Let's define "myth."
The best all-encompassing definition I could find is: Speech, thought, word, discourse, conversation, story, saga, tale, anything of unknown or unproven origin. A myth could be true, but hasn't been or cannot be proven, and it can be fiction such as the myths of the Roman, Greek and Egyptian gods.
Here's another myth. Have you ever heard that humans use only about 10 percent of their brain? In the 1890s, William James and Boris Sidis were testing ideas about smart children. Afterwards Mr. James began teaching that people use only a fraction of our full mental potential. Others changed the words and said we use only 10 percent of the brain.
The first question anyone should ask is, "What does that mean?" The average weight of an adult brain is around three pounds, and the average size is about 128 cubic inches; and that would fill one half gallon plus two cups.
In the 1920s, the "self-help" movement began growing and John W. Campbell and Lowell Thomas began pushing the 10 percent idea. In the 1970s, Georgi Lozanov from Bulgaria taught that "we might be using only five to ten percent of our mental capacity." Even Dale Carnegie, in his book "How to Win Friends and Influence People," supported this myth.
So, if we use only 10 percent, what is the other 90 percent of the brain doing? The better question is, is it possible to use only one tenth of our brain? The answer is, of course, NO.
Neurologist Barry Gordon said, "We use virtually every part of the brain and most of the brain is active almost all the time." That's true. The brain never sleeps. Of course, the so-called New Age folks tell us that the "unused" part of the brain is capable of tremendous psychic powers. And if we tapped into the unused 90 percent we could do miraculous things. However, there is no scientific evidence that supports any of that.
In an article titled "Could you survive using only 10 percent of your brain?" Melina Uncapher said, "This myth of 10 percent is one of the most pervasive lies we unknowingly perpetuate about the brain, and some recent research has finally provided at least one method we may use to try to debunk this neuromyth." And the myth has been disproven.
Note: In case you didn't see it, many folks don't understand that the brain and the mind are not the same thing.
Let's comment on another myth about brain size affecting intelligence. We've received misinformation about animals evolving into humans. We're taught that when the cranium and brain evolved large enough, the animals developed higher thinking and communication skills, invented the concept of God and became fully human. Well, you can put that down the garbage disposer.
Intelligence is determined, in part, by the number of properly firing synapses in the brain, regardless of the brain's size. Four other factors about intelligence are 1) being observant, 2) gaining knowledge, 3) eating properly and getting proper sleep, and 4) wisdom. Here is where we understand the separation of the mind (or spirit) and the brain.
The brain is the physical organ that is genetically programmed to operate the body. Although God gave the human brain the memory and storage capacity of possibly the entire world wide web, and the brain controls bodily functions, the brain has no power to do anything on its own.
This is where the mind -- the spirit, the person -- comes into play. As we listen, read, ask questions and observe life around us, we gain knowledge. As we eat and sleep properly, our brains store the knowledge in various "files" the brain creates and makes knowledge available to utilize as needed. The brain is programmed to do that.
Wisdom is knowing how to use knowledge. It's knowing how to interact with people, how to be safe, how to perform a job, etc. With wisdom, we acknowledge God, learn about Him and obey Him.
The physical brain operates our bodily functions but our minds are in control of the body's actions -- where we go, what we'll do, how we act and interact. And we gain wisdom through studying the Bible and understanding life. Using wisdom, we can enjoy a healthy and happy life on earth as we prepare to live with God in heaven.
The myth is wrong: 100 percent of our brain is used every day. It's wisdom we often lack.
We'll talk about the spirit another time.
S. Eugene Linzey is author, speaker, and mentor. Send comments and questions to [email protected]. Visit his web site at www.genelinzey.com. The opinions expressed are those of the author.