Tuesday, December 20, 2011

Joy In Worship When Depressed


Most people including me found that it does not make sense that while we are in depression we can worship God joyfully. This I learnt from Pastor John Piper and worship leader Bob Kauflin. Usually we associate our emotional state with our outward activities like worship for example. People usually do not worship when they are emotionally depressed. But John Piper said our emotional state and state of contentment in Christ are two separate things. We can still worship with joy even in depression. John Piper said "A depressed but born again person, Piper added, has a “seed of contentment in Christ.” “And the form it might take is, right now I feel nothing; I am totally numb emotionally. But I have a memory that there was once a sweetness of affection, a sweetness of trust… and I by faith believe it’s still down there because theologically, the Bible says it... I now, in this room while everybody is singing and I don’t have any feelings… I am saying to Him, please restore to me the joy of my salvation.”

Worship is affirming our satisfaction with God according to Piper, he said "you can be “satisfied with God and weeping your eyes out at the death of your mother.”

The key to worship for the hurting is found in 2 Corinthians 6:10: “Sorrowful, yet always rejoicing; poor, yet making many rich; having nothing, and yet possessing everything.”

This message about worship is really an eye opener for me.

To read the full article click on the title of this post.

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