who hath called you out of darkness into his
glorious, his marvelous light. And Peter knew
all about depression, all about discouragement,
all about fear. That was the reason he could
say, speaking of the power of God, Speaking of
the one who had given him deliverance, referring
to that wonderful experience of being born again,
who hath called you out of darkness into his
marvelous light. In this discussion of being
depressed, discouraged, awakening in the morning
to find yourself gloomy and depressed, We found
out that the greatest possession one can have
is a wholesome, healthy mind. It's better than
silver and gold. It's better than any material
blessing this whole world could give you. A wholesome,
normal mind. And you can handle any problem that
you're faced with during the day. if you have
a wholesome, normal mind. It is indeed not what
you lose, but what you have left that matters.
Everything. Everything in life. All of your problems.
All of your troubles. Everything depends upon
how you look at things. and it's just like that
how do you get a normal mind how do you get a
healthy mind there is only one way just one all
sure you can go to a psychiatrist if you want
to and get him to work on you and thousands do
exactly that that's your business He may help
you to a certain extent. You may go to some counselor
and they may help you to a certain extent. But
I have found out a long time ago that these psychiatrists
have the same problems that you have. I have
found out that these counselors have the same
problems you have. It's so true. I want to tell
you that the only way you really can get the
shadows out of your mind, the only definite,
the only absolute cure is to have what we call
an experience of Jesus Christ in your life. He
is the one who'll give you the change of mind.
He's the one who'll change everything. He may
not change the problem. The problem may still
be there. But He will give you the power. He'll
give you the victory to overcome that thing.
We're not only conquerors. We're more than conquerors
through Christ who loved us. Do you understand?
Sure. I've had a lot of... Trouble with myself.
More trouble with myself than anybody else I
know. I've never had as much trouble with anyone
in my life as I have had with myself. I would
hate to think of what I would be like if I had
not myself, undeservedly, had this great sense
of the presence of Christ. I sometimes would
like to know just what I would be like. I think
perhaps I would be the most difficult person
in the world to live with. I know me. Did you
ever see anyone with red hair who didn't have
difficulties with himself? Sure. I'm the offspring
of Joe Kuhlman. I'm the offspring of Emma Kuhlman.
I've inherited certain characteristics. Oh, sure.
My papa had a temper. Jokuma's girl was born
with a temper. Now, it all depends on what you're
going to do with it. I know a fellow who said
the other day, you know, I am a very difficult
person to live with. He was mean and proud of
it. Do you think I let him get by with that statement?
Not on your life. Some of you women are living
with men who are mean and proud of it. But if
you're a person who has a nasty disposition,
you're mean and proud of it, you're a very small
person. It takes a big person to look himself
directly in the face. Go to the mirror and look
yourself directly in the face and say, now look,
you have this weakness. You have an uncontrollable
temper. You're mean. You're irritable. You're
hard to live with. Even a dog runs from you.
When you come home, the children run from you.
Your wife is scared to death of you. If your
wife is scared to death of you, If your children
are afraid to open their mouth around you, if
the dog slinks under the chair or the table,
or puts his tail between his legs and gets out
of the house when you come, you better start
looking yourself directly in the face. There's
something wrong with you. The smallest... person
in the world. Oh, you may be broad -shouldered,
you may be tall, or you may be small of stature.
If you are disagreeable, if you are ugly in disposition
and proud of it, proud of the fact that people
are afraid of you, you're the smallest person
I know anything about. That's right. How to get
a normal mind? First of all, you're going to
have to look yourself directly in the face. See
your weakness. You have to admit it to yourself.
You have to acknowledge it to yourself. And then
want to get rid of it. You're going to have to
want to be a normal person. You're going to have
to desire to be a likable person. Did you hear
what I said? I paused purposely that you might
just turn around the mirror in the room and look
at yourself. Mm -hmm. If you'll pray for it,
if you'll seek after it, if you'll want it with
all of your heart, if you'll be honest with yourself
and yield yourself to Jesus Christ, you can have
it. I don't care what. weaknesses you inherited.
I do not care. I put out this challenge with
the Word of God as my authority. I don't care.
You can be the meanest person in the world. You
may be considered by your friends, members of
your family, the neighbors, say you're the meanest
person they've ever seen. I can see the power
of God taking and transforming that life of yours
into the kind of person that your neighbors will
marvel at. And they'll open their back door to
say, Hi, Jim. How are you this morning? Just
to see your face light up. Yeah? I know two men
that people... will turn their back to keep on
speaking to because all they get in return is
just a grunt. And who enjoys saying good morning
to somebody when all they get is either silence
or a grunt? And it's just like that. I don't
care how mean you are, what your weaknesses may
be. There is a power, there is a person, there
is the son of living God who will literally transform
that life of yours. And he'll do it now. But
you will have to desire that change of life.
