In everything do to others as you would have them do to you. Matthew 7:12
Keeping physically fit and bodybuilding is increasingly popular today, and there is no end to the cyclists and joggers in the city parks and country lanes. A sizable industry has developed to support making the most of our physical bodies; gyms, clubs, and bodybuilding products are readily available to buy on the high street or online.
There are also many mental health specialists available today who, for a fee, will peer into our minds and advise us on techniques to change unhelpful cognitive behaviours that affect the quality of our lives.
So mind and body are probably better tuned today than ever. However, we often see these two words ‘mind and body’ associated with the word ‘soul’ – but how do we encourage our soul to be all it could be? The thing is, the soul’s development is an entirely different process.
The Golden Rule
Jesus gave a simple rule, known as the Golden Rule, which he offered during his Sermon on the Mount. The Golden Rule is to treat others as we would like to be treated ourselves. We cannot pay anyone to do this for us or buy products from Amazon to help us out with doing it ourselves.
Jesus knew the human soul well, and he understood too well that it is innately selfish. The Golden Rule provides a standard by which naturally selfish people (which is most of us) can temper our thoughts and actions by simply thinking of how we would like people to be with us, and then treat others in that way.
As we fine-tune our bodies and minds with physical and mental activities, we can also refine our souls, and those of others, by using this simple Golden Rule, which operates at a deeper level of being.
Have You Filled a Bucket Today?
An easy way of explaining this is with an amazing technique taught to children (adults of all ages can benefit from it also) by Carol McCloud and David Messing in the book Have You Filled a Bucket today?
The idea is that we all call carry an invisible bucket around with us. These are emotional buckets, and when ours is full, we feel content, joyful and peaceful. However, we feel low, discouraged, and unhappy when it is empty.
People are either bucket fillers or bucket dippers. A bucket filler is a supportive and encouraging person, whilst a bucket dipper detracts from others through a detached attitude.
Interestingly, when bucket fillers invest themselves in and promote the well-being of others, their own bucket gets filled too. Likewise, bucket dippers also diminish their own bucket and well being as they fail to support others.
What does this mean for us today?
Jesus taught that when we treat others as we would like to be treated, we start becoming what God intended for us as we use our lives and resources to help others flourish.
Living in this way, we also conform to another standard Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount; we will be building our lives on a solid rock, so when the winds and storms of life appear, we will be able to withstand the pressures and protect ourselves during the turbulence.
Our souls will develop and shine when we are bucket fillers, so instead of reminding others of their faults and failures – let’s pour into those we meet today what others, however small and through the love of God, have poured into us. Let’s bring a little bit of heaven closer to earth.
You can find out more about Jesus in the links below – or contact me to learn more:
