The Divided Mind

Read it or watch it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa-2TCf28HM&t

The following information presents a biblical point of view and is provided only for educational and entertainment purposes. It represents the opinions of its author alone. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment regarding general or specific medical, psychological or physiological conditions. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care providers with any questions you may have regarding a condition. Never disregard professional medical, psychological or physiological advice, or delay in seeking it, because of something you have read or heard in this article.

THE FRACTURED MIND

No doubt about it, the mind is an impressive piece of software. It is reported to be made up of a hundred billion neurons all of which manage memory, reason, emotions, sensations, and coordination. Likewise it is proficient at gathering, sorting and filing information away that lets it come to a conclusion regarding self (self awareness). The mind also makes choices (contracts) that become the basis for why we remain devoted and committed to a particular behavior or task. As an example:

• I made a contract (I agreed) to set my body, soul, and spirit to the task of learning to ride a bike and this represented a new function in my life.

• I made another contract (I agreed) to set my body, soul, and spirit to the task of learning to drive a car and this represented another function in my life.

These learned responses become second nature to us and once a task is filed away it can then be called into service as the need arises. Most every human endeavor follows this elementary means of processing. From our earliest days of infancy, to the routines we establish at age eighty; we have chosen to respond in predetermined ways.

These learned responses can also overlap. While driving the car, we can be eating a sandwich and talking to a passenger; all the while we are still following many rules of the road and consciously mapping out a course towards our next destination. We refer to this as “multitasking” and it allows various independent responses to come together to accomplish a single goal.

This also applies to how we deal with pressures in life. As issues challenge us we learn to cope by confronting, complying with or getting out of the way of trouble. Such responses also get filed away in the mind and heart to be called upon another day.

• I made a contract (I agreed) to set my body, soul, and spirit to the task of confronting, complying with or getting out of the way of trouble; and this represented a new function in my life.

In a broader sense, this can also explain how we have been molded to cope with difficult human exchanges. Since man’s fallen nature often dominates in physical, intellectual, emotional and spiritual ways we tend to create skills for dealing with each type of intrusion. Many of these encounters create defense mechanisms within us that get called into service when the need arises.

• I made a contract (I agreed) to set my body, soul, and spirit to the task of dealing with a dominant or abusive person and this represented a new function in my life.

These responses represent a “compartmentalized” or “fractured” way of coping in life. Essentially we call upon different parts of our person to deal with interactions with the outside world. It’s not necessarily wrong to rely upon such skills, but it can cause us to short circuit at times. You see, in a perfect world this ability is a healthy part of daily living. However in a fallen world it requires that we spend a lot of our time preserving and protecting self.

• Long ago I once made a contract to engage in a behavior designed to preserve, protect, or defend me against some injustice; however I now can’t seem to turn it off!

You may also benefit in seeing how the fractured condition is a behavior suspended in time. If at an early age we reacted to an event or an uncommon experience then a young mind retains that memory for us. For this reason we may find ourselves not always responding or reacting as an adult. At those times of vulnerability I suggest asking a very simple question;

“How old do I feel?”

When we find ourselves reacting in ways that are immature, or age inappropriate, it suggests that at a specific time in life we were forced to fracture. Here’s an example of time standing still that you may be able to relate to.

Let’s say that thirty years ago a heated disagreement broke out between you and a friend and you haven’t seen them since. When you think back on this person have they ever changed? The most common response is “no”, because your only frame of reference is thirty years old. Hence they look the same, they haven’t ever aged and they are still a jerk! Subsequently you may still find your heart pounding and many of your defense mechanisms reengaging.