File Photo of people holding candle during a candle light prayer vigil in support of Highest Level Reconciliation Meeting among the various Naga political group at City Tower, Dimapur, Nagaland. (Photo by Caisii Mao)
The word soul can mean different things. In Genesis 2:7 it means the living, breathing body. In verses like Matthew 22:37 we are told to love God with all our heart, soul and mind. In verses like these, the terms heart and soul are refering to the emotional side of the mind with all its feelings and passions. The soul is a massive part of us. It combines our thoughts and feelings, which define our character--who we are.
Your thinking defines what kind of feelings you will have. If your thoughts are poisoned with any kind of negativity like anger, hurt, bitterness, hatred, or revenge, your feelings will be poisoned with the same emotional toxins. This has serious consequenses for your physical, mental and spiritual health.
It has been said that emotion is energy in motion. Holding on to the emotional poisons of bitterness, anger, and revenge, causes a tremendous amount of toxic energy to flow through your body. This toxic energy is carried by powerful chemicals that are released inside the body in response stressful emotions like fear, anger and bitterness. It all begins with the release of large amounts of adrenalin into the bloodstream. Adrenalin is called the "fight or flight hormone." It gives you a burst of energy that can help you respond to danger.
But adrenalin has a serious side effect. It is very toxic. It elevates blood pressure rapidly. The body must remove it as quickly as possible to avoid permanent damage. This is accomplished by converting adrenalin into other substances. One of these substances is called adrenochrome, and it does not elevate blood pressure.
But adrenochrome is still a cell poison. It slows down the body's ability to build new blood, muscle and bone cells. About 80% of adrenalin is converted to this cell poison in heart muscle and in the special blood cells that fight infection and disease in the body. Holding angry and vengeful thoughts and feelings keeps these highly toxic chemicals circulating through your body. This is particularly bad for your heart and for your body's ability to fight infection and disease.
So it should be clear that feelings of anger and revenge can do you far more damage than they do to the person on whom you want to take revenge. In Matthew 10:28, Jesus said, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." Those who have done you, your family, or your tribe some terrible wrong might be able to hurt you and your loved ones emotionally and physically. But they can not kill your soul--the only part of you that you will take to heaven because it is your character--the very essence of who you are.
No other human being can kill your soul. But when you make the decision to hold on to angry, bitter, and revengeful thoughts and feelings, you are literally poisoning your very soul to death. Your body may still be alive, but everything that is good in your heart and soul is dying inside you. You no longer know how to be a merciful, kind, and humane person in the image of God. In place of the image of God, the image of a demon is being stamped into your soul. This should give you reason to "fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." Through anger, bitterness and revenge, we sell our souls to the devil. And unless we willingly let go of these toxic, demonic thoughts and feelings, we will miss out on eternal life.
This should be enough reason to make us want to fall on our knees and beg for God's divine help to forgive our enemies, as Christ said we must do if we want to inherit the kingdom of heaven. But for those who are not interested in heaven, it is important to remember that these emotions also do deep damage to your physical health. They can cause serious diseases and accelerate the aging process in your body which not only shortens your life, but also reduces the quality of your life while you are alive.
So whether or not you care about eternal salvation, the emotional poisons of bitterness, anger, hatred, and revenge are not your friends. They destroy you body, mind, and soul. Now the destruction of a single soul is a tragic thing. But what if the soul of a family, a village, or a tribe becomes infected with toxic thoughts and feelings? Are there not places in Nagaland where the Naga soul is in need of healing?
Forgiveness and positive thinking have been proven to be some of the most potent medicines on the face of the earth. A study published in the European Heart Journal found that those with a positive outlook on life had 22% less risk of developing heart disease. A positive mindset allows the brain to perform better and think more creatively according to another study published in the journal Psychological Science. Positive emotions have been found to increase your ability to cope with challenges without the toxic side effects of adrenalin.
Research done by Kent State University found that students writing letters of gratitude to people who had positively impacted their lives resulted in increased happiness, fewer health problems, decreased depression, an improved immune system and improved grades. So it is not only important to think positive and thankful thoughts. Its also important to express them. The benefit comes to you because expression deepens impression. The more you speak out your gratitude to others, the more those thankful thoughts and feelings deepen inside you. As a result, you get more and more positive benefit to your physical, mental and emotional health.
