I bought this one on holiday in Austria and started reading it one evening instead of going to the evening meeting (Oak Hall, in case you're wondering, 1988 or 9).
I really think it needs to be seen as one of the great books of the 20th Century. And read by a good many very serious people who seem to go through life thinking Christians don't struggle. Here is one of the all-time great serious people saying: actually we do have problems that get us down, and joylessness is a bad thing, and here's how the gospel deals with it.
It's just great, and so much more powerful coming from someone definitely in the serious-reformed-we-can't-call-him airy-fairy department.
2 comments:
As you know, I have the book but I confess I haven't read it - have glanced here and there but that's about all. So I'd welcome your thoughts on a couple of things:
i. What place does he give to the importance of Christian fellowship in alleviating spiritual malaise?
ii. Are all his remedies directed towards the mind? And what place does he give to medical interventions?
Specifically I can't remember. But I can remember the approach being both profoundly spiritual and sane; he often talks about using your common sense and lots of very practical things (it might be this book where he says there comes a point when you have to stop praying over your troubles and go and do something). And I don't remember anything negative about medication - although I guess it would have been fairly basic when he preached these sermons.
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