Preaching To Yourself
“Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Take those thoughts that come to you the moment you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them but they are talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc. Somebody is talking. Who is talking to you? Your self is talking to you. Now this man’s treatment [in Psalm 42] was this: instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul?” he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says, “Self, listen for moment, I will speak to you.” ―Martyn Lloyd-Jones
This quote is from the amazing book, “Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cures” by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, and it’s helped me more than I can express.
His observation is simple, yet profound: "Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself?"
What does he mean by this? He means that we often allow our negative thoughts and emotions to control us. The trifecta of “the world, the flesh, and the Devil” all work together to feed us lies. Over time, we start to believe those lies. The results can be self-destructive.
In times of depression or conflict, I remember thinking that life could never get better. I felt defeated, unloved, and abandoned. Essentially, I’d lost focus on the presence and promises of God.
What Lloyd-Jones is suggesting is that we need to learn to talk back to our negative self-talk. Instead of believing the lies that our self-talk tells us, we need to challenge those thoughts and replace them with the promises of God. When our circumstances tell us that we are abandoned, we remind ourselves that “nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christi Jesus.” “If God is for me, who can be against me?” “Jesus died to make me holy, His love defines my future, my failures don’t.”
It's not always easy to change our self-talk, but it's worth the effort. By preaching the Gospel to ourselves, we can start to experience more joy, assurance, and peace in our lives.
Here are some tips for talking back to your negative self-talk:
Notice your negative thoughts. The first step is to become aware of the negative thoughts that you're having. When you start to think something negative, ask yourself, "Is this really true? Is there another way to look at this situation?"
Challenge your negative thoughts. Once you've noticed your negative thoughts, challenge them. Ask yourself if there is any evidence to support the thought. Is it really likely that the worst-case scenario will happen?
Replace your negative thoughts with the promises of God. Once you've challenged your negative thoughts, replace them with more positive ones. Focus on the promises that God makes to us. If no Bible passages come to mind, do a quick search for the promises of God. (BTW - this practice of preaching to yourself is a wonderful reminder to memorize Scripture!)
Be patient. It takes time and practice to change your self-talk. Don't get discouraged if you don't see results immediately. Just keep practicing, and eventually, you'll start to see a difference.
If you're struggling with negative self-talk, don't hesitate to seek professional help. A good Christian therapist can help you learn how to identify and challenge your negative thoughts and develop more positive ways of thinking about yourself.
Remember, you are not your thoughts. You are the one who is thinking the thoughts. You have the power to change your self-talk and create a more positive life for yourself.
With You;
Pastor Tim
