There’s something about feeling whole that really can’t be beat. Feeling like every part of you is aligned and at peace, working together harmoniously. The thing is, being at a place of wholeness takes a lot of work. Even though being whole is God’s design for us, that doesn’t mean it’s easy.
What Does it Mean to be “Whole”?
At Mercy, when we use the word whole, we are referring to three things: spirit, soul, body. Each of those three elements works in tandem to bring us balance. When one of those things is off, it can throw everything out of balance.
Our physical body is connected to our spirit and to our soul. That’s why you might literally get sick to your stomach when faced with a hard decision. Or why after you endured something difficult, you found yourself with a cold or even the flu. Our mental and spiritual state can affect our bodies, and our bodies can affect our mental and spiritual state in the same way.
Being whole means that your spirit, soul, and body are all aligned, healthy, and positioned towards the Lord.
Ways to Practice Wholeness
This won’t come as a shock to anyone, but one of the best ways to care for your spirit, soul, and body is to REST! Yes, that is easier said than done, but the saying “quality over quantity” is really true when it comes to rest. We may be resting our physical bodies often, but when are we resting our body AND our mind? Spending one hour unplugged is a better quality of rest than spending one hour in front of a screen or even reading a book. True rest is when no part of you is at work.
Caring for your physical body is one of the most important parts of practicing wholeness. Even though there are some aspects of our physical bodies that are out of our control, what we can control is how we treat our bodies by the things we put in them. A balanced diet is an easy way to care for our bodies. Fueling ourselves with foods that energize and nourish us will always have a positive impact on our overall wellness.
The same goes for exercise. No, you don’t need to run 3 miles a day to really exercise. Any form of movement at least once a day can be exercise. Walking, biking, jogging, and even dancing are all forms of movement that can be done to care for our bodies. Moving around helps our bodies and our minds connect on a deeper level and helps us be more in tune with the bodies that the Lord gave us.
Lastly, nurturing our relationship with the Lord plays arguably the biggest role in our wholeness. When we make efforts daily to deepen our relationship with God and become closer to Him, we are taking care of our spirit. Whether that is through prayer, reading your bible, or working through a bible study, closeness with the Lord empowers and strengthens our spirit, giving us what we need as we take on each day. Being whole truly means that our purpose and God’s purpose are aligned and that we are walking in step with Him.
Where do we begin?
A practical way to begin this is to implement just one or two things into your daily or weekly routine that make you feel more whole. For example, you might go for a walk at least once a week. Not the kind of walk where you are listening to a podcast or calling a friend, but a silent walk, where you can be alone with your thoughts and relax your mind by focusing on just one thing at a time. Or, you could carve out just 5 minutes during your morning routine to pray, to start your day in conversation with the Lord rather than scrolling on your favorite app.
Whatever you might do in your daily journey to becoming more whole is up to you, but doing it consistently is what’s most important.
Someone who tells you that if you become whole once, you’ll stay that way is lying to you. We will go through seasons of wholeness, and we will go through seasons of brokenness because that is simply just how life works. But how we recover from seasons of brokenness is what’s key. We must constantly practice things that help us be whole in order to pick ourselves up when life gets hard. The Lord will meet you where you’re at as you begin to pick up your broken pieces on your journey to wholeness.
Mercy Multiplied exists to provide opportunities for all to experience God’s unconditional love, forgiveness, and life-transforming power. We offer multiple programs and resources online and onsite designed to equip people to live free and stay free in Christ. For more information about the services we offer, click here.
Want more resources? Listen to our most recent MercyTalk Podcast episode, “The Gift of Grief with Rachelle Ashbee”. For daily inspiration, follow us @MercyMultiplied on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter!
