Stirring Up Joy: Overcoming Spiritual Depression in Christ

"Spiritual depression, or if you prefer the alternative term, we are trying to diagnose and to treat the case of the so-called miserable Christian. Now we've been at pains to indicate Sunday by Sunday that these very terms in and of themselves direct our attention through that which is so essentially wrong about this condition." [00:53:28]

"There are those, I know, who won't recognize these conditions at all and brush them aside impatiently and just say that the Christian is one who sings all the day long and that ever since they were converted, that's been their story, and now I am happy all the day, never known a ripple on the surface of the soul." [02:37:04]

"Feelings play such an important and a fundamental part in our lives. I regard it as a great part of my calling in the ministry to emphasize the priority of the mind and the intellect in connection with the faith, but though I say that, I'm very ready to admit that the feelings, the emotions, the sensibilities obviously are of very vital importance." [08:22:28]

"Though we are converted and regenerated, our fundamental personality is not changed so that the person who was more given to depression than another person before conversion will still have to fight that after conversion. We've all got certain common problems in the Christian Life, yes, but we all have our special problems also." [11:38:12]

"Our feelings should be actively engaged as Christians. If you and I have never been moved by our faith, my friends, well, I say we'd better examine the foundations again. If a poet even can say, 'For I have felt a presence that disturbs me with the joys of elevated thought,' how much more so should you and I be able to say it." [14:45:48]

"We cannot create feelings. We cannot command them at will. Let me put this quite plainly: you can't generate feelings within yourself, or you can make yourself weep. I've often seen people making themselves weep and cry, but that doesn't of necessity mean feelings. That's false sentimentality." [16:38:36]

"There is nothing which is quite so variable about us as our feelings. We are very variable creatures, and our feelings, I say, are of everything that belongs to us the most variable of all, and that is because they're dependent upon so many factors. There are so many things that influence the feelings." [17:58:92]

"The greatest danger of all in this respect is the danger of being controlled by our feelings. Now that is the essence of the problem. I was indicating last Sunday morning that the same is true of our temperament, whatever it is. We all are given our temperaments by God. He's made no two of us the same." [19:45:16]

"The difference between rejoicing and feeling happy. There is all the world of difference between rejoicing and feeling happy. The scriptures tell us that we should always rejoice. Take that lyrical epistle of Paul's to the Philippians: 'Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice.' He goes on saying it." [33:19:52]

"The great thing in this respect is to learn how to stir ourselves up. That's the whole essence of this method. As I've been describing to you, the whole danger is that the mood comes upon us, and we allow it to dominate and to dictate, and there we are. We say we'd like to be delivered, and yet we do nothing about it." [35:00:64]

"Do you want to be happy? Would you like to be thrilling with joy and happiness as a Christian? Yes, the prescription: blessed, truly happy are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness, not after happiness. Don't go seeking thrills, don't go seeking happiness. Seek righteousness, and as certainly as you do so, you shall be blessed." [37:42:20]

"Do you want to know the supreme joy? Do you want to be filled with a happiness that he? There's only one thing to do: rely, seek Him, seek Him himself. Turn to the Lord Jesus. If you find your feelings are black and dark and depressive, don't sit down and commiserate with yourself, don't try and work up something." [38:52:44]