June 28, 2005 - The On-Purpose™ Proverb
Soul searching begins with sole searching.
“Who am I?” is one of the most profound questions you will ever seek to answer. Much of our identity is erroneously formed by others’ opinions of us and shaped by experiences that reinforce and refine our sense of self.
Yet, the true answer to the question is found from above and within. It takes quiet time and solitude. Oddly, being contemplative is harder than it looks – I’m so programmed to equate action with productivity that rest feels like I’m playing hooky from life.
Being alone is not the same as solitude. When I’m alone I can fill the emptiness with television, email, web surfing, reading, or any number of busyness related activities ill-intended to avoid confronting the real me.
Soul searching is a time of resting in God’s presence, listening for His voice, and seeking His will. Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God is within and we are to seek it first. Yet, most of us pursue fame and fortune “out there in the real world.” Eventually, even precious Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz discovered, “There’s no place like home.”
And when my sole searching leads me to my soul, indeed I have found the kingdom of God. I’m home where God intends me instead of where the world might like me to be.
“Who am I?” is one of the most profound questions you will ever seek to answer. Much of our identity is erroneously formed by others’ opinions of us and shaped by experiences that reinforce and refine our sense of self.
Yet, the true answer to the question is found from above and within. It takes quiet time and solitude. Oddly, being contemplative is harder than it looks – I’m so programmed to equate action with productivity that rest feels like I’m playing hooky from life.
Being alone is not the same as solitude. When I’m alone I can fill the emptiness with television, email, web surfing, reading, or any number of busyness related activities ill-intended to avoid confronting the real me.
Soul searching is a time of resting in God’s presence, listening for His voice, and seeking His will. Jesus taught that the Kingdom of God is within and we are to seek it first. Yet, most of us pursue fame and fortune “out there in the real world.” Eventually, even precious Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz discovered, “There’s no place like home.”
And when my sole searching leads me to my soul, indeed I have found the kingdom of God. I’m home where God intends me instead of where the world might like me to be.
posted by Kevin W. McCarthy at
4:25 PM
4 Comments:
Kevin, thanks so much for the books and Proverbs. As a Pastor, I have drawn strength from both over the past years.
Got a suggestion: Put your Thursday Program on the Website for those of us not in Orlando to hear.
George in Memphis
Hi George!
Thanks for posting to the web blog. Nice to know that as a pastor you are drawing strength from the work.
The radio station is the one that would need to put the show on the web. We are looking into creating a subscription based service to share MP3 or CDs with listeners outside of Orlando. Perhaps in the Fall we will be in a position to offer this.
Be On-Purpose!
Kevin
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Dear Kevin: While living here in Mesa, AZ, I still very much enjoy your proverbs! Interesting title this time about 'sole searchin'. Traveling the roads of life tell us alot about ourselves but also about others. In this new area of life and this new place to explore, I have found that people here are much the same but also different. Yes, people are still 'searching' for the knowledge and wisdom that define who they are, and what they are called to do. But all too much the same we are still all distracted by the variety and multitude of distractions that life places before us. In the realm of self-reflection, the mirror lets us see know one else but ourselves. As we look into the mirror, the Lord will be able to tell us if our hair is out of place, of our eyes are too heavy and if our smile has disappeared. Soul searching will be for some of us the energy that keeps us going, the fire that sparks the desire of discovery and the flame that sparks new intersts even when we are aging. But in reality some will never realize the freedom of being alone and welcoming the changes that God has instore for us. Kurt and I read a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt in IHOP yesterday. I can't recall it exactly but it went something like this. We struggle to discover who we are and then in the end have to live with that decision.... quite a statement.....
Blessings, and thanks for your continued work in the Spirit, Stephanie
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