Prepare Your Soul To Be Restored

The Lord desires to restore our soul (Psalm 23:3). I have been meditating on verses that bring our souls into a state of readiness for the Lord to do this healing work. He delights in bringing wholeness and restoration to every part of our lives. This is all a large part of the journey I am on right now…so it has been a delight to meditate on these verses.

The main Hebrew word used for "soul" in my search is:  nephesh which means:

Life, appetite, mind, desire, emotion, passion, that which breathes, the breathing substance or being, living being, self, seat of appetites, emotions or passions, activity of the mind or will, or character.

Here are 12 steps to walk in as we prepare for the Lord to restore and heal our soul:

Ps. 66:16

Come and hear, all you who fear God,
And I will declare what He has done for my soul.

• Make your heart and your soul a sanctuary for the presence of the Lord. Expand the altar of your heart and make room for the Lord – He is coming among us in greater and greater measures in these days. I know that the Lord is speaking here of the physical sanctuary that Solomon was to build, but we are also called to build a sanctuary in our hearts -

1Chron. 22:19 Now set your heart and your soul to seek the Lord your God. Therefore arise and build the sanctuary of the Lord God, to bring the ark of the covenant of the Lord and the holy articles of God into the house that is to be built for the name of the Lord.”

• Seek the Lord with all your heart and soul. It is time to seek the Lord with renewed passion. Something inside us needs to remain “sleepless” regarding this issue – diligently searching for Him and listening for His voice. When we seek Him with all our heart and soul, He will be found. In these verses we can hear a cry that rises from the depths of the soul – to the point of “panting” for God as one who is completely thirsty and longing for Him -

2Chron. 15:12 Then they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord God of their fathers with all their heart and with all their soul;

2Chron. 15:15 And all Judah rejoiced at the oath, for they had sworn with all their heart and sought Him with all their soul; and He was found by them, and the Lord gave them rest all around.

Ps. 42:1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.

Ps. 42:2  My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?

Ps. 63:1 O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water.

Ps. 84:2 My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

Lam. 3:25 The Lord is good to those who wait for Him, To the soul who seeks Him.

Matt. 22:37 Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ (Mk. 12:30, 33; Lu. 10:27)

• Let your soul wait for Him. He seems to be calling us in these days to wait, or linger in His presence – sometimes it is not necessary to do or say anything – just wait silently with great expectation -

Ps. 33:20 Our soul waits for the Lord; He is our help and our shield

Ps. 62:1, 5 Truly my soul silently waits for God; From Him comes my salvation.

My soul, wait silently for God alone, For my expectation is from Him.

Ps. 130:5-6 I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, And in His word I do hope.

My soul waits for the Lord More than those who watch for the morning— Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.

• Release joy into all you do. Let joy permeate your soul and affect all those around you. As we deal with our heart and soul in an intensive way, there can be a tendency to become melancholy and overly introspective – at least that is how I can often find myself. I am sometimes tempted to become isolated and withdrawn from others. I believe that the Lord rarely intends for us to become reclusive in this way – the closer we get to Him; the greater should be our testimony to others. Don’t forget to mark this journey with joy. Think of all these things that he has done, and fill your soul with joy, Don’t become so consumed with yourself that you can’t lift up the hearts of those around you -

Ps. 34:2 My soul shall make its boast in the Lord; The humble shall hear of it and be glad.

Ps. 35:9 And my soul shall be joyful in the Lord; It shall rejoice in His salvation.

Ps. 71:23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You, And my soul, which You have redeemed.

Is. 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.

• Yield your soul to the Lord and trust in Him – make Him your hiding place.

There certainly are seasons when we need to tuck ourselves away to spend more time with the Lord. We will find that He is a trustworthy friend and a sure hiding place - 

Ps. 57:1 Be merciful to me, O God, be merciful to me! For my soul trusts in You; And in the shadow of Your wings I will make my refuge, Until these calamities have passed by.

• Stir up your soul to follow the Lord wherever He goes – stay very close to Him.

the Hebrew word for "follow" in this verse is dabaq - it means to cling, or cleave to something, to stay close, to be joined together, to overtake. It is up to us to run after Him - to stay close by His side and join ourselves to Him in such a way that we become "one" with Him -

Ps. 63:8 My soul follows close behind You; Your right hand upholds me. 

• Surrender your soul to its longings for the presence of the Lord.

The soul is the seat of our passions and desires. Make the presence of the Lord the focus of your greatest craving -

Ps. 84:2 My soul longs, yes, even faints For the courts of the Lord; My heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.

When our body is thirsty, it seems to shout loudly – demanding water and drawing great attention to this need. Allow your spiritual thirst to take over your soul in the same way. Make your thirst for God the loudest voice in your soul and give in to this longing.

Ps. 143:6 I spread out my hands to You; My soul longs for You like a thirsty land.

• Lift up your soul in praise.

This is the greatest conclusion to our quest of filling out soul with more of the Lord – worship with all your soul!

Ps. 103:1-2 Bless the Lord, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits:

(103:22; 104:1, 35; 119:175; 143:8; 146:1)

• Discipline your soul to keep the testimonies and commands of the Lord.

When we walk in the fear of the Lord, we will delight in keeping God’s Word and walking in obedience to His commands -

Ps. 119:129 Your testimonies are wonderful; Therefore my soul keeps them.

Ps. 119:167 My soul keeps Your testimonies, And I love them exceedingly.

• Quiet your soul and make it still.

No matter what you are going through – allow your soul to be still and listen to the voice of the Lord rather than to your own thoughts and conclusions. Trust Him just as a child trusts his mother and father.

Ps. 131:2 Surely I have calmed and quieted my soul, Like a weaned child with his mother; Like a weaned child is my soul within me.

• Feed your soul with God’s abundance.

Taste and see that the Lord is good – feed on Him and enjoy the nourishment that only He can bring.

Is. 55:2 Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance.

• Purify your soul.

We have a tendency to think that the Lord needs to do all the work while we sit back and complain. In this passage, Peter is instructing us to purify our own soul through obedience.

1Pet. 1:22 Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart.


This is part 1 - part 2 can be found HERE