Published: November 06, 2009 06:36 pm      

Are you putting your soul to good use?

One scene from “Oh, Brother, Where Art Thou?” always sticks with me.

A hitchhiker with a guitar is picked up at the crossroads of a country road. He tells his traveling companions he’s just sold his soul to the devil. When they ask why he would do such a thing, the character responds, “Well, I wasn’t using it at the time.”

As humorous as that sounds, it sent me a serious message.

Most of us fail to give enough thought to what’s going on with our souls.

The truth is, many people “aren’t using their souls.”

They coast aimlessly along with little or no sense of purpose, direction or foundation. They rely on life’s experiences and society to define their morals, values, character traits and point of view.

Theologians debate the definition of a soul, and probably everyone who’s thought about it has a different concept of just what his or her soul is. To me, the soul is that eternal part of me that contains my capacity to know and relate to God. It’s a reservoir for my character development, my love of music, art, literature and all things that add beauty and meaning to life.

It is the essence of who I am because my soul weaves together all the parts of my identity. It is the part of me that will last after my body bites the dust — literally. It’s my spiritual center. Such a vital spot shouldn’t be neglected or taken for granted.

The following story serves as a good reminder.

It seems a king had four wives. He lavished attention on the fourth, third and second wives and generously showered them with everything their hearts desired.

His first wife, however, went sadly neglected. She lived unloved and unnoticed.

One day, the king realized he would die soon. He did not want to die alone, so he went to each of his three favorite wives and asked if any one of them would be willing to die with him and remain with him throughout eternity. All swiftly refused, and each left him without so much as looking back.

The first wife, however, volunteered to follow him in death.

The anonymous author made this application of the parable.

“In truth, we all have four wives in our lives: Our fourth wife is the body. No matter how much time and effort we lavish in making it look good, it will leave us when we die.

“The third wife is all we own in terms of possessions, status and wealth. When we die, we will soon be forgotten, and our possessions and wealth will go to someone else.

“The second wife is our family and friends. No matter how much they have been there for us in life, they can follow us only so far as the graveside.

“The first wife is our soul. Often neglected in pursuit of wealth, power and pleasures of the world, the soul will accompany each of us and remain with us through all eternity.”

Maybe we all need to do a little soul searching this weekend and find ways to replenish our spiritual reserves. They are, after all, eternal.

— E-mail: bdavis@register-herald.com