Posts Tagged ‘unhappy Christian’

Vain Regrets!

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian Living, tagged , , , , , , on February 12, 2016| Leave a Comment »

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Spiritual Depression: #4 “Vain Regrets,” a sermon by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones.

 

 

Here is another very important sermon regarding the unhappy Christian.  Sometimes people get hung up on the past, and constantly dwell on it.  Is that you?  When this happens we become unable to do the works Christ has for us, and the devil gets the victory.

Dr. Jones says this:

We must never for a second worry about anything that cannot be affected or changed by us.  It is a waste of energy.  If you can do nothing about a situation stop thinking about it; never again look back at it, never think of it.  If you do, it is the devil defeating you.

One scripture that comes to my mind while studying this sermon is what Paul says in Philippians 3:13-14:

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Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

He tells us to forget the past and press forward toward the mark for the prize.  Like a runner in a race, we need to set our focus to do the work that God has called us to do.

You may ask, “Do you have regrets?”  Yes, I have many of them.  There were times in my life where I did let my regrets get me down.  I was down-hearted and depressed that I didn’t have the life that many of my friends had.  I was poor financially, physically and spiritually.  But, I kept in the Word and I was able to learn that I didn’t need to stay that way.  I had to focus on Jesus and things above and not on the world around me.  We have a home in heaven and we have all spiritual blessings.  God will never leave us or forsake us.  He is with us always and has the best intentions toward us.

I will never forget one day as I sat in my chair having my prayer time this scripture came to mind.

Joel 2:25 KJV And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten,…

I knew at that moment that this was a promise that God was giving me.  Tears started to run down my cheeks.  It was wonderful!  Yes, God would restore those years that I felt were lost, and I claimed that promise and had a new peace inside.  Do you know what?  God did just that!  Since that time, my health was restored.  I got completely over having panic attacks.  Fear no longer controls me!  I met a wonderful Christian man and got married.  With him I got 4 step-children, and 8 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren.  I’d say God restored to me the years the locust had eaten!

How about you?  Are you willing to quit thinking about your past regrets and press on with God? I’d love to hear your comments below, and I do hope you listen to this excellent sermon.  You just might find the answers you look for.

 

 

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Depressed Christians

Posted in Anxiety & Stress, Bible Study, Christian Living, tagged , , , , , , on January 14, 2016| 2 Comments »

Spiritual Depression #1  “General Consideration,” by  Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones.  This is a series of sermons given by Dr. Lloyd-Jones back in the fifties.  To make it easier for you to follow I’m putting at the top of my posts the lesson number, title and author.  I’m doing this because I am also featuring some sermons by my pastor and I don’t want to confuse you.  My thoughts are below.

 

Are you a Christian?  Are you depressed?  Do you think that Christians should get depressed?

psalm34_18Or, do you think we should be joyful all the time?  Some Christians think we should run around with a big smile on our face no matter what.  It is my opinion that Christians do get depressed at times because we are human, and that we can be overcomers of depression because we have the Lord.  I know fellow believers who battle depression.  In fact, I know quite of few of them. I also find myself depressed or feeling down at times, and I don’t like it.  Lately, I’ve had many issues in my life and I sometimes find myself getting really gloomy, and feel like a big weight is on my shoulders.  That reminds me of  scripture:

Mat 11:28-30 KJV Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. (29) Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. (30) For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

Jesus is calling me to give him my burdens and He will carry them for me.  Isn’t that wonderful?  He will do that for us.

Recently, I came across a series of sermons by Martyn Lloyd-Jones given back in the mid-fifties called, “Spiritual Depression.”  I thought it might be helpful to listen to these 24  sermons and see what I can glean from them. Why don’t you join me?

I just listened to the first one, but the audio was not very good at all.  It was difficult to hear so I used my ear buds and that helped some.  Hopefully, the next one will be easier to listen to. You can listen if you wish by clicking on the bar below. Then, it would be awesome if you would share your thoughts in the comment section of this post.

There is also a book you can purchase with these sermons.  Here is a link to that: Spiritual Depression: It’s Causes and It’s Cure

The first sermon, “General Consideration,” is actually an introduction to this series.  It is based on Psalm 42:5.

Psalm 42:5   KJV Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.

The first thing that jumps out to me is that David sounds depressed.  So, I see that men of God got depressed.  We are not so different. In this Psalm David is having a conversation with his own soul.  He is actually talking to himself, and asking his soul why it is so down. He asks why he is not at peace. Then he tells his soul to hope in God.  Isn’t that where we need to put our hope? And he says he will praise God.

So, in a nutshell we can see that David became depressed in his lifetime.  He had to have a talk with his soul, and get himself back on the right track.  I have to do that myself at times.  This is a good illustration of how David handled his depression.

In this first sermon Martyn Lloyd Jones talks about the general causes of Christians becoming depressed.  They are temperament, (introvert or extrovert) physical conditions, and reactions.  With the primary cause being unbelief.

My takeaway:  The devil uses our “self” in order to depress us.  We must take control.

Hope you enjoy this study along with me.

 

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