How God Helps You Overcome Depression
Psalm 42:1-43:5
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation
(Psalms 42:5 ESV)
In everyday language "depression" refers to any downturn in mood, which may be relatively transitory and perhaps due to something trivial. This is differentiated from clinical depression which is marked by symptoms that last two weeks or more and are so severe that they interfere with daily living. A mental state of a depressed mood is characterized by feelings of sadness, despair and discouragement.
Many people in the Bible suffered through depression. Naomi, Job, Jeremiah, and even Jesus encountered times of depression. Some of the most famous Christian ministers encountered times of depression. Martin Luther, Charles Spurgeon, John Knox, John Bunyan, Lottie Moon, and even Rick Warren have mentioned specific times in their ministries when they encountered depression.
While some Christians will want to deny that they can go through depression, it does happen. And it happens quite often. Since this can be the case, I want to share with you steps that contribute to depression and then steps that you can take to help yourself when you get depressed.
Going through depression is a little like walking down a staircase into a hole. When a person walks down each step in a staircase, it brings them