Depression!

Depression!

I’ve heard it said that there’s as many depressed Christian’s as non-Christians in the world today. Now some may have good reason to be depressed, however if you’ve been battling depression for a long while, perhaps it’s telling you something.

Depression is an indicator that things aren’t going the way you’d like. Being depressed during a major upheaval is one thing, carrying depression year after year; that’s something else entirely. The bible tells us in Psalm 147:3 “He heals the broken hearted and binds up their wounds.” If you’ve not recovered from something which broke you, I’d imagine you haven’t been reading your bible. You can’t read your bible and still be depressed, because all the hope you wish for is in there.

Enjoying life is a decision made outside of our circumstances and the bible explains how to do it. It’s called faith. When you tap into faith without wavering your hope is stirred up as you look forward to better days and your spirit and soul are lifted. The heaviness you carry will fall away but only if you’re consistent. You can’t be hit and miss with bible study and expect great results.

Doubt, unbelief, sadness, pain, are all present in life and we can choose to fight against those or fall in a heap. While the gospel is easy, it does come at a cost and that cost is the time it takes for you to read and understand what it is you’re to do.

We all make mistakes and regret transpires because you’re looking behind, rather than looking ahead. Regret is the thief of joy. There’s not one thing you can do to change the past, so let it go and begin to focus on a brighter future. It was Paul who said we are all pressing toward the mark. What mark? The mark of excellence. We all fall short of excellence, but that doesn’t mean we can’t strive towards it every day.

Paul made major mistakes in life, killing Christians while believing it was the right thing to do, but he was able to let his past go and move forward, becoming one of the main authors of the new testament. How well do you think he could have done if he’d have held onto his past failures rather than moving forward and leaving them behind?

Make a decision today that you’re not going to allow any further depression in your life. Make that decision. Commit to it and as you look forward to the new day, look in anticipation of wonderful events emerging. And you might be asking right about now; “How?” How do you commit to not falling into depression? Apart from the bible itself, there’s many books on the topic of overcoming depression. Both are a great place to start. Don’t listen to depressing music or watch depressing movies. Look for humour. Proverbs 17:22 says; “A merry heart does good, like medicine.” You see, these bible verses, they’re all there for a reason and we can draw from them at any time.

Allowing negative thoughts and feelings into your life will fill you with dread. You get to choose. God always give us the choice. We can choose good or evil. The devil has no power over the Christian life, unless we hand it to him, unless we choose darkness over light.

When in a negative state, stay calm, let go of frustration, think thoughts of peace and joy. Philippians 4:8; “Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good regard, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy - meditate on these things.”

There will always be a new obstacle to overcome and your job is to get beside God, work out with Him what it is you need to be doing and then do it. God wants you to turn to Him. He wants to hear from you and He wants you to hear from Him. It’s called conversation and you can only have dialogue if you have relationship. Spend time with Him. Get to know Him. And if you can’t think of anything to say to Him, just sit beside Him. He longs to spend time with you.

The lack of joy and peace in the world today shows just how many people aren’t turning to God to allay their fears. When your priorities align with His, your life will run much smoother. One of the greatest benefits to spending time with God is a satisfied life. When you dwell in His presence and your priorities are straight, you’ll find worldly possessions aren’t what’s needed. What’s needed is righteousness. When you see righteous isn’t the result of what you do, but what Jesus has done, a burden is lifted and peace is gathered. Peace, joy and laughter is greatly beneficial to our health and it extends through not only the physical but also the mental.

The bible speaks of a peace that surpasses our understanding, because when we’re in tune with God, it doesn’t matter what’s going on in our lives’ or with the world itself, that peace will sit with us and we shall be content.