A few days ago, in an “Ask Pastor John” episode, John Piper was asked about depression, and whether a Christian hedonist can experience it.

If you’re not familiar with Christian hedonism, you should pick up Piper’s classic book Desiring God. His basic premise is that “God is most glorified us when we are most satisfied in him,” and that God actually created us to know and enjoy him. True Christianity is not the denial of pleasure, but rather discovering that we were made for pleasure, and that true joy is found in God alone. Christians are to be hedonists in the true sense of the word, and pastors in particular should be those who taste and see that the Lord is good, then share him with others.

So, back to the matter of depression. A listener named Hannah from Los Angles writes Piper a courageous question: “…There is a very real place of deep darkness that I’ve experienced. When I hear you speak of Christian hedonism, and joy and pleasure in God, I feel a tinge of fear, because I’ve often lived in valleys where I feel little joy. Can flourishing Christian hedonism co-exist with seasons of dark depression, or is that a stark contrast of terms?”

Piper begins by recommending an exposition on Psalm 72 by John Bloom called “My Soul Refuses to Be Refreshed.” He also refers to one of his own books When the Darkness Will Not Lift.

I love what Piper says about the psalms. “The most experiential parts of the Bible are very realistic as far as the ups and downs of our relationship with God.” This is good news for us. We are not to be driven and tossed by our emotions, but they are a genuine part of the human experience, and we should be neither surprised nor alarmed by them, but rather seek to take those emotions and thoughts captive to the will of God.

Piper then distinguishes between “flourishing” Christian hedonism where depression is unlikely to be felt and “rugged” or “unbroken” Christian hedonism that experiences ups and downs. He makes an interesting point that depression is not mainly finding joy in something other than God, but is more complicated than that. Depression often involves physical factors and attacks from the enemy. With depression, “the capacity to cherish at all has dried up and there is a deep, dark numbness of the soul.”

This is a helpful definition and comes from the voice of experience. I would have loved to hear a scripture at this point, giving biblical support for his definition and diagnosis. I think it can be justified by the language of Psalm 42 and passages such as Job 3 and Ecclesiastes 4. But while Piper does not cite scripture in his definition, he does give five very helpful scriptures to serve the soul during bouts of depression. If you struggle with a “deep, dark numbness,” know you are not alone, and that God can help you just as he has helped these Spirit-inspired authors before you.

Micah 7:8–9 Rejoice not over me, O my enemy; when I fall, I shall rise; when I sit in darkness, the Lord will be a light to me. I will bear the indignation of the Lord because I have sinned against him, until he pleads my cause and executes judgment for me. He will bring me out to the light; I shall look upon his vindication.

Psalm 139:7 Where shall I go from your Spirit? Or where shall I flee from your presence?

Psalm 42:5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation

1 Peter 2:2–3 Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Philippians 3:12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Piper says we press on to make Jesus our own, because he pressed on to make us his own.

You can listen to the whole answer here. It’s only 11 minutes long and worth your time.

As those who have tasted that the Lord is good, may the Lord help us every day to crave for him and find our satisfaction in him, pushing through the darkness and embracing the One for whom we were made.

(I first shared this post in a blog called “Shade for the Shepherd” that I briefly started in 2020, but then I decided to stick with my existing blog “Pinch of Clay.” Thanks for reading!)