Depression

Just the word gets me down a bit. I am thinking that it is at epidemic proportions in America and the church. Something comes over people that just gets them down. Some people do not even know they have it, like a low grade fever and over years, it wears their souls down. Some people have bio-chemical issues, some emotional and some spiritual.

Martin Lloyd Jones wrote a great work on Spiritual Depression. In it he says that if you want to move out of depression, you need to talk to yourself asking why you are so downcast, and then recalling the wonders of God. He encourages believers to put their hope in God.

A good word, but not easy to do. Some days all you can do is sit by the fire. Talk to yourself all you want, it does not seem to help. That is when you need to be bold enough to ask someone else to talk for you and to you. To tell you of your worth. Not too much Christianese like, "You are a son of God" but to help you recall how God has enabled you to use gifts and bear fruit with real life examples.

Platitudes are no good when you are down. You need some one to say something like, "Those Thanksgiving day pictures you took are a true joy and we remember that as a great day with you as we laughed and ate. We look forward to next year. By the way can you get us some more copies of those pictures, we want to share your work with friends?"

That is encouragement that shows the reality of the value of a life and there is no need to mix in, "Hope in God" or "You really do need to get it together!" Being together is enough and more important than having it all together.

Jesus tended to do that with His friends and He too looks forward to eating with us again at the thanksgiving meal to come. Worship Well.