I'm going to just ask you one question. And on
the surface, the one question that I am about
to ask you may seem a little foolish. Yes, a
little silly. But I'm going to ask it just the
same. Do you ever talk back to yourself? Oh,
somebody says, now you're carrying us a little
too far, Catherine Kuhlman. For once, with your
little heart -to -heart talks, you're carrying
it a little too far when you talk about talking
back to oneself. We had a neighbor, Catherine
Kuhlman, that talked back to himself and they
put him away. Well, now, that's not just exactly
the kind of talking back to oneself that I'm
talking about. But I... I found this thing to
be very practical. Looking oneself directly in
the face. But when you do, you have to be dead
honest with yourself. And then talk back to yourself.
Maybe nobody will hear you. Just you. But it
can be mighty beneficial, believe me. I'm going
to read just a few words of scripture. That 42nd
Psalm, the 5th verse. Why art thou cast down,
O my soul? It's a question. I'm the man who...
wrote those words was probably a Levite who had
loved the ceremony of the temple and longed wistfully
for it. And scholars think it reasonable to assume
that he was in exile near the source of the Jordan
where the deep called unto the deep. And perhaps
his mind just continually retreated to that which...
Once was, he was living in the past, he was still
dreaming in the past. But of one thing we are
certain, he was a man who had a burden on his
soul. Why art thou cast down, O my soul? Sometimes
we're depressed like that for no apparent good
reason. And the mood produces some rather weird
conclusions. Don't ever tell me that you're never
depressed. Don't ever tell me that there's never
a time when you are not cast down. I don't care
how spiritual you may be. I don't care what your
spiritual experiences may have been. You may
even be one who has been born again if you are
a part of humanity. If you right now are living
and breathing and there's life in your body,
and if you'll be dead honest, you will admit
that there are times when you feel depressed
and you feel cast down. Oh, sure, you say, but
I already have my remedy. I go for a pep pill.
That's exactly what's wrong with this generation.
We're pill to death. We need to stop and be honest
with ourselves. And when we look at this thing
of being depressed, there are times when, for
no apparent good reason, we're depressed. We
just know that the family is trying to plague
us. We just are sure that the man driving the
car in front of us is deliberately trying to
hold us up in traffic. And why can't that clerk
get it to her head what you want when you go
shopping? And why does the man in the parking
lot mock us with his good warning and you say
under your breath what's good about it, you know?
Why do we even bother to get up? Is there anyone
who, at best, has not had to beat off an attempted
invasion of that kind of a mood. We don't know
from whence it comes or of what stuff it's made.
We only know that it's annoying. And we know
that there are moments like that. Oh, of course,
there are other times when there would appear
to be sufficient cause for such a behavior. Perhaps
we've had a death in the family. And loneliness
can be a burden. Or regardless of how hard we've
worked in business, there's been too much red
ink of late. Or we have just been to the doctors
and there are some things wrong with us that
could be serious. Or even the very state of the
world can be depressing, a very depressing thing.
after you've finished reading your newspaper,
after you've just finished hearing a newscast,
then perhaps these things have left you very
depressed. It's a great truth that comes from
this psalm. If we're to be healthy, mentally
and spiritually, there are times when we must
talk back to ourselves. We have to. Sometimes
it's a matter of challenging ourselves with truths
that we've known a long time, but we've forgotten.
How often, for instance, it's necessary to remind
ourselves of the human weakness of arriving at
conclusions before all the returns are in. There's
so much of the Jacob in us. You recall that he
was certain that Joseph was dead. He was sure
that Joseph was dead. dead. He had terrifying
fears about Benjamin. And he said, all these
things are against me. Yet at that very moment,
the light was breaking through his darkness.
Even though he knew it now, he never dreamed
of the victory that was ahead. All he saw was
the darkness. But at that very moment, When it
was the very darkest for him, the light was breaking
through, even though he did not know it. It was
through the things that he thought were against
him that his family would be saved from starvation
and the children of Israel would be brought into
contact with the most advanced civilization of
that ancient period. It is true they were made
slaves. But in slavery, they developed an intense
love of freedom. Jacob had despaired too hastily.
If only he had known, if only he could have seen,
he would have rejoiced instead of going down
in despair. And so it happens to many of us.
And we need to talk back to ourselves ask ourselves
just how much of our trouble is fact and how
much of our trouble is imagination. And an awful
lot of our troubles are nothing more or less
than imagination. And sometimes they are the
greatest things that could possibly happen to
us, but they're in disguise. We may need it.
Ask ourselves, too, how much of our trouble is
due to the fact that we are completely worn out.
How dark the world looks to a very tired man,
a very tired woman. And God help the family when
that tired person comes home and takes it out
on the family. So many of the worries the world
had been born and nurtured and brought to Maturity
in fatigue. We oppressed these bodies and we
pushed our nervous systems beyond all common
sense and reason until the houses of our minds
become filled with shadows. Shadows that jump
out at us from every corner. In this age of sleeping
pill sickness. Don't we need to talk back to
ourselves and ask if we're unable to sleep because
of our troubles? Or have we troubles because
we've not given these bodies of ours a little
more time to sleep? If you are addicted to sleeping
pills, just stop and ask yourself. Talk back
to yourself and ask yourself, Why you're having
to take those sleeping pills? Why? Just why?
