Just Soul Food III - Root Paul, Prayer, Purpose, Praise

By Ron Carter

Just Soul Food III - Root is the third book in the Just Soul Food Bible Study Series. The Root was developed to demonstrate how Christ is the root, promise & true love for our relationships, exemplified in Paul's gospel of grace, encompassing prayer, the revelation of our purpose, and praise.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Sep 30, 2011
• ISBN: 9781300175742

Ron Carter

Ron Carter is Co-Superintendent of Sunday School along with his wife, Mary at First Free Will Baptist Church in the Richmond, Virginia area. He is also chairman of the Board of Trustees for the church. Ron accepted this role after being convinced this was God’s will for him. One of his responsibilities is leading in an opening assembly each week which includes a devotion. Those devotions are what Reflections is all about. During his adult life, Ron has served as deacon at two former churches. In addition, he served on the administrative board for a Christian School, K-12, in one of them. He has served on and chaired other committees as well. Ron has had the honor and privilege, has experienced the responsibility of preparing and delivering messages for worship services on several occasions. This has given him great appreciation and respect for those who responded to God’s call to make this their life’s work. Ron grew up in rural, central Virginia, the only child at home during most of his childhood and youth. It was during a Summer revival at Salem Christian Church in Louisa County that he responded to the Holy Spirit and asked Jesus into his heart and life. About two weeks later, on a bright Sunday afternoon, Ron was the youngest of three generations in his family to be baptized in the South Anna River near his home. Ron is now retired, having sold an HVAC business he founded nearly forty years ago. He and his wife, Mary, also retired, love their church family, church activities and serving God in whatever ways they can. They love to travel and have met people from many parts of the country, many with whom they maintain contact and consider extended family. Some of Ron’s photography is an integral part of Reflections. Ron and Mary have five children, five grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. They make their home in Glen Allen, Virginia.

Book preview

Just Soul Food III - Root Paul, Prayer, Purpose, Praise

JUST SOUL FOOD III: Christ the Root of True Love & Promise Paul, Prayer, Purpose & Praise

The Root Cycle

Written By,

Ron Carter

Copyright Page

ISBN: 978-1-257-79265-8

eISBN: 978-1-300-17574-2

Copyright © 2011 Just Soul Food-All Rights Reserved

Revision: Updated Aug 2012

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All Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible unless otherwise noted.  In a few cases the author has paraphrased some words of the text for increased readability replacing love for charity, s for eth, you for ye, etc.  These changes are not part of the original Bible version.  The book includes both biblical quotes and paraphrased references.  Statements concerning better health and well being are the author’s researched opinion.  The information may be used to enhance the reader’s overall health, but should not replace licensed medical care. All pictures and images are original or listed in the public domain.

Dedication

This book is dedicated to all our brothers and sisters who seek to be free of the dark, unknown, mysterious side of life and love.  To help deepen their faith, through demonstrating that the root, promise and depth of God’s love for us is in Christ.  For he has and will fulfill our darkness with his light, understanding and the promise of true love.

Menu Items

These books were written to be consumed in numerical sequence.  However, since that may not always be the case, we include a list of the menu items and their applications below. 

The meat in our cyclical diagram represents God, Christ or Love, in one form or another, and/or Heaven.  Meat is food.  It is the solid food of love, both physical and spiritual.  And it is the point of conception.  It represents love because before you first came into the world and arrived on the planet as a physical being, you were conceived in love having come spiritually from God.  However, or with whomever it took place, your conception and later arrival on the planet after being carried for nine months by a loving, consenting mother clearly indicates an act of love.  Meat is the top of the food chain because it is the accumulation of all the other elements in the cycle.  It is the highest form of food.  Meat represents love, the essence of life.  It is composed of amino acids, the basic building blocks for protein needed for all animal life.  Most importantly, it is made available to our plate only by the sacrifice of life and blood.  Blood was shed and life taken that another life may continue.  Meat represents the strongest structure of all the cyclical elements.  All of these factors indicate why the meat represents the solid food of love and is at the top of our cyclical diagram. 

Sweet potatoes are a root crop.  The sweet potatoes represent the root, point of darkness, man, the earth, or seed in soil. Sweet potatoes represent these items because they are rooted and grown in darkness away from direct sunlight.  Man himself was formed out of the dust of the earth and upon death he returns back to it.  Potatoes themselves come in several different types all stemming from the root of Adam.  And as they mature when watered, they begin to bud and sprout green plant life.  We also call this the point of initialization, because this is the point at which the concept, whatever it may be, is initialized and brought to us on the earth.  It is the point at which the seed is placed into the soil and takes up roots.  Any element of love that is conceptualized in the spiritual world by God, or the physical world by parents, will be initialized in you in some form.  This form can be made known to you as a thought, dream, vision, word, act or deed.  The act of being born on the planet is an act of initialization and each time we awaken is a re-initialization.  All of these factors indicate why the sweet potatoes represent the root, point of darkness, man, the earth, or seed in soil

The greens represent water and green plant life.  This is the point of receiving, acceptance, nurturing and transformation.  The greens address the heart of the cycle, perform a large variety of functions and make up the second largest, independent cycle of the larger Just Soul Food cyclical diagram.  Greens are the most basic life form and the most prevalent life form on the planet.  In the waters, the greens are represented in large and microscopic plant life such as phytoplankton, which grow abundantly in oceans around the world, and are the foundation of the marine food chain.  On the land, the greens can be represented in many green plants and tree foliage with access to sunlight and water.  They all contain the pigment chlorophyll, which gives them their greenish color.  The greens that humans consume come through the marine food chain or are eaten directly in such foods as spinach and collard greens.  Greens can be bitter, but provide a very beneficial function to the body.  Greens provide valuable nutrients, are alkaline and balance acidity in digestion. 

Most importantly, both ocean and land based greens contain chlorophyll.  Green plants use chlorophyll for photosynthesis.  Greens, through the process of photosynthesis, transform light from the sun and water into green plant food, carbohydrates, the essential product.  And they also transform carbon dioxide into life, giving oxygen as a byproduct.  This process is critical to maintaining life, as we know it on our planet.  Greens are that point where we receive through the heart and into our being.  This represents the point where we water that which has been placed into the soil.  Water activates, converts and transforms whatever is in the soil.  Here we receive, accept, nurture, and transform into a real life-altering entity that which we take into our heart and thereby, the very soul of our being.  All of these factors indicate why the greens represent water, receiving, acceptance, nurturing and transformation.

The bread represents the end product or result.  Depending upon the application, it may represent different types of things, leavened or unleavened bread (representing our Savior – Christ).  It is the point of light & manifestation, that point at which it is made known or revealed to us.  It is that point at which we recognize the result, or end product from the entity that was received in the greens.  The corn bread is the true treasure of the Just Soul Food diagram (as any true soul food lover can attest).  It is a highly desired and rewarding element on the platter. These factors indicate why the bread represents the end product and result.  Cyclically the layout is as follows:

Meat – Point of Conception

Root – Point of Darkness, Initialization

Greens – Point of Water, Receptivity,

Acceptance Nurture & Transformation

(Heart)

Bread – Point of Light, Bread,

Manifestation

Meat – God, Christ, Love’s Food or

Heaven

Root – Darkness, Man, Earth, Seed/Root

in Soil

Greens – Water, Receiving, Acceptance,

Nurturing and Transformation

Bread – Light, Bread, Result or End Product

He has inscribed a circle on the face of the waters at the boundary between light and darkness - Job 26:10 ESV

The Just Soul Food primary cycle layout is as follows:

Meat – In the beginning God created the

heavens (Love)

Root – and the earth.  And the earth

was without form and void and darkness

was upon the face of the deep. (Seed)

Greens – And the spirit of God moved on

the face of the waters.  And God said

(Water)

Bread – let there be light: and there was

light. (Light) 

Meat – And God saw the light, that it was

good:...(Love)

Introduction

Just Soul Food III – Root is the third book in the Just Soul Food Bible Study Series.  In order to convey the intended conceptual understanding of the cyclical events, these books should be consumed in the proper numerical sequence.  They were written to help calm the struggle of finding and understanding love, by presenting a collective perspective on the concepts, elements and cyclical pattern of love, displayed on the plate set before us.  This cyclical pattern of love, when fully digested, will lead us to resolution of fears, a better understanding of the intersection of all our worlds, and a more peaceful life.  It was developed as a means to simply illustrate both graphically and literally, how to unify our concept of God and love in the written word and the world.  To calm the inner struggles of the heart and mind, and to receive the promise of true love, peace and acceptance within ourselves and others. 

Much has been written about love over the ages.  Many songs have been written and many questions have been asked trying to resolve a few primary questions.  What is true love?  Where does it come from and how do I find it on this earth?  So many questions remain regarding this, what appears to be an elusive entity, that many in their hearts have chosen to leave it at just that; an entity that will have to remain beyond reach.  They have relegated it to an idea, hope or dream that sounds good in theory, but not a truly attainable or possible reality in practical, everyday life.  As a result of this kind of thinking, they have bought into the idea that I am never again going to believe in something so elusive, and expose my heart to the possibility of such hurt and darkness.  They view it as just too painful.  They believe that the vulnerability of love exposes one’s self far too much.  They sincerely believe that the promise of true love is just not present on this earth; that it is a too hard to find, and not worth the effort it takes to find it.  Acceptance of this type of thinking will keep the heart always longing and keep one relegated to a life of denying and missing an essential, foundational piece of that which life itself is born out of - Love.    

In this book we want you to come to understand that the promise of true love is a reality and far from being just a pipe dream.  We want to show how the promise of true love is evident in the very cycles that are being established in you.  And we want you to emphatically know that love is taking root within you; to be exemplified as its cycle is being manifested as part of the Just Soul Food diagram.  And that as this cycle manifests itself; as we begin to spiritually see and have faith in the unseen workings of love within our heart, the promise of its fulfillment grows, changes and transforms us.  The root/seed and promise of love will blossom and result in love.  The root of love will become the bread of love.  And as that cycle continues onward in the cycles of daily life in love, we will remake even the root itself, so that we are not just a mere Russet or Idaho potato, but we become transformed into a true sweet potato.

In the original book Just Soul Food – Meat, we outlined the foundations of the Just Soul Food cycle and some of the supporting cycles that