((((((((((The Corpus Callosum))))))))))
The
Brain
If
you are able to read what is on your screen right now, that means that you
have, at the very least, a semi-healthy brain sitting just behind your eyes.
Now, as you know, the brain is basically the
command center for every bodily function, both voluntary and involuntary. And, to
put it into perspective, this command
center is more intricate than the operating system of a MacBook Pro
computer. The human brain is made up of millions of Neurons with cell bodies
containing dendrites, axons, synapses, neurotransmitters, myelin sheaths,
receptor sites and a bunch of other microscopic features. These cell bodies
called neurons are responsible for
thousands of neurological functions that take place inside your skull every
millisecond. In Short, The human brain is a very
complex system.
However, despite the intricacy of the
human brain, scientists have gathered that the brain is made up of two basic
sides or hemispheres. There is the right hemisphere, which is responsible
for visual tasks such as seeing and perceiving surroundings, and then there is
the left hemisphere, which controls
actions such as speech, calculations and the use of logic. These two hemispheres
are connected in the center by a band of axon fibers called the Corpus Callosum, which sends messages
from one side to the other. Simply put, this mass of two connected hemispheres
is what we know as the human brain. And we all know that healthy human beings
only have one brain right?.....or do we?
Double
Minded
In
1961 two neurosurgeons from California made an incredible discovery.1
In the process of trying to find a cure for epileptic seizures, Philip Vogel
and Joseph Bogan decided to surgically cut the Corpus Callosum on a human patient, disconnecting the
right side of the brain from the left side of the brain. Amazingly the patient
recovered suffering no immediate or serious side effects, and the seizures were
almost completely gone. After discovering that humans could still function
after this procedure, the surgeons started to operate on other epileptic
patients as well; and the results were generally positive. However, the
surgeons started to realize something. When the Corpus Callosum was severed, it
caused each patient’s one single
brain to become two separate brains.
Patients were literally becoming double-minded
human beings. Crazy right?
While
patients of this surgery were still able to function quite normally, this double-mindedness did cause some trouble
on occasion. You see, split-brain surgery
leaves two minds in one body, and the two minds don’t always
agree with each other. At times some patients find each of their minds actually
working against one other. For
example, a few split-brained patients noticed that while getting dressed, their
right hand was buttoning up their shirt, while their left hand was unbuttoning
it simultaneously. Others found their right hand putting items into a grocery
cart at the market, while their left hand was trying to take items out of the
cart and return them to the shelves. These patient’s two minds were at odds and it caused simple tasks to seem very
difficult. Now, this just seems ridiculous right? I mean, the human brain is
supposed to be one mechanism working as a unit, who wants to have two minds
that work against one another?
Well…apparently many of us do…or so it would appear.
Lets
take an honest look at our lives; many of us Christians seem as if we ourselves have had split-brain
surgery. And I don’t mean that we struggle to get dressed in the morning, or
that we have trouble shopping at the grocery store. What I mean, is that we
have some serious inconsistencies in our lives, which keep us from living up to
our God-ordained potential.
Just
as the human brain has two hemispheres, we human beings all have two
hemispheres in our Christian walk: the physical hemisphere and the spiritual hemisphere. And I know that this
might come as a shock to you (mega sarcasm), but many times our spiritual lives
and our physical lives are at odds.
Many times the two hemispheres of our lives just aren’t working together and they
seem unconnected. Many times it appears that we are missing that vital band of spiritual-fibers that connects our
physical and spiritual lives; the Spiritual
Corpus Callosum. Or as we Christians like to call it the Holy Spirit.
The
Ghost
As
a pastor’s kid growing up I would constantly hear all about this Holy Spirit (or as most of the people
where I am from call Him; the Holy Ghost),
and to be completely honest with you, it just seemed weird. I mean, I was all
for being a “Christ follower” and being a “disciple”, but the thought of being
filled with a “spirit” or a “ghost” just seemed…ridiculous. I had seen enough
episodes of Scooby-Doo to know that
mummies were bad, monsters were awful and ghosts were the worst, so I didn’t care to know a “holy”
one. As I got older I kept trying to live my Christian life-style without this
Holy Spirit. My thinking was that as long as I didn’t know too much about this
ghost named Holy, then I wasn’t
responsible for having Him in my life. Well...that theory really doesn’t
work…at all.