Why are you addicted to the cigarette habit?
Why? Why do you have to smoke that pack, two
packs of cigarettes a day? There's a reason for
it. Talk back to yourself. What art thou cast
down, O my soul? It needs to be challenged. Right
now, you need to face the issue before it goes
any further. Sometimes we need to talk back to
ourselves and remind ourselves that we are Christians,
and because we are Christians, we believe in
a God. through whom life takes on a different
look. Those were great words that Paul gave in
2 Corinthians when he said, We are troubled on
every side, yet not distressed. We're perplexed,
but not in despair. Persecuted, but not forsaken.
Cast down, but not destroyed. Paul understood
all of these things. He was human like any one
of us. There was still the weakness of the flesh.
He was still an old material world. Oh, sure,
he said. We're troubled on every side. Yet we're
not distressed. We're perplexed. but not in despair.
I love those words. They were great words that
preceded these words. For in one verse he says,
We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that
the excellency of the power may be of God. In
another he spoke of the God who commanded the
light to shine out of darkness. If one is a Christian,
in time of trouble, he will remind his soul of
a God who knows no defeat. When you talk back
to yourself and you are a Christian, remind yourself
that he's still God Almighty. Remind yourself
that he's your Heavenly Father. You belong to
him. He knows you as an individual. If you are
a Christian, if you are living in the center
of his will, a surrendered life unto him, nothing,
absolutely nothing can come into your life but
what he allows and he permits. And he'll... always
bring the light. No matter how dark the night,
the light will come through. The morning will
come. Morning always comes. If we're worried
about our health, for instance. Let us remember
that God does work in mysterious ways and can
bring that thing out for his glory. He works
beyond our poor little puny minds. You know,
in the darkness of the hour. Cast off your fears
and stop your grumbling. Be still and remember
God. I like the story of the old gentleman who
lived to be a ripe old age and he was asked the
secret. He thought a minute and he replied that
He thought it was because he always got a good
night's sleep at night. Then he was questioned
further as to how he accomplished it. He'd always
been a man with great responsibilities. Always.
Then he thought a little longer, and this was
his reply. Well, he said, long ago I learned
that I have a god. who neither slumbers nor sleeps.
And there's just no point in both of us staying
awake at night. There are times when we need
to talk back to ourselves like that, you know
it? Oh, I do not mean that one should lazily
turn all of his troubles over to God. After we
get ourselves in a mess, blame God for it and
say, here, get me out of this thing. Now I got
myself into it. Now you get me out of it. First
of all, don't get yourself into these messes.
Before you make decisions, ask for God's wisdom
and God's leadership. We have no right. after
we deliberately get ourselves into a jam, then
call on God and say, now get me out of it. I'm
not talking about that kind of a life. I am talking
about having the leading of the spirit. I'm talking
about living a consecrated life unto him. I'm
talking about so living that daily life that
when... You come to the end of a day and you're
lying on your bed. You can look up and honestly
say, Dear Lord Jesus, I've done the best that
I know how today. I tried to do a good job. Sincerely,
you and I both know that I tried to do my best.
Now, if there's anything more to be taken care
of, and if I failed, then please, I turn those
failures over to you. You work them out. But
I'm going to sleep. I tell you frankly, I do
it every night of my life. Yeah? And it's just
like that. Jesus said, In the world you shall
have tribulation, but be of good cheer. Why?
I have overcome the world. And through faith
in God the Father, faith in Jesus his Son, faith
in the Holy Spirit, we also can overcome. In
the dark moments, let us not forget to say to
that soul of ours, Why art thou cast down, O
soul? Why art thou disquieted within me? Hope
thou in God. And this is the victory. Even our
faith. Oh, somebody says, but you don't know
my troubles. It looks so easy to say, talk back
to yourself. But you don't know my troubles.
Pause a minute. I know of no one who had greater
troubles than Job. His cattle were rustled by
cattle rustlers. His horses were stolen by horse
thieves. His cowboys were killed by the rustlers.
His sheep were struck by lightning. and his shepherds
were all killed, all but one. His camels were
stolen, and all but keepers were killed, except
one. His sons, his daughters were all killed
by a cyclone. Read that 20th verse of the first
chapter of Job. He rent his garments, he shaved
his head, he fell on the ground. In despair?
No. In worship unto God. Continue the next verse.
He sinned not, nor charged God foolishly. His
body was covered with ulcer -like boils. ashes
to soak up secretion. And then finally, the last
straw, his wife said unto him, why do you hold
on to your faith? Curse God and die. Doesn't
that sound just like a woman? Doesn't that sound
just like a nagging woman? Oh, I don't know why
she had to add on to it and curse. But she did.
Only a woman would say a thing like that. And
then Job's friends rebuked and forsook him. It
was dark. It was very dark. Did he despair? He
looked up and continued to worship God. Me thinks
he said to himself, God is still there. God loves
me. God cares for me. No affection, no sorrow,
no suffering. I don't care how big these boils
get. They'll never separate me from the love
of God. Though everything be taken away from
me, These things will never separate me from
the love of my God. My faith is in him and he
loves me. What was the result? He was blessed
with twice what he had before. That, my friend,
is the love and the mercy of our Heavenly Father.
It may be dark now, but the light will break
through.