076 |The Dangers of Despondency and How to Avoid Them
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SS076 Shepherd & The Shrink The Dangers of Despondency and How to Avoid Them
Despondency is hard to identify, but it’s everywhere. Between the values pushed in our society and the pressures caused by things like Covid 19, it’s not easy to find joy, even if you have faith.
Today, we talk about how to combat despondency. We define it, noting that we can think of it as the reverse of joy. We talk about the ways it manifests and its impact on the different parts of our lives. We explain what the problem is with self-centeredness, noting that it combats love--even when it’s disguised with terms such as “self-love”. We share David Seamands’ 6-step Biblical approach to defeating despondency, noting the power of forgiveness. We talk about how to get to the root of a perceived problem with the help of the Holy Spirit, and we note the power of playing.
“Our society’s response to all of these problems is to look within yourself. ‘Just follow your heart,’ which means you’re completely staring at yourself. You’re constantly are taking your own pulse of, ‘How do I feel about this? How do I feel about that? What’s my identity in this? What’s my identity in that? How do I relate to this?’ And it’s all me, me, my, my, mine, mine. And we get sick of ourselves. And if we don’t know that there’s something greater out there for us to be a part of, we completely miss out.”
- Dr. Matt Hook
This week on Shepherd & the Shrink:
Defining and defeating despondency
The impact of despondency
The 6-step Biblical approach to defeating despondency
The importance of facing your responsibility
Why not everyone wants to be healed
Facing fears and the power of forgiveness
Why God is proud of you when you’re working to defeat despondency
The importance of playing
Resources mentioned
Bringing Mental Health and Spirituality Together
Thanks for tuning into this week’s episode of Shepherd & the Shrink Podcast with your hosts Dr. Matt Hook and Dr. Martin Fletcher, the show where theology meets psychology. If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts.
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