You
see, as Christians, we are God’s people. And God has called His people to be
Christ-like. God has called us to take His name to the ends of the earth.2
God has called us to represent Him at all times.3 God has called us
to be Holy as He is Holy.4 God has called us to be set apart and to
abstain from the things that the world does.5 God has called us to
love like crazy.6 God has called each one of us to do great things in our world!
And, although it sounds crazy, Jesus himself said that we are called to do even
greater things than He did while He
was on earth7.
The
point is that our faith is supposed to be so strong in the spiritual hemisphere
of life, that it flows over into the physical hemisphere of life8. The
two are supposed to be connected.
But
here is the thing: None of that is possible without the connecting band of spiritual fibers in our life…the Spiritual Corpus Collosum… The Holy
Spirit!
I
love the way that Paul puts it in Galatians 5: 16
16So
I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your
lives, then you won’t be doing what the sinful nature craves. (NLT. Italics
added)9
Paul
lays it out so clear. There is no way to argue with that! Believers need the
Holy Spirit to guide their lives!
If
we want to do what God has called us to do, we as believers have got to have
the Holy Spirit connecting our spiritual and physical hemispheres! Because
guess what, we cannot accomplish God’s plans for our lives until we have the spiritually connecting band in our lives. And one of the most important
aspects of the Holy Spirit is that He comes along side of us, guides us daily,
and helps us become the person that God has called us to be! But without the
Holy Spirit, reaching our full potential is not a reality.
Without
the spiritually connecting band, the Spiritual
Corpus Calosum, we Christians become double-minded. The two hemispheres of our
lives become so much at odds, that accomplishing God’s will becomes a
non-existent option.
In
chapter one of his letter to 1st century believers, James says, “A double-minded man is unstable in all his
ways.”8 And here, the word double-minded
(Gk. dipsuchos), literally means,
“of two souls”. Now, I don’t know about you, but being double minded, having
two souls, and finding myself unstable in all my ways, doesn’t sound like a recipe
for spiritual success. We need a common denominator between our physical and
spiritual lives….a spiritual Corpus Calosum…the Holy Spirit.
Ignorance Isn’t Bliss
Now,
maybe you are like I was and, even though you aren’t against it, the thought of
having a Holy Spirit living inside of
you seems a bit weird. Or maybe you are feeling like that double-minded person
that James speaks about in his letter. Maybe you are sincerely trying to live
out this life called Christianity,
but you continually do things in your physical life that you know are killing
your spiritual life. I have been there as well, and of course it is still a
daily challenge. From many failed attempts, let me just tell you this: This whole
Christianity-thing is impossible to live out without the Holy Spirit of God walking
with us. Our human attempts just won’t work…period. And remember, God has a
crazy awesome plan for our lives, but we will need our physical and spiritual
hemispheres to be completely connected if we want to have a shot at fulfilling
those plans! Lets keep our Spiritual
Corpus Calosum intact and let God work in us!
So
if anything that I have said has at least made you curious, I encourage you to
do some praying, reading and studying for yourself. Ask God to help you better
understand the Holy Spirit. Study some scriptures on the Holy Spirit; a good
place to start is Galatians 5. And maybe even read a good book on the Holy
Spirit. There are hundreds of them out there. Some good ones that I know of are
Wild Goose Chase by Mark Batterson, The Holy Spirit: A Pentecostal Perspective by
Anthony D. Palma, and Living in the Spirit
by Dr. George O. Wood. Don’t
ignore your curiosity, because ignorance of the Holy Spirit won’t make the
truth of Him go away. Trust me, I’ve tried it.
Peace
Love
God Bless
1. Exploring Psychology by David G. Myers: Ch 2
2. Mat 28:19 (NIV)
3. 2 Cor 6:20 (NIV)
4. 1 Pet 1:16 (NIV)
5. Rom 12:2 (NIV)
6. Gal 5:14 (NIV)
7. Jn 14:12 (NIV)
8. James 1:8 (KJV)
9. Gal 5:16 (NLT)
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