A main source of discouragement

A main source of discouragement is negative self-talk. Doctor and great British preacher D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says in his book Spiritual Depression, “Most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself rather than talking to yourself.”7 By that, I think he means that we often passively allow negative messages from our past to influence our thinking instead of actively telling ourselves good things that will help us to think more positively. For years I’ve used phrases such as these to help me:

ο This too shall pass.

ο Things could be worse.

ο It’s not what happens to me but what happens in me that matters most.

ο Keep your chin up.

ο Do it anyway.

You need to find your own phrases in a language that works for you. But be sure that the language is positively motivational, not negative or belittling. Nobody can motivate himself in a positive direction by continually using negative words.

7 D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Spiritual Depression: Its Causes and Cure (Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1965), 20.

John C. Maxwell, The Difference Maker: Making Your Attitude Your Greatest Asset (Nashville, TN: HarperCollins Leadership, 2006).