Before the titles…
Before the possessions…
Before the accomplishments…
Before the world told you who to be…
THERE WAS YOU.
And deeper still…
THERE WAS THE SOUL.
I have come to an awareness in life that has to do with the whole being of a person.
Human beings are remarkable.
We think.
Create.
Imagine.
Reason.
Love.
Build.
Question.
Remember.
Hope.
Dream.
Search.
We share this planet with animals, insects, trees, plants and all kinds of wondrous life.
But the human being brings something especially compelling into the picture.
Consciousness.
Identity.
Meaning.
Purpose.
And somewhere beneath all of that…
THE SOUL.
BEFORE ALL THINGS
Before you had a profession…
Before you had money…
Before you had responsibilities…
Before people formed opinions about you…
Before success…
Before failure…
Before reputation…
Before status…
Before possessions…
There was the essence of who you are.
Something inside the human being that does not depend on a business card, bank balance, house, title or social position.
That is where this Pearl begins.
Not with what you HAVE.
But with what you ARE.
SPIRITUAL PRINCIPLES
I often speak about things of the spirit.
Why?
Because I believe that when the inner person is rightly ordered, everything else begins finding its proper place.
Not necessarily becoming easy.
But becoming clearer.
More purposeful.
More harmonious.
More grounded.
Do not automatically confuse spirituality with religion.
Religion may provide structure, teaching, tradition and a path toward spiritual understanding.
But spiritual principles concern the deeper questions themselves:
Who am I?
Where did I come from?
Why am I here?
What is ultimately true?
What part of me remains when possessions, titles and circumstances fall away?
Those questions have followed humanity from the beginning.
And they continue following us now.
THE SOUL
In Pearls for the Soul, I described it this way:
“The soul is the essence, or core, of the human being…”
That core must be acknowledged.
It must be fed.
Because anything that remains hungry long enough will eventually begin consuming whatever is available.
And much of what this world offers is material.
Money.
Possessions.
Pleasure.
Status.
Recognition.
Achievement.
Nothing is necessarily wrong with these things.
But they are poor substitutes for spiritual nourishment.
You can fill a house and still feel empty.
Fill a calendar and still feel directionless.
Fill a bank account and still feel poor.
Fill a room with people and still feel alone.
That tells us something.
The appetite of the soul is different from the appetite of the body.
FEED THE SOUL
This is where the central principle comes from:
WHEN YOU FEED THE SOUL, YOU FEED EVERYTHING.
Feed the inner person with truth.
Meaning.
Purpose.
Love.
Gratitude.
Wisdom.
Service.
Forgiveness.
Reflection.
Faith.
Integrity.
Then something begins happening outwardly.
Your decisions change.
Your priorities change.
Your relationships change.
Your appetite for meaningless things changes.
Your ability to endure difficulty changes.
The inside begins influencing the outside.
That is spiritual order.
KNOWING WHO YOU ARE
There may be few things more valuable than knowing:
Who you are.
Where you came from.
Where you belong.
What you are supposed to be doing.
And where your life is ultimately going.
That knowledge gives stability.
Without it, a person can spend decades borrowing identities from other people.
A career becomes the identity.
Money becomes the identity.
Beauty becomes the identity.
Popularity becomes the identity.
Power becomes the identity.
Then something changes.
Retirement.
Loss.
Age.
Failure.
Illness.
Rejection.
And suddenly the identity collapses because it was attached to something temporary.
But if identity is rooted deeper…
The changing world cannot remove it so easily.
HOW DOES THIS PROFIT YOU?
That is a fair question.
What practical benefit is there in thinking about the soul?
My answer is simple.
GO AHEAD.
Investigate life.
Experience it.
Build.
Work.
Travel.
Learn.
Earn.
Create.
Enjoy.
Have your fill of what this world offers.
But while doing so, ask one question:
IS THAT ALL THERE IS?
If your answer is yes…
Then live accordingly.
Have your fill.
Take everything you can from the experience.
But if somewhere inside you the answer is…
NO.
Then do not ignore that voice.
Investigate that too.
Perhaps there are things available to the human being that cannot be bought, stored, photographed or deposited.
Peace.
Meaning.
Truth.
Spiritual understanding.
A sense of belonging to something greater than yourself.
Those are different kinds of treasures.
And they do not disappoint in the same way temporary things can.
BUILD ON WHAT DOES NOT MOVE
A building is only as reliable as its foundation.
The same is true of a life.
If the foundation is money…
Money moves.
If the foundation is popularity…
Popularity moves.
If the foundation is appearance…
Appearance changes.
If the foundation is career…
Careers end.
If the foundation is other people’s approval…
Other people change their minds.
So build deeper.
Build on principles that do not surrender easily.
Truth.
Integrity.
Love.
Faith.
Service.
Character.
Wisdom.
A well-nourished soul.
Then when temporary things come and go…
You remain standing.
NOW, WE SHALL HEAR FROM THE SOUL
Imagine that one day the soul is called upon to speak about the life you lived.
What would it say?
Would it say:
He fed me.
She listened to me.
They gave attention to what mattered.
They pursued truth.
They lived with integrity.
They loved.
They served.
They learned.
They became more than what circumstances handed them.
Or would the soul say:
I was ignored.
Everything else was fed first.
The ambition.
The ego.
The appetite.
The possessions.
The image.
The world.
And I survived on leftovers.
That is worth thinking about.
Because eventually the outer noise quiets.
And what is inside gets its turn to speak.
FINAL THOUGHT
Before you became what the world calls you…
There was something deeper.
Before the profession.
Before the money.
Before the reputation.
Before the accomplishments.
THERE WAS THE SOUL.
Treat it well.
Feed it.
Listen to it.
Build from it.
Because one day everything temporary will fall away.
And what remains will tell the story of who you truly became.
PEARLS INSIGHT
A stable sense of identity cannot rest entirely on external achievements, possessions, status or approval because all of them are temporary. Spiritual development emphasizes the inner life—values, meaning, character, faith, purpose and self-understanding—as the foundation from which healthier decisions and more durable contentment can emerge.
PEARLS FROM THE BOOKS
From Pearls for the Soul:
“The soul is the essence, or core, of the human being…”
And the principle that follows from it remains central:
Feed the soul, and you have fed everything.
The outer life can be busy.
The inner life still needs nourishment.
PEARLS CONNECTION
This Pearl connects directly with:
WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?
and
YOU WERE CREATED ON PURPOSE
The first asks about identity.
The second asks about purpose.
This Pearl asks what lies beneath both:
WHAT IS THE FOUNDATION OF THE PERSON?
If the soul is neglected, identity becomes fragile.
If the soul is nourished, purpose becomes clearer.
RICHIE SPEAKS
You can feed the body.
Feed the bank account.
Feed the ego.
Feed the calendar.
Feed everybody else’s expectations.
But don’t forget the part of you that is going with you through all of it.
THE SOUL.
Before all things…
THERE IT WAS.
And after many things are gone…
THERE IT WILL BE.
Treat it well.
Feed it well.
Then let the rest of your life grow from there.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
pearlsforthesoul.com
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