Depression has been on the increase, even among Christians, so how can believers fight depression when it his them?
Depression
Depression has been on the increase, even among Christians, so how can believers fight depression when it his them? Depressive disorder (or depression) is very common in the world and it’s getting worse year by year. Someone who is depressed faces a loss of pleasure or interest in activities and is not the same things as mood swings. We all have those, but when we realize that God saved us even while we were still yet wicked, ungodly sinners (Rom 5:6-10), then we can have the right perspective that God is not dealing with us according to our sins (Psalm 103:10-12). We deserve His wrath but instead He extends His mercy through trusting in Jesus Christ.
Saints Who Battled Depression
There were many who went through severe depression just like we do. Many godly men faced depression. Godly men like Job (Book of Job), Abraham (Gen. 15), Jeremiah (Book of Jeremiah), Jonah (chapter 4), King Saul (I Sam 16), Elijah (I Kings 19), and even the greatest king that Israel ever had, King David (Book of Psalms). Some depression may not stem from an emotional cause. It could be that there are brain chemical imbalances that are treatable. At other times depression can be caused by emotional upheavals in life like the death of a child or spouse or job loss or losing a house due to financial constraints. It is so important to know that our emotions cannot change our state of salvation. We might have doubts and fears but God’s Word is certain and sure. We can depend upon God’s unchanging nature; our emotions can change from day to day, but God never changes (Heb 13:8, Malachi 3:6). His Word gives a believer so much hope and has real power in it to encourage us.
Learning Contentment
Even the spiritual giant Apostle Paul battled depression to the point of despairing of life (2 Cor 1:8), but he didn’t stay there. Neither do you need to stay in the muck and mire of depression. What Paul did was to learn contentment…the secret to his contentment was to put it all on the Lord and put everything into perspective. You can only learn contentment when things are going bad. When all is well, we are okay, but when circumstance change, we can easily fall into the trap of mental depression. We never find Paul to be “speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content” (Phil 4:11). Why? Paul knew “know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need” (Phil 4:12), so how did he manage not to be totally depressed? He says, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Phil 4:13). It was not thru self-help methods or through worldly counselors that he found help but from God’s Word and God’s Spirit.
Clinical Depression
We have to understand that the depression you are facing may have a physical cause which is not based upon emotions or troubles. In many cases, depression is treatable and there are times you should see a doctor about it. How encouraging it can be to depend upon God’s unchanging nature. Our emotions can change from day to day and are not dependable day after day like God’s precious promises are. Thankfully, God never changes (Heb 13:8, Malachi 3:6), even when our feelings do. The Word of God gives us so much hope and the Bible has real power in it to encourage us and help us shed this depression.
Encouragement from God’s Word
Psalms 17:8: “Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me under the shadow of your wings”
Psalm 27:5: “For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.”
Psalm 36:7: “How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings.”
Psalm 63:7: “Because you are my help, I sing in the shadow of your wings.”
Psalm 91:1: “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.”
Psalm 91:4: “He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart (a fortification, a means of protection or defense).”
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”
Joshua 1:5: “No one will be able to stand against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Hebrews 13:5b has a similar saying: “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”
Conclusion
If you are not saved yet, then you have every reason to be depressed and you will never find any real help in this life from the world because the world is part of the problem, but I pray you have put your trust in Jesus Christ. If not, you are in real danger of hell fire. All who are not saved are all one breath, one heartbeat…one accident away from eternity in hell fire where it will be too late to repent. This is why the Bible tells us today is the best day to believe (2 Cor 6:2) because you have no guarantee that tomorrow will even come. If Jesus Christ were to come today, you will be judged without a chance to repent and be saved. This is all the more reason I pray that you repent today and put your trust in the Savior. If not, you will face God’s judgment after death (Heb 9:27), or at Jesus Christ’s appearance (Rev 20:12-15), which could happen in the blink of an eye.