People with high blood pressure can lower their blood pressure by letting go of negative thoughts and feelings and replacing them with positive forgiveness and gratitude. But the benefits go much further that that. People who forgive and are thankful will even become more likely to quit smoking and more likely to lose weight. People who are grateful in their daily lives report fewer stress-related health symptoms, including headaches, gastrointestinal (stomach) issues, chest pain, muscle aches, and appetite problems.
Someone once said, "Being in a good frame of mind helps keep one in the picture of health." The Bible agrees stating that, "A happy heart is a good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing, but a broken spirit dries the bones." Proverbs 17:22.
Paul admonished the church, "See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all," 1 Thessalonians 5:15. And again in Romans 12:21 he says, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Obviously, in giving us these scriptural commandments, God is trying to help us preserve physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. He promises to take vengeance for us at the right time, in the right way, and without all the damage to your own body, mind and soul. That's an offer worth seriously considering.
The expression, "Live by the sword, die by the sword" is based on the Bible. In the Book of Revelation, chapter 13, verse 10 it says, "He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints." Those who live by violence will die by violence because God has ordained that we must reap what we sow. Its a law of nature. Sow seeds of cabbage and reap cabbage. Sow seeds of kindness and reap kindness. But sow seeds of violence and revenge and know that you must eventually reap violence and revenge on your own head.
Jesus taught this vital lesson to Peter after he drew a sword to defend Jesus from arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus rebuked him and told him to sheath the weapon, saying to his vengeful disciple, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword," Matthew, 26:52. But Jesus didn't stop there. He followed up His rebuke with the final healing miracle of His life on earth. It was for someone who was coming to take His life that He did it.
Instead of anger, revenge, and a fight to save His life, Jesus stooped to pick up the ear that Peter had cut off, and miraculously reattached it to the man's head without surgery or stitches. No one can ever doubt the ability of Jesus to forgive under the most tempting and testing provocation. And he says to those who call themseves Christians, "Go and do thou likewise," Luke 10:37.
Some things in this sinful world are literally unforgivable, humanly speaking. But as Jesus said, "With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible."
(Ian Anthony Jones is a health educator and missionary from the US now married to a Naga and residing in Dimapur. He will be contributing every Friday to the Morung Express under the column: Health & Healing. You may contact the Health and Healing columnist and give him feedback at: edenbarak.ngo@gmail.com)
Your thinking defines what kind of feelings you will have. If your thoughts are poisoned with any kind of negativity like anger, hurt, bitterness, hatred, or revenge, your feelings will be poisoned with the same emotional toxins. This has serious consequenses for your physical, mental and spiritual health.
It has been said that emotion is energy in motion. Holding on to the emotional poisons of bitterness, anger, and revenge, causes a tremendous amount of toxic energy to flow through your body. This toxic energy is carried by powerful chemicals that are released inside the body in response stressful emotions like fear, anger and bitterness. It all begins with the release of large amounts of adrenalin into the bloodstream. Adrenalin is called the "fight or flight hormone." It gives you a burst of energy that can help you respond to danger.
But adrenalin has a serious side effect. It is very toxic. It elevates blood pressure rapidly. The body must remove it as quickly as possible to avoid permanent damage. This is accomplished by converting adrenalin into other substances. One of these substances is called adrenochrome, and it does not elevate blood pressure.
But adrenochrome is still a cell poison. It slows down the body's ability to build new blood, muscle and bone cells. About 80% of adrenalin is converted to this cell poison in heart muscle and in the special blood cells that fight infection and disease in the body. Holding angry and vengeful thoughts and feelings keeps these highly toxic chemicals circulating through your body. This is particularly bad for your heart and for your body's ability to fight infection and disease.
So it should be clear that feelings of anger and revenge can do you far more damage than they do to the person on whom you want to take revenge. In Matthew 10:28, Jesus said, "And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. But rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." Those who have done you, your family, or your tribe some terrible wrong might be able to hurt you and your loved ones emotionally and physically. But they can not kill your soul--the only part of you that you will take to heaven because it is your character--the very essence of who you are.
No other human being can kill your soul. But when you make the decision to hold on to angry, bitter, and revengeful thoughts and feelings, you are literally poisoning your very soul to death. Your body may still be alive, but everything that is good in your heart and soul is dying inside you. You no longer know how to be a merciful, kind, and humane person in the image of God. In place of the image of God, the image of a demon is being stamped into your soul. This should give you reason to "fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." Through anger, bitterness and revenge, we sell our souls to the devil. And unless we willingly let go of these toxic, demonic thoughts and feelings, we will miss out on eternal life.
