God’s remedy for depression

“Why, my soul, are you downcast?” Ps 43:5 NIV

It’s estimated that the average thirty-year-old today is ten times more likely to be depressed than their parents, and twenty times more likely to be depressed than their grandparents. And most of them won’t reach for assistance because they believe depression is a personal weakness. Now, let’s make an important distinction here. If you’re clinically depressed it could be due to a chemical imbalance in your body, and a doctor can help you. We are talking about being locked into a cycle of sadness and hopelessness. If that’s where you are today, you need wisdom on how to recover. Your situation won’t be solved with a few clichés or a good pick-me-up lecture from a friend. What you need is “the wisdom that is from above” (Jas 3:17). After calling down fire from heaven, Elijah “sat down…and prayed that he might die” (1Ki 19:4 NKJV). Fortunately, he turned to the right source. “All at once an angel touched him and said, ‘Get up’” (1Ki 19:3-5 NIV). Now, God may not send you an angel, but He will answer you, lift and restore you. The psalmist said: “Why, my soul, are you downcast? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.” Who is David talking to? Himself! First, he talked to God about his problem; that’s what you do in prayer. Next, he listened to God about his problem; that’s what you do when you read the Scriptures and speak them over your life. That strategy works. It worked for David—and it will work for you too.

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