions of people took time out of his busy schedule to come minister to one prisoner.’ He describes how in the midst of his depression, flu, filth and hopelessness, Billy Graham’s visit refreshed his heart and boosted his spirit. ‘I felt as though Jesus Himself had come to visit me.’

Refreshment means restoring strength, energy and vigour. A light snack is sometimes referred to as a ‘refreshment’. Physical refreshment can also come, for example, from sleep, rest, or exercise.

Paul tells Philemon that he has ‘refreshed the hearts of the saints’ (Philemon 7). Later on in the letter, Paul asks him to ‘refresh my heart in Christ’ (v.20). But how do we refresh our minds, hearts and souls?

Psalm 119:121-128

1. Refresh your mind with the words of God

Gold is the most valuable thing this world affords. It cannot be tarnished. It shines with a glow like no other metal. Gold is the one metal that all humankind bows down to.

Yet God’s words are far more valuable than even the finest gold. The psalmist writes: ‘I love your commands more than gold, more than pure gold’ (v.127).

The source of the psalmist’s soul refreshment is God’s words. Earlier in the psalm he said, ‘My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times … My soul is weary with sorrow; strengthen me according to your word’ (vv.20,28). God’s words refresh our minds, hearts and souls.

Lord, thank you so much for how amazing it is to be refreshed emotionally and spiritually by reading your words, meditating on them and absorbing them in my mind, my heart and my soul.

Philemon 1-25

2. Refresh your heart with the people of God

Paul writes to his friend Philemon to ask for a favour (v.1). Philemon had a slave called Onesimus who had escaped. Whilst Onesimus was on the run, Paul had led him to Christ (v.10).

Now, in this letter, which is full of grace, humility, genuine love and charm, Paul writes to persuade Philemon to take Onesimus back – not as a slave (the normal fate of a runaway slave was death or flogging and branding on the forehead), but as a friend and brother (v.16). Centuries later, the ripple effect of these words contributed to massive social change. Local history became world history.

It is a request that Paul knows will receive an affirmative answer. He is absolutely confident that Philemon will do what he has asked him to do (v.21). It is an example for us, and a challenge to bring love, forgiveness and reconciliation everywhere we go.

Philemon is a close friend. He leads a church that meets in his home (v.2) and he is a man of faith and love (v.5).

Paul prays that Philemon may be ‘active in sharing his faith’ (v.6). It is interesting to note that Paul thinks that this is the way that he will receive ‘a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ’ (v.6). I have often noticed on Alpha how quickly people grow in their understanding as they become small group helpers and hosts on the course. The way to grow is to be active in sharing our faith.

He then goes on to say, ‘Your love has given me great joy and encouragement because you have refreshed the hearts of the saints’ (v.7). And he asks Philemon to refresh his heart in Christ by another act of love (v.20). His whole appeal for Onesimus is ‘on the basis of love’ (v.9).

Clearly, Philemon was a man known for his love: ‘I keep hearing of the love and faith you have for the Master Jesus, which brims over to other believers’ (v.5, MSG).

Paul makes ‘a very personal request’ (vv.8,9, MSG), asking Philemon to welcome Onesimus back as ‘no mere slave this time, but a true Christian brother ... welcome him back as you would me. If he damaged anything or owes you anything, chalk it up to my account’ (vv.16–18, MSG). He writes, ‘You’ll be doing it for Christ’ (v.20, MSG), but it will also ‘refresh my heart’ (v.20).

Forgiveness involves extending love and mercy to someone who has wronged or hurt you. It clears the way to reconciliation and restoration of a relationship.

Paul is longing to see Philemon. He writes, ‘Prepare a guest room for me, because I hope to be restored to you in answer to your prayers’ (v.22). Love refreshes the heart and the soul. Spending time with people we love and who love us, whether it is family or friends, refreshes our hearts and souls.

Lord, thank you so much for the church and the love of our brothers and sisters in Christ. Thank you for how they refresh our hearts and souls.

Lamentations 2:7-3:39

3. Refresh your soul in the presence of God

We see in this passage that the prophet’s heart is in great need of refreshment. As Jeremiah looks out at the devastation of Jerusalem, he is surrounded by the most appalling suffering. There is destruction all around. The people are starving. It has reached the point where there is the possibility of women eating their own children (v.20).

It is not just that the suffering is all around Jeremiah. It is also in his own heart and soul. He writes, ‘My eyes fail from weeping, I am in torment within, my heart is poured out on the ground’ (2:11). His heart is pierced (3:13). He feels besieged and surrounded by ‘bitterness and hardship’ (v.5). He is dwelling in darkness (v.6).

He feels he has been ‘left … without help’ (v.11). He is laughed at and mocked (v.14). On top of all this, he has lost his sense of peace: ‘I have been deprived of peace’ (v.17).

His prayers do not seem to have been answered: ‘Even when I call out or cry for help, he shuts out my prayer. He has barred my way with blocks of stone; he has made my paths crooked’ (vv.8–9).

He knows that the answer lies ‘in the presence of the Lord’. He writes, ‘Arise, cry out in the night, as the watches of the night begin; pour out your heart like water in the presence of the Lord’ (2:19).

He goes on, ‘My soul is downcast within me.
Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope:
Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.
They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.” 
The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him …
Though he brings grief, he will show compassion, so great is his unfailing love’ (3:20–25,32).

Times of refreshing come from ‘the presence of the Lord’ (Acts 3:19, AMP). We can receive this refreshing every day.

God’s mercy is new every morning. You can make a fresh, new start every single day. Every day you can seek him, wait for him quietly, hope in him and be refreshed by his presence.

When we realise how much God has forgiven us and how great is his mercy, we can more easily forgive those who have hurt us and extend mercy to them. This is the key to great relationships.

These are not naïve or superficial words of encouragement. They are realistic about the depth and extent of suffering and struggles without and within. Yet in the midst of all this, we can hang on to the goodness and love of God: ‘Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed’ (Lamentations 3:22).

We see here a hint of how this love is made possible. The prophet writes, ‘Let them offer their cheeks to one who would strike them, and let them be filled with disgrace’ (v.30). Jesus offered his cheek to the ones who struck him (John 19:3, see also Matthew 5:39) and bore our disgrace on the cross. It is the blood of Christ that cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:9) and through his death we can be forgiven, cleansed, renewed and refreshed in our hearts and souls every day.

Lord, thank you that even when my soul is downcast and I have poured out my heart to you, I can be refreshed by your presence. Thank you for your great love. Thank you that your compassions never fail (v.22) and that they are new every morning. Thank you for your great faithfulness (v.23) and unfailing love – made available to me through Jesus Christ my Lord.

Pippa Adds

Lamentations 3:22

Whatever we are going through today, we can take comfort from these verses: ‘Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.’

Notes:

Jim Bakker, I Was Wrong, (Thomas Nelson, 2010) pp.282–284.

Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version Anglicised, Copyright © 1979, 1984, 2011 Biblica, formerly International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. ‘NIV’ is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790.

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) taken from the Amplified® Bible, Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. (www.Lockman.org)

Scripture marked (MSG) taken from The Message. Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress Publishing Group.