Cry of the Soul: How Our Emotions Reveal Our Deepest Questions about God

OPEN A WINDOW INTO YOUR HEART

Our dark emotions are much more than just uncomfortable feelings we struggle to control. They are windows into our hearts. They are the cry of our souls. These emotions—the ones we tend to suppress and hide—actually have something important to tell us. They can reveal, in a very graphic way, where we are in our relationship with God.

So often we find ourselves caught between extremes. Either we feel too much or not at all. We tend to ignore our feelings or fight them off as if they were an enemy. But all emotion—whether positive or negative—can give us a glimpse of the true nature of God. We want to control our negative emotions and dark desire. God wants us to recognize them as the cry of our soul to be made right with Him.

Beginning with the Psalms, Dr. Dan Allender and Dr. Tremper Longman III explore what Scripture says about our darker emotions. In this ground-breaking work they reveal that often our attempts to control our emotions—far from an attempt to be Christlike—are really a form of rebellion against God or an attempt to flee from Him.

The Cry of the Soul is a penetrating look at the condition of the human heart. You won—t find the kind of answers that alleviate struggle or help you overcome anger, jealousy, or despair in three easy steps. But you can encounter God Himself, who exults in using darkness to reveal the brilliance of His infinite goodness. The result is joy—not a superficial happiness that ignores the problems of our lives, but a profound emotion that can confront darkness with open eyes and confidence.

Dr. Dan Allender has pioneered a unique and innovative approach to trauma and abuse therapy over the past 30 years. Dan taught at Grace Theological Seminary and Colorado Christian University. He helped found and serves as professor of counseling psychology at The Seattle School of Theology & Psychology. He is the author of The Wounded Heart, The Healing Path, To Be Told, and God Loves Sex, and he has co-authored several books with Dr. Tremper Longman, including Intimate Allies, The Cry of the Soul, Bold Love, and Bold Purpose.

Dr. Tremper Longman III received an M.Div. from Westminster Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. from Yale University. Professor of Old Testament at Westminster, Longman is the author of How to Read the Psalms, Literary Approaches to Biblical Interpretation, Introduction to the Old Testament, and coauthor, with Dan Allendar, of Bold Love and Cry of the Soul. Dr. Longman and his wife, Alice, live near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with their three sons.