You will have to desire the change of disposition.
You will have to admit to your own meanness.
And sometimes that's a pretty hard thing to do.
That's the secret. I assure you, from the bottom
of my heart, with all the persuasive power I
am capable of having, this is the answer to the
depression which rests upon the human spirit.
There's a simple thing you may do, something
you can work toward, a simple thing we... All
can do. Take a piece of paper tomorrow. Put it
in your pocket. On this piece of paper, write
down every gloomy and negative thing you say.
For example, when you get up tomorrow morning,
you look out of the window. Perhaps you'll say,
it was a nice day yesterday, but isn't it a horrible
day today? Oh. You've gotten in such a habit
of sitting down at the breakfast table and say,
well, same old breakfast. And then you'll pick
up the morning newspaper saying, well, I wonder
what awful news I'll find in the paper this morning.
And you'll find exactly what you're looking for.
Exactly. It'll be a bad morning if you... Expected
to be bad. There'll be bad news if you're looking
for bad news. It'll be the same old breakfast
if you're looking for the same old breakfast.
Oh, sure. Now just write all these things down.
Things that you maybe were not mindful of saying.
They've just become a habit to you. And then
at the end of the day, you won't need any wise
man to tell you why you're all weighted down
with glue, why you're such an ugly person, why
nobody likes you, why you have no friends. You've
been practicing being ugly and gloomy and negative
all day. You've spent 12 hours practicing it.
Now suppose the following morning you start practicing
joy. And let me say right here that if you're
ever going to be an expert in joy, you have to
practice it. Work at it. The first thing I would
suggest is that you do something about your face.
I just love going down the street and just look
at faces. You'd be surprised. And you can analyze
people pretty well by their face. You know some
of the most beautiful people I know. If you were
to analyze the bone structure, they wouldn't
pass any beauty contest, I'll tell you that.
And if someone were to say to me very quickly,
uh, do you think so -and -so has a pretty face?
Why, without hesitation, I would say, I think
she's beautiful. But if you were to analyze the
structure, it really isn't a beauty that would
win any beauty contest. But there are beaut...
person because they're beautiful on the inside.
And that beauty always comes out. And I have
seen people that so far as the structure and
the contour of the face, they're thought of as
being a beautiful person. But they're so ugly
on the inside. I haven't been able to see where
the beauty really is. You know, the eyes are
without expression. They never smile. And so
they are lacking in those smile wrinkles around
the eyes and the mouth. There's no... strength
of character in that face. It's a weak face.
Do you understand what I'm trying to say? Oh,
sure. The first thing I would suggest is that
you do something about your face. Not that there
is much wrong with the faces that I... may see
this very moment, but... Remember that it takes
45 muscles to frown and only 12 to smile. Then
don't overwork your face as most people do. Stand
before your mirror, look at your face. Really,
this is more sensible than it sounds. Look at
that face and think for a moment about Jesus
Christ, about God, about yourself when you were
a little child. Think of the hopes and the dreams
of your youth. Let them all pass through your
mind. Then take another look at your face. You'll
change. All day long, think about those you can
help. Think thoughts of hope. Think to whom you
belong. Heirs of God and a joint heir with Christ
Jesus. You're rich. You're rich. Some people
live such lives of envy. They're so envious of
their neighbors and envious of everybody else.
There are those who feel that everybody has it
better than they have it. Everybody in the world
has more than they have. And so they go around
with a long face, their lipstick out, their pouty.
It shows. It just shows. Go around and think
how fortunate you are. Shoes on your feet. Clothes
on your body. Two good eyes. Two good legs. Look
at your hands. Eight fingers, two thumbs. You
have your hearing. You're rich when you... Count
everything in dollars and cents. You're poor.
You're a mighty poor person when everything has
to have a dollar sign on it. You're weak. You're
poor. You've lost the real sense of values in
life. Without peace of mind, without peace of
soul, without the peace of God, without the relationship
that a man or woman can enjoy in Christ Jesus,
the richest man in worldly goods today is poor.
You're poor, my friend. You may have your millions.
you may be able to write out a check for ten
million dollars in cash, but without peace of
mind, without peace of soul, without a healthy
mind. without knowing that God is your Heavenly
Father, without this wonderful relationship that
a man can have with Christ Jesus. Without it,
you're poor, my friend. You're poor. On the other
hand, you may just be drawing a widow's pension.
You may be living on social security. They may
have told you you're too old now for the job.
They need someone younger to take your place.
They have put you on the shelf and you feel unwanted,
unleaded. But with... Peace of soul and peace
of mind. Knowing to whom you belong, knowing
that the mighty God, the Great Creator, is your
Heavenly Father. You're rich. You have something.
All the money in the world cannot Bye.