Hazards to Spiritual Growth - Part 4

Michael Emlet ends this chapter returning to the subject of the book: psychiatric medications and diagnoses.

What does this mean with regard to the use or non-use of medications? Don't be too quick to cast off suffering as though immediate relief from trials is the only good God is up to. And don't think it's more "spiritual" to refrain from taking medications, as though character refinement through suffering is the only good God is up to. We don't choose our suffering in some masochistic way. Yet we are called to a life of walking in the footsteps of our suffering Savior. Christ teaches us a cross-centered and dependent lifestyle (Luke 9:23). And this is true in all situations of life.

Wise counsel for those who counsel others in everyday life.

Hazards to Spiritual Growth - Part 3

We left off yesterday noting that humans are prone to wander from God when life is hard and when life is easy. Michael Emlet continues this discussion with some thoughts on contentment:

Perhaps this is why the writer of Proverbs prays, "Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food that is needful for me, lest I be full and deny you and say, 'Who is the Lord?' or lest I be poor and steal and profane the name of my God" (Proverbs 30:8-9).

Here's another way of saying this: God-centered contentment is elusive in want or in plenty. Neither situation is the "ideal" for spiritual growth in a fallen world. Paul highlights this in Philippians 4:11-13 (NIV). He learned "the secret of being content in any in plenty or in want." He looked to the strength of Christ in all situations.

Tomorrow we'll finish this series on spiritual growth.

Hazards to Spiritual Growth - Part 2

Continuing with the chapter from Michael Emlet in Descriptions and Prescriptions, this section begins after the previous reference to Job and his suffering:

As we've seen, it's not a bad thing to seek deliverance from intense suffering and this can be done in a godly way, unlike the Israelites and Job's wife. For example, many psalms provide a model of crying out to God with integrity and humility in the midst of troubles and grief (Psalms 10, 22, 44, 73, 77, and 88, to name a few).

At the same time, a lack of suffering may bring the temptation to simply forget that "'in him we live and move and have our being'"(Acts 17:28). Temptation toward complacency and self-reliance can certainly happen when life is relatively easy. This was part of the problem God's people experienced once they left the wilderness and entered the Promised Land. Their dependence on him waned in the midst of material blessing (Deuteronomy 8:10014; Judges 2:10-12). You see that same pattern in David (2 Samuel 12:7-9) and Solomon (1 Kings 10-11).

We are prone to wander from God when life is hard and when life is easy.

More tomorrow.

Hazards to Spiritual Growth - Part 1

I'm reading a book by Michael Emlet, Descriptions and Prescriptions: A Biblical Perspective on Psychiatric Diagnoses & Medications. It is an excellent review of how Christians should think about psychiatric categories. He opens the book with the "Goldilocks Principle," which outlines the two ditches that Christians can fall into as they consider these categories: (1) Some Christians are "too cold" toward psychiatric diagnoses and are highly suspicious of using these labels, or (2) other Christians are "too warm" toward these diagnoses, embracing them as nearly all-encompassing explanations of a person's struggle. His book is about helping Christians through biblical wisdom find the path that is "just right." It's a short book - only 100 pages - and I think it's around $10. It's well worth the money.

There is much in the book that deserves comment, but one short chapter in particular caught my attention today. It is called "Hazards to Spiritual Growth." I would like to take the next couple of posts to share this chapter with you. It is not particularly focused on psychiatric diagnoses or medications (although it surely relates to them), but instead it focuses on the role of suffering in the spiritual growth of a person. I found it to be a profound read. Here is the first section:

Section 1
Main idea: Too much suffering can be "hazardous" to spiritual growth and too little suffering may be "hazardous" to spiritual growth.

What do I mean here? Simply this: It is hard to find the "sweet spot" for spiritual growth. In the midst of intense suffering, whether it stems from the body or from other sources (relational strife, difficult life circumstances), there often is a greater temptation to become fearful, angry, and embittered. This was true of the Israelites in the wilderness. They had experienced the redeeming power of God in bringing them out of captivity. But despite God's provision they succumbed to the temptation to doubt his goodness in the midst of wilderness hardships. Or consider the response of Job's wife to Job in the midst of their suffering, "Curse God and die" (Job 2:9). Extreme suffering provokes our hearts to fear and anger.

We'll continue with Emlet's analysis in the next post.