Tonight, I completed reading "The Source of My Strength", written by Charles Stanley. This was a very interesting and informative book. It catches your attention from the very beginning. If you are dealing with any troubling life problems, whatever the source or type, this book can be a great help.
In the introduction, Stanley addresses the issue of emotional baggage. I think we all have emotional baggage to deal with. How we let this emotional baggage affect our lives depends on how we deal with it. Dr. Stanley, in the introduction, guides us through the Lord's instructions on handling, or rather letting go of, our emotional baggage.
Dr. Stanley then addresses the subject of those who are dealing with loneliness in the first chapter. He shows us the Lord's response to those who are lonely, gives advice for us when we are feeling lonely, and other sound advice, all based on God's principles.
In the second chapter, he addresses the times when we feel fearful.In this chapter, he gives sound advice on how to deal with anxiety and how to "reprogram" our minds to do away with our anxiety. He gives us questions that we should ask ourselves each day.
In chapter three, Dr. Stanley gives us advice and words of comfort for those who are suffering from abuse. He gives ten responses to abuse that inform on how to deal with the abuse, and what we should do if we are suffering from abuse.
In chapter four, he addresses the problem of our feeling inferior. He gives us information on gaining a Godly perspective on our quest for perfection. He gives several guidelines for overcoming feelings of inferiority.
Chapter five deals with feelings of guilt. He addresses what we should do when we sin, the difference in sin and mistakes, and reminds us of the message of grace from God.
Chapter six deals with frustration - something that each of us deal with almost on a daily basis. In this chapter, he points out that there is a difference between irritation and frustration that we cause ourselves and God-given frustration. This chapter outlines how we can effectively deal with frustration and reach a state of contentment.
Chapter seven addresses feeling "burned out", another issue that most of us deal with regularly. I know I deal with this quite often in my work. Dr. Stanley outlines the seven principles that he has learned in dealing with being burned out and tells us how we can overcome this problem.
Chapter eight deals with feelings of being persecuted. In this chapter, he outlines four keys that show us God's principles for dealing with persecution. He outlines how to discern whether our perceived or real persecution is actually persecution for the Lord's sake or for other reasons.
In the conclusion, he speaks to pain and how it can be used to strengthen our relationship with the Lord and cause our faith to grow as we are healed through him.
Much of this book contains examples of each of these "battles" through examples of incidents in Dr. Stanley's life. He has experienced the issues that he speaks of in the book and explains what these battles were like for him and how God has remedied them in his life.
As we are all faced with problems, many of us deal with more than one of the issues dealt with in this book. I highly recommend the book as an excellent guide to dealing with these problems. Dr. Stanley gives many references to God's word that deals with each of these problems. If you are dealing with any of these issues, and I do not know of anyone who is not dealing with, at the very least, one of these issues, this book can be a very valuable guide to resolving these issues in your life, allowing you to let go of the emotional baggage that plaques you and prevents total contentment in your life.
