Preaching to Myself

I've been working on perfecting a certain discipline in my life lately. I've been preaching to myself. Yes, you read that right! We live in a nation chock-full of spiritual resources. We have books on every subject imaginable (now digitized for your Kindall), all kinds of Bibles, webcasts, podcasts, webinars, iTunes...you get the idea. We have access to more material now than ever before! Even so, it's important that we preach to ourselves.

Now before you start getting your Sunday clothes on and practicing your introduction, let me explain what I mean. The good news is that this type of preaching doesn't require any classes in hermeneutics or homiletics! I am simply talking about reminding ourselves of who God is and what His promises are for us. In many cases, preaching to ourselves may include some of the resources listed above. What makes it unique, however, is that it flows out of our own personal experience.

The psalmist did this in Psalm 42:5. He cried out, "Why are you down in the dumps, dear soul? Why are you crying the blues? Fix my eyes on God—soon I'll be praising again. He puts a smile on my face. He's my God (Msg)." Another great example of this principle is found in 1 Sam. 30:6 where the scriptures state that David "encouraged himself in the Lord his God." Study the context of these scriptures and you will find that both declarations came in great times of struggle.

It's good to draw on the strength of others. God meant it to be this way. But He also knew that there would be times in our lives when we would be alone and in need of Him--thus, the importance of the discipline of preaching to yourself.

How's your soul doing today? Need some encouragement? Start speaking to your soul! Remind yourself of all that God has done in your life and start singing a song about God's amazing grace. Here's a great song I've been singing to my soul! Enjoy!