Come, everyone who thirsts, 
come to the waters;
and he who has no money,
Come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without price.

Lord, we come into your presence hungry and thirsty. 
As the deer pants for living water, so our souls pant for you. 

We’ve wasted money on bread that leaves us empty 
and on water that doesn’t satisfy 

Feed us with bread from heaven 
and living water this morning and every morning. 

God, our Rock,

You are the same yesterday, today, and forever. We pray that you would make us steadfast for we are flighty and inconsistent. We are tossed to and fro by waves and swells of popularity and culture. Christ, anchor us again in the truth of your Word so that we may abide in you. To you, who are able to keep us from falling, we present our wandering hearts again. In Christ’s name, amen.

We believe in one God, the Father almighty.
He is the creator of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.

We believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, God’s only Son, begotten from the Father before all ages.

God from God! Light from Light! True God from true God! Begotten not made, of the same essence as the Father. Through him all things were made.

For us and for our salvation, he came down from heaven.

He was made flesh by the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary, and he became human. He was crucified under Pontius Pilate. He suffered and was buried. On the third day, he rose again, according to the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will return in glory to judge the living and the dead. His kingdom will never end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life.

He proceeds from the Father. With the Father and the Son, he is worshiped and glorified. He spoke through the prophets.

We believe in one holy universal and apostolic church. We affirm one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.

A Flourishing Soul

Brandon Shields

1 The Lord is my shepherd;

I have what I need.

2 He lets me lie down in green pastures;

he leads me beside quiet waters.

3 He renews my life;

he leads me along the right paths

for his name’s sake.

4 Even when I go through the darkest valley,

I fear no danger,

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff—they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

6 Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me

all the days of my life,

and I will dwell in the house of the Lord

as long as I live.

–Psalm 23

1.  A Conspiracy Against the Soul

• "But our task is the opposite of distraction. Our task is to help people concentrate on the real but often hidden event of God’s active presence in their lives. Hence, the question that must guide all organizing activity in a parish is not how to keep people busy, but how to keep them from being so busy that they can no longer hear the voice of God who speaks in silence." -Henri Nouwen
• Soul in Psalm 23: Nephesh
• "What is running your life at any given moment is your soul. Not external circumstances, or your thoughts, or your intentions, or even your feelings, but your soul. The soul is that aspect of your whole being that correlates, integrates, and enlivens everything going on in the various dimensions of the self. The soul is the life center of human beings." -Dallas Willard

2. Soul Sickness

• "When my will is consistently, freely, joyfully aligned with what I most deeply value, my soul finds rest. That is wholeness. When I live with half-hearted devotion, my soul is always strained." - John Ortberg
• "The divided life is a wounded life, and the soul keeps calling us to heal the wound." -Parker Palmer

3. The Healing & Growth of the Soul

• "But our Physician is the only true God…Jesus the Christ…He became subject to corruption, that He might free our souls from death and corruption, and heal them, and might restore them to health, when they were diseased with ungodliness and wicked lusts." -Ignatius of Antioch

4. The Easy Yoke of Jesus

• "The first and most basic thing we can and must do is to keep God before our minds…Our part in thus practicing the presence of God is to direct and redirect our minds constantly to Him. In the early time of our “practicing” we may well be challenged by our burdensome habits of dwelling on things less than God. But these are habits—not the law of gravity—and can be broken. A new, grace-filled habit will replace the former ones as we take intentional steps toward keeping God before us. Soon our minds will return to God as the needle of a compass constantly returns to the north. If God is the great longing of our souls, He will become the pole star of our inward beings." -Dallas Willard