This should be enough reason to make us want to fall on our knees and beg for God's divine help to forgive our enemies, as Christ said we must do if we want to inherit the kingdom of heaven. But for those who are not interested in heaven, it is important to remember that these emotions also do deep damage to your physical health. They can cause serious diseases and accelerate the aging process in your body which not only shortens your life, but also reduces the quality of your life while you are alive.
So whether or not you care about eternal salvation, the emotional poisons of bitterness, anger, hatred, and revenge are not your friends. They destroy you body, mind, and soul. Now the destruction of a single soul is a tragic thing. But what if the soul of a family, a village, or a tribe becomes infected with toxic thoughts and feelings? Are there not places in Nagaland where the Naga soul is in need of healing?
Forgiveness and positive thinking have been proven to be some of the most potent medicines on the face of the earth. A study published in the European Heart Journal found that those with a positive outlook on life had 22% less risk of developing heart disease. A positive mindset allows the brain to perform better and think more creatively according to another study published in the journal Psychological Science. Positive emotions have been found to increase your ability to cope with challenges without the toxic side effects of adrenalin.
Research done by Kent State University found that students writing letters of gratitude to people who had positively impacted their lives resulted in increased happiness, fewer health problems, decreased depression, an improved immune system and improved grades. So it is not only important to think positive and thankful thoughts. Its also important to express them. The benefit comes to you because expression deepens impression. The more you speak out your gratitude to others, the more those thankful thoughts and feelings deepen inside you. As a result, you get more and more positive benefit to your physical, mental and emotional health.
People with high blood pressure can lower their blood pressure by letting go of negative thoughts and feelings and replacing them with positive forgiveness and gratitude. But the benefits go much further that that. People who forgive and are thankful will even become more likely to quit smoking and more likely to lose weight. People who are grateful in their daily lives report fewer stress-related health symptoms, including headaches, gastrointestinal (stomach) issues, chest pain, muscle aches, and appetite problems.
Someone once said, "Being in a good frame of mind helps keep one in the picture of health." The Bible agrees stating that, "A happy heart is a good medicine and a cheerful mind works healing, but a broken spirit dries the bones." Proverbs 17:22.
Paul admonished the church, "See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all," 1 Thessalonians 5:15. And again in Romans 12:21 he says, "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." Obviously, in giving us these scriptural commandments, God is trying to help us preserve physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. He promises to take vengeance for us at the right time, in the right way, and without all the damage to your own body, mind and soul. That's an offer worth seriously considering.
The expression, "Live by the sword, die by the sword" is based on the Bible. In the Book of Revelation, chapter 13, verse 10 it says, "He who leads into captivity shall go into captivity; he who kills with the sword must be killed with the sword. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints." Those who live by violence will die by violence because God has ordained that we must reap what we sow. Its a law of nature. Sow seeds of cabbage and reap cabbage. Sow seeds of kindness and reap kindness. But sow seeds of violence and revenge and know that you must eventually reap violence and revenge on your own head.
Jesus taught this vital lesson to Peter after he drew a sword to defend Jesus from arrest in the Garden of Gethsemane. Jesus rebuked him and told him to sheath the weapon, saying to his vengeful disciple, "Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword," Matthew, 26:52. But Jesus didn't stop there. He followed up His rebuke with the final healing miracle of His life on earth. It was for someone who was coming to take His life that He did it.
Instead of anger, revenge, and a fight to save His life, Jesus stooped to pick up the ear that Peter had cut off, and miraculously reattached it to the man's head without surgery or stitches. No one can ever doubt the ability of Jesus to forgive under the most tempting and testing provocation. And he says to those who call themseves Christians, "Go and do thou likewise," Luke 10:37.
Some things in this sinful world are literally unforgivable, humanly speaking. But as Jesus said, "With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible."
(Ian Anthony Jones is a health educator and missionary from the US now married to a Naga and residing in Dimapur. He will be contributing every Friday to the Morung Express under the column: Health & Healing. You may contact the Health and Healing columnist and give him feedback at: edenbarak.ngo@gmail.com)
