What’s Killing Your Soul?

While having coffee with a friend at a local cafe recently I overheard two women at the next table talking about work. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop so I only caught bits and pieces of the conversation but one particular sentence stuck with me.

I don’t hate my job …. but it is killing my soul.

Wow. How could you not hate something that is killing your soul?

A survey conducted last year by Survey Sampling International on behalf of SEEK Learning showed that while less than half of Australian workers are happy with their jobs, only a small percentage are actively looking to change their situation. Part of that is due to a lack of options relating to skill levels or opportunities in some areas of work but it’s still startling to think that so many people are willing to ‘settle’ for spending their working week doing something they either don’t like or worse, feel is doing them harm.

The most startling thing about hearing the woman in the cafe talking about her job is that she realises that it is ‘killing her soul’ but she still doesn’t hate it. How do we get so complacent in anything that we no longer hate the things that feel like they’re robbing us of life?

Our soul is the very deepest part of who we are. It goes beyond the body that we can see. It has been described as ‘the eternal component of man that is fashioned in the very image of God, and that can exist apart from the physical body.’

When Jesus was preparing his disciples, one of the things he told them was … do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? – Matthew 16:26

Have you settled in some areas of your life even though you know it’s destroying you from the inside out? Of course, I’m not just talking about being in a dead end job. There are behaviours, attitudes and thought patterns that can creep into our lives which left unchallenged will leave our hearts hardened to the damage that is happening to our souls. Has it just become easier to put up with everything that has crowded into your life rather than fighting back and taking care of what matters most?

What are the things in your life that are killing your soul?

If there’s something that’s damaging or killing your soul, it’s time to start hating that thing. It’s time to make changes.

What have you been willing to tolerate even though it is leading you down a road you don’t want to travel?

You cannot change what you are willing to tolerate.
– Craig Groeschel

The good news is that God is willing and ready to help us overcome whatever it is that is killing our souls. It’s not about turning over a new leaf or trying harder but about turning over each area of our lives to the one who created our souls and wants the very best for us.

Don’t let a job, a habit, the expectations of others or anything else kill your soul. Identify what’s killing your soul and with Jesus’ help turn your back on it. Then let Jesus bring new life to your soul.



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About the author

Rodney Olsen

Rodney is a husband, father, cyclist, blogger and podcaster from Perth Western Australia.

He previously worked in radio for about 25 years but these days he spends his time at Compassion Australia, working towards releasing children from poverty in Jesus' name.

The views he expresses here are his own.

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6 Comments

  • I am with you on this, I’ve in a place in which, I’ve felt that way. It was only through the grace of God that I was able to find contentment. I still stuggle with it today, but God is working :-)…

  • Great reminder Rodney and very timely. Bit of a wake up call that there are those out there that don’t have hope and need to be give the only true hope – the harvest is ready but the labourers are few! 🙂 Have a great week

  • A blogging friend here in the U.S. made the comment a few months back that Trump being elected as President was killing her soul. She is not a believer so doesn’t have the hope of Christ. There have certainly been politicians I have not been in favor of, but to allow it to kill my soul? NO! What it all comes down to is believing that God is who He says He is, that He can do what He says He can, and that He is on His throne and in control. My future is not in this world. 🙂

  • I choose to give my soul to the ONE who can protect me from the one who can cause me “soul difficulties.” Thanks for the great reminder Rodney for keeping the focus where it needs to be.

  • Hi Rodney, appreciate the way you call us to re-examine our lives for those places we’ve just drifted into tolerating things we know are hurting us. I need this reminder every day.

    You have a nice way of writing posts that are focused, biblical and help us ask important questions. Thanks again for sharing.

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