This is an excellent little read by one of our great “doctors of the soul.” The Puritans are wrongly portrayed as stuffy and irrelevant. In the vein of the old Puritans, like John Owen, this book is soundly Biblical and refreshingly practical. Unlike the old Puritans this little volume is easy to read at only 79 pages. Small books are helpful when we are depressed.
Piper connects the theological truth of gospel to our emotions. He calls it “gutsy guilt” (pg14) to fight for the joy that you know exists even though you don’t feel like it. The gospel through has provided a “legal rescue” (pg14) but now it can and must provide a “moral one” (pg14).
In the first chapter of When the Darkness Will Not Lift Piper acknowledges a physical and even biological side to depression, which I agree with. He is also good to note that medication should not be the “first or main solution to spiritual darkness” (pg27).
I also found it helpful for Piper to remind us that “seasons of darkness are normal in the Christian life” (pg33). He cites numerous passages on this reality, especially from the Psalms. His main application on this reality is the fact that part of the Christian journey when we are depressed is to simply wait on the Lord to restore our joy. We must remember that “saints who cry to the Lord for deliverance from pits of darkness must learn to wait patiently for the Lord” (pg36). Next he says, “We fight for joy. But we fight as those who are saved by grace and held by Christ.” (pg36).
Chapter 3 gives balance to the “wait on the Lord” idea of chapter 2. Piper says, “Waiting for the Lord in a season of darkness should not be a time of inactivity. We should do what we can do.” (pg45). Inactivity is common in depressed seasons, but we should battle against that reality. We are also to not allow our feelings to hijack the truth but rather let truth restore our feelings. “If your feelings are telling you that staying in bed is the best thing today, preach to your feelings and tell them how foolish they are.” (pg47). This sounds strange but we have a duty to be joyous and we should fight for that emotional state of being. There is also a reality of “thankfulness” which gets forgotten during depression. The Christian life should be marked by thankfulness but during depressed season we should be extra diligent to express our thankfulness to God, even when we don’t feel it. Say the words to Him and ask him to fill those words with an “emotion of true gratitude” (pg51).
The fourth chapter deals with a very unpopular cause of depression, sin. There are many times where sin and especially unconfessed sin lead us to depression. Piper calls us to confess our sin to God and others in order to keep sin from clogging our joy.
The fifth chapter is a challenge to avoid self-absorption during depression. There are many ways to fight against self-absorption, mainly through serving someone else in need. The discipline of service (pouring “ourselves out for others”, pg63) is the best cure for self-absorption and possibly for depression itself. I know that I personally have to be strategic about service; it is not my natural heart beat.
The final chapter is a call for the Church to be the Church. We are called to faithfully love those who are stuck in the darkness. Piper returns to another Puritan story to highlight this challenge. John Newton had a faithful and gracious ministry to the chronically depressed William Cowper. Newton shows us how to faithfully love a very needy person. Many times this ministry is simply standing by someone and praying for him or her. Piper closes with 2 Corinthians 6:10 where Paul says that he is “sorrowful, yet always rejoicing.”
I found When the Darkness Will Not Lift to be extremely helpful in providing practical insight on how to battle against depression and apathy. I highly recommend it to anyone currently struggling with depression or those who have in the past in order to understand it when it returns. I also recommend it to pastors and leaders to use in ministering to themselves as well as others. It is so important to recognize our depression, continue to be thankful to God, honestly evaluate our sin, and simply serve others. I long for the Church to be the Church by loving those in need, especially those struggling with spiritual darkness.
Experiencing Grace 