In his book Spiritual Depression: It's Causes and it's Cure, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones talks about the importance of not listening to yourself ever. But instead we are called to speak truth into our lives, by reminding ourselves of how God views us, and our situation. Pastor and Author, Joe Thorn, also communicates this important truth in his book, Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself. In this book, Thorn communicates the importance of something that every Christian leader must become a master of, and that is the discipline of preaching to ourselves! The reason we want to effectively preach to ourselves the truths of God's Word for our lives is because the alternative is talking to and listening to ourselves.
We live in a fallen world, and part of the effect that our fallenness has upon our lives is that we are constantly being influenced by negative self-talk, which in most cases causes us to begin believing the negative influences that bombard our hearts and minds every day. This can have a disastrous effect upon us if we allow it to influence us to begin doubting God's love for us, or God's ability to work through us (cf. Matthew 13:58; Hebrews 11:6). There is nothing more dangerous to the life of a Christian, than to allow this type of negative faith-killing, self-destructive talk cause us to stop trusting wholeheartedly in God.
As D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones points out, our self-dialogue is birthed from our fallen nature. In other words, when we speak to ourselves we normally tell ourselves... "I am not good enough, God doesn't love me anymore, I can't do it, I won't succeed, God's blessing is no longer upon my life, I am not a gifted enough communicator, leader, visionary, etc. etc. etc. you fill in the blanks." We see this internal battle taking place in the heart of the Psalmist, when he cries out, "Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God" (Psalm 42:11; cf. Psalm 42:5-11). Though his soul is crushed, and his tears have been his food day and night (Psalm 42:3), causing him to be like a deer panting for the water brook, desperately thirsting for God (Psalm 42:1-2), he refuses to allow this to have victory over his life. He fights this internal war by preaching to himself, "hope in God" (Psalm 42:5), and remember that God's lovingkindness will never leave him (Psalm 42:8). The LORD is his Rock (Psalm 42:9), and is his hope, and his help (Psalm 42:11a), He is the God of his salvation (Psalm 42:11b).
This is why Scripture memorization, meditation, and faith application is so important for us! God wants us to focus on whatever is true (Philippians 4:8-9), and in order to do this effectively, we must be men and women who take "every thought captive" and make it obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). As we take every thought captive and make it obedient to Christ, we will be "transformed by the renewing of our minds" (Romans 12:2), have our faith increased (Romans 10:17), and like Jeremiah the prophet who was ready to give up because of the all-time low he was at in life; we must use the Word of God as our defense against our fallen natures destructive influence upon our life and calling. Instead of giving up, Jeremiah proclaimed, "I will not mention Him, or speak any more in His name. But His word was in my heart like a burning fire shut up in my bones; I was weary of holding it back, and I could not" (Jeremiah 20:9).
Because the internal dialogue that we have with ourselves can have a powerfully negative influence upon our lives, we must be diligent to stop listening to the voice of doubt and discouragement; we must rebuke it, block it out, and like a deer panting for the water brooks (Psalm 42:1-2), we too must guide our hearts and minds to the gospel, by preaching it to ourselves in faith!
RELATED ARTICLES
1. Note to Self: The Discipline of Preaching to Yourself
