The hopples fall from your ankles, you find an unfailing

In Psalm 138, a hymn of thanksgiving, the psalmist expresses gratitude with her whole being because on the day she called out in the midst of trouble, God increased her strength of soul.

We are not give specifics about how God increase the Psalmist's strength of soul or what exactly that means.

What is "strength of soul?"

Jack Kornfield wrote, "The basic principle of spiritual life is that our problems become the very place to discover wisdom and love." (Kornfield, A PATH WITH HEART, p. 71)

Howard Thurman wrote about the necessity of struggle and of risking vulnerability if one is to grow. To protect oneself from the threat of danger is to quietly sicken within as one is "cut off from the nourishment of the Great Exposure." (Howard Thurman, FOR THE INWARD JOURNEY, p. 39)

Alan Jones, author and dean of Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, wrote that "without the nourishment provided by the ability to rest in uncertainties, mysteries, and doubts, the soul begins to starve." (Phil Cousineau, SOUL: AN ARCHEOLOGY, p. 141)

The sufi poet Rumi speaks in a similar vein when we writes about praying for thieves and muggers who injure and rob us. He gives his reason for praying for them as follows:

Rumi is reminding us that even a terrible situation like being mugged and robbed can become an opportunity to rediscover who you are and what your true values are. This is worth more than possessions or safety.

I don't think we should be too literal about putting this into practice. There are situations of genuine danger in which the wisest course of action is to get out of it. I think the point Rumi is trying to make is that we are not stuck in our anger and fear when we harmed by others, rather we always have choices. One of the choices we can make is not to remain a victim after we have been victimized. This invitation into a personal transformation from being a victim in life to becoming spiritually proactive is what I call developing strength of soul.

A victim sees life as a series of blessings and curses; as we become more spiritually proactive we see life as a series of challenges, opportunities and lessons.

A victim views life as a series of successes and failures, and one's worth is measured by one's achievements; as we become more spiritually proactive we view life as an eternal dance of the heart and our worth is independent of our accomplishments.

A victim often thinks that their options are limited to either fight or flight, and they live in fear; as we become more spiritually proactive we realize that our options are limited only by the abundance of wisdom and love within us, and we live in faith.

In our Thursday night discussion group we have begun reading Thich Nhat Hanh's book, "THE HEART OF THE BUDDHA'S TEACHING." One of the ideas of Hanh's that we read and discussed this week is that all of us have within us both wholesome and unwholesome seeds and it is essential, if we are to actualize our true Buddha nature, that we water the wholesome seeds. The practice of mindfulness is the process of identifying all the seeds within us and watering the ones that are the most wholesome.

This too speaks to me of soul strength as it brings to awareness the life-force that animates all growth; that mysterious yet omnipresent drive that gradually and inevitably transforms an acorn into a mighty oak. While soil and sunlight, water and climate matter, the guiding force comes from within the seeds own DNA.

My belief is that the essence of who we are is love and that love is the source of, and the nourishment for, soul strength. Love is written into our DNA.

There may be many people and situations that come into our lives to challenge us; they are opportunities to deepen the roots of our loving nature. And there will also come into our lives many guides and allies that will offer us support and remind us of our inner resources and strength.

Developing our strength of soul entails a continual recommitment to our core values; a continual return to clear thinking, wisdom and compassion; a continual rediscovery of our true essence; and a continual reaffirmation of the universal love and freedom that is our birthright.

At the conclusion of Psalm 138 the psalmist affirms, "You, O God, will fulfill your purpose for me. . . . You will not forsake what you have created." And the purpose and fulfillment of it all is love, everlasting and abundant love.

I give you thanks, Yahweh, with my whole heart;

Before the gods I sing your praise;

I bow down before your holy temple and give thanks

For your steadfast love and faithfulness.

For you have exalted your name and your word

Above everything.

On the day I called, you answered me,

You increased my strength of soul.

All the rulers of the earth shall praise you, Yahweh,

For they have heard the words of your mouth.

They shall sing of the ways of God,

For great is the glory of Yahweh.

For though you are high, you regard the lowly;

But the haughty you perceive from far away.

Though I walk in the midst of trouble,

You preserve me against the wrath of my enemies;

You stretch out your hand,

And your right hand delivers me.

You, O God, will fulfill your purpose for me;

Your steadfast love, Yahweh, endures forever.

You will not forsake what you have created.