Soul Food: 15 Practical Ways to Nourish Your Soul
In a time of spiritual malnourishment, let’s foster some greater health for our souls.
Most of us make some attempt to get the right nutrition for our bodies, but what are we doing to foster health in our souls? Just like our bodies need a well-balanced diet, exercise, rest, and at times medicine to stay well, our souls need regular care too. But too often, especially in today’s busy, stressful, and material world, our spiritual health gets pushed to the wayside. And even if we want to sooth and nourish our souls, how do we do it?
A little while back, I shared “seven practical ways to nourish the soul” on Instagram. I narrowed in on seven because, well, I thought it was fitting being that the number seven has so much spiritual significance. Plus, it fit well into my Reel! But the positive feedback inspired me to add to the list, flesh each idea out, and share it here. This list is by no means exhaustive, but I hope you find a new idea here (or maybe several!) you’ll try incorporating into your daily life.
15 Practical Ways to Nourish the Soul:
1) Watch a sunrise
As many days as I can, I try to be outside at sunrise. Not only does the morning light boost energy and help to set our circadian rhythms, this simple act fosters greater peace, appreciation, humility, presence and gratitude as well. Talk about a nutritional bang for your buck!
2) Reed Scripture (or another book of wisdom)
Timeless wisdom is like water in a healthy soul-diet: all the nutrients in the world can’t sustain us without it. As a Christian, my recommendation is reading the Bible daily. Laying out a monthly plan for yourself, putting it on your daily to-do list, and leaving your Bible in a place you’ll see it every day (mine lives on the table where I drink my morning coffee!) can help you build the daily habit. Other religious books or other texts of ancient wisdom (like writings by the Stoics for example) of course are options too.
3) Keep a daily gratitude journal
We all have things to be grateful for – from the good to the great to the simple. Even the challenges or hurts that inevitably drive our lives forward. Giving thanks quickly fosters inner peace and feelings of abundance, and wouldn’t you know, gratitude a powerful magnet for good, too.
4) Take a screen or social media detox
Put the phone down. We all know we should, we all want to, but how often are we really doing it? Maybe it starts with taking Sundays off from social media, or leaving your phone in the other room during mealtime, or replacing TV with a book on weeknights. Or maybe it’s a month off social media altogether! I’d liken screens to the simple sugars: sure, they give us an instant hit of dopamine, but once that fades, we’re left hungrier than before. So it’s easy to see why spending more time in the “real world” and less on screens is healthful for the soul.
5) Do something hard
Practicing the art of “pushing through” is vital to learning how to not crumble when life gets hard. Daily practices like cold showers and fitness are great options. But it’s not just limited to the physical: say you’re afraid of public speaking for example. Signing up for a class can help you get out of that comfort zone.
6) Prioritize sleep
Just do it. Doing anything good for us - mind, body or spirit - is a whole lot harder when we’re tired. So let’s stop wearing exhaustion like a badge of honor, and start prioritizing the life-giving rejuvenation of a good night’s rest.
7) Organize your space
Especially if you’re someone that gets overwhelmed inside when life feels a little chaotic, reclaiming some authority over your everyday by organizing your home or workspace can help foster feelings of peace and stability that soothe you from the inside out.
8) Check something off your to-do list
Like the above, this is an easy way to weed out some of the chaos in our lives. How many of us know the feeling of being so overwhelmed that we can’t seem to accomplish anything at all? Doing one small task we need to do will often work to calm our anxieties, and it builds momentum too. Tip: start with the easiest thing to set yourself up for some success.
9) Indulge from time to time – and don’t call it a cheat!
Self-control is important, but being overly hard on ourselves is a sure-fire way to sicken our souls over time. Letting ourselves indulge from time to time is a way to practice gentleness toward self. Think: that chocolate cake, a Netflix binge, skipping a workout to just relax. And here’s the most important part: let’s stop calling it a cheat! I like to reframe it from negative to positive by thinking of these indulgences as personal gifts. But let me stress again: indulgences should be our exceptions, not our norms.
10) Offer a random act of kindness
It’s become a cliche, but that’s because it’s true. Doing something nice for someone else uplifts your own spirit, too. Some simple ideas: compliment a stranger, send a thoughtful card or a book to a friend, give space to the struggling/bad driver, or pick up the order behind you at the drive-through (like how it’s anonymous?). Or my personal favorite: invest in a stockpile of small Target gifts cards: give them out randomly when someone does you a solid (like the maintenance guy that fixes your shower on Thanksgiving…just saying) or to the people who always brighten your day (like the gals who work at your go-to lunch spot…again just saying:) ). The amount doesn’t need to be big to make an impact.
11) Get involved in your community
Community might just be the protein in this equation: you know, the thing that sustains us long after we’ve filled up, that keeps us satiated and makes us strong. Being connected and active in a way that matters to those we care about is an important part of keeping our souls fed. Maybe it’s a volunteer position, impactful work, or simply attending a regular class or event. Maybe it’s the roles we keep within our families or inner circles.
12) Hugs!
Let’s get that serotonin going! We all know the feeling of a good hug after a long day, and science shows us that this little act literally boosts our feel-good hormones too. And feeling uplifted can help us be our best - inside and out.
13) Pray
If Scripture is the water in our soul-nourished diet, prayer might be the most vital nutrient. Lifting up the heart and mind to God invites His peace, guidance and presence into our lives. It invokes humility and trust, and it holds power. Because: we can’t expect to do it all on our own; in fact, we’re not meant to.
14) Ask for forgiveness from someone you have wronged
Did someone say, “vulnerability”? While it’s not comfortable to admit, we all have wronged people - even if unintentionally. And that guilt can only serve to damage. Taking ownership by apologizing is a great first step. But to truly move on - us and them - let’s not shy away from asking for forgiveness.
15) Forgive someone who has wronged you
There’s that quote: “Bitterness is like drinking poison, hoping the other person will die.” I was just pondering whether forgives is the height of humility or the height of strength, but I think it’s both. In any case, it’s our liberation from sickness into peace. So forgive. Let go. Forget.
