Knowing and applying truth individually or collectively sounds so simple if we were already whole beings with healthy hearts and healthy minds working in healthy bodies, producing such fruit as can only be found in heaven.  Reality hits us with the fact that we live in a fallen world where the Fall of Adam and Eve left us with several shortcomings.  The Fall distorts our hearts to desire the “not good” (Romans 7:7-25 and many others).  The Fall distorts our minds to not clearly think and reason the “good” (Romans 3:9-20 and 7:7-25).  The Fall presses limitations and illnesses upon our bodies (Romans 5:12).  The Fall works through other fallen humans to exacerbate the adverse effects (Romans 2 and 3).  The heart, then mind, and the body do not function alone, but inter-relate and interact in interdependent ways.  With this interdependency of fallen beings we must face the reality of broken hearts, bent minds, and their consequences. 

                While the reality of a fallen world seems self-evident to a discerning Christian, the reality deserves attention and explanation.  If one does not accept the Bible as a source of truth, they must find other explanation for reality in one or more other options.  Some believe random chance or fate created order out of chaos to produce today’s reality.  Often these groups also look to the survival of the fittest, basing today’s reality on what best overcomes the challenges of the universe over time.  Some deny reality as being only an illusion, maybe a dream in the mind of some being or the baser reflection of an unseen spiritual reality.  Some find meaning in reality and some do not.  In reality, our fallen world is only known correctly through the revealed truth from a God who revealed and continues to reveal.  Attempting to work out another explanatory system is as futile as the above absurd counter-examples illustrate.

                We live with the reality of possessing desires of the heart which may or may not correspond with this revealed Biblical reality.  The Fall distorted our hearts to desire that which is other than the good of this revelation.  The Fall began with mankind wanting to be in control instead of submitting unquestionably to God’s Word and the resulting consequences included change in the original desires between husband and wife creating strife in that relationship.  Not only were Adam and Even aware of sin in a way not experienced before, they had a desire to sin.  They became self-focused rather than God-focused or other-focused.  They rebelled against God’s good.  “Not good” is still not good even if we like it, even if we desire it, as we are not the standard of what is “good”.

                We also live in the reality of minds whose functioning was distorted to not think and reason the “good”.  When unchecked by God, desires of the heart drove decisions away from the “good”, as minds began to rationalize such deviations, allowing the pursuit of the “not good”.  The unchecked mind of man degraded to a more foolish functioning pattern, further from the truth and its pursuit.  The mind became more and more unable to even recognize truth and thus becomes more animal like as it ventured further from God.  Such “bent minds” cannot see straight even when it stands in front of their eyes.

                Our bodies then function with these broken hearts and bent minds, with our bodies own weaknesses pulling us away from being able to feel and to think rightly.  The bodies further distort reality and the pursuit of good especially when illness of those bodies influences how one feels and how one thinks.  Several examples bring this into sharp focus.  When one experiences a simple flu virus infection, the brain slows, one’s joy is dulled, frustration of being sick presses down, often leading to irritability or sadness. This results from chemical and metabolic changes in the body and brain. When one suffers a broken bone, inflammation from the injury affects the brain’s feelings and thoughts drawing attention to the injury and its interference with life.  In these and other cases, suffering draws attention to the suffering and away from seeking or enjoying the “good”. 

This is not a one-way street however in which the body does all the effect without receiving from the heart and mind.  Broken hearts and bent minds may disrupt the body as well.  Emotional trauma amplifies the body’s experience of disease severity.  Emotional suffering may even trigger bodily symptoms of pain, fatigue, and Gi distress.  The thinking of bent minds may trigger more brokenness of heart. All of this may spiral out of control with these interrelationships of heart, mind, and body. 

                Wholeness of life requires wholeness of the interrelated parts.  Heart, mind, and body must work together to produce shalom which is more than an absence of illness and suffering.  Shalom stands out further as the positive presence of wellness across the whole person.  Brokenness of the Fall hinders such shalom in how it affects our entire being, not just the spirit and guilt of sin.  Restoration from brokenness to wholeness of shalom will require attention to all of these factors and their interactions. 

Next in this series… The Weight of Beliefs “Below” Our Thoughts and Feelings.