Richard Roberts – Second of four parts
There is an old legend about Adam and Eve that says the night after Adam and Eve were expelled from the Garden of Eden, they slept under a tree outside the gate that was guarded by the Angel. As they slept, the spirits of the earth, water, air, and fire came and stole their souls. Each claimed the souls for itself and an argument broke out among the spirits about where to hide man’s soul.
The spirit of the earth said, “Hide man’s soul in me, deep beneath the crust of the earth, and man will never find his soul.” But the other spirits said, “No, some day man will create a machine that will allow him to look deep beneath the crust of the earth and he will find his soul.”
The spirit of the water said, “Hide man’s soul in me ― in my deepest, darkest, coldest waters.” The other spirits said, “No, some day man will build a ship for people to sail under water, and man will find his soul.”
The spirit of the air said, “Hide man’s soul in me, high above the highest heaven, beyond the most distant star.” The other spirits said, “No, some day man will create a spaceship able to travel to the farthest reaches of heaven, and man will find his soul.”
The spirit of the fire said, “Hide man’s soul in my hot, white, consuming flames.” This they tried. But to their utter dismay, when man’s soul came out, they saw that it had a newness, a clarity, a beauty that they had never seen.
Perplexed, the four spirits went back to their master, the devil, and told him about their efforts to hide man’s soul. The devil laughed and mocked them, saying, “I’ll tell you where to hide man’s soul so he will never find it. Hide man’s soul inside himself!”
Only your soul has the potential to live an everlasting life. I encourage you to trust God by submitting your soul to Him and confessing Jesus as Lord of your life, your soul, your entire being. In exchange, God will return to you eternal, everlasting life. The psalmist cried to God, “Unto thee, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee” (Psalm 25:1–2). May that be the prayer of each one of us today.