Dear Father, Apostle Iren read a scripture in church yesterday, and I realized how rarely we even discuss it. It says, “Beloved, I wish above all things that thou mayest prosper and be in health, even as thy soul prospereth.” After reading it, the first thing that may cross our minds is the desire that we prosper, but we do not often pay attention to the conjunction “even as,” translated from the Greek word kathōs, to mean “in the same way.” It does more than join the two ideas; it introduces a comparison between them and relates it to the prayer. Sadly, there seems to be any balance in the life of an average man that reflects the message of this scripture. If our approach and commitment to increasing our financial wealth and maintaining our physical health were equal, or nearly equal, to our commitment to spiritual growth, I wonder how balanced our prosperity would be. Perhaps this scripture admonishes us against the imbalance that exists when we prosper financially while lacking spiritually, because really, what is the gain if, in the end, we lose our soul? Herein lies the subtlety of humanity and prosperity: the pursuit is naturally geared towards the visible aspects of life, as though mortality is all there is to our composition. And although the prosperity of the soul may not be as visible, the prosperity of the whole largely depends on the prosperity of the soul. So I pondered the question: as much as I desire prosperity, at what rate is my soul itself prospering? Translations: Slide 1: English Slide 2: French Slide 3: Bengali Slide 4: Hindu Slide 5: Urdu Slide 6: Portuguese #LettertoGod #prosperity #thesoul #health #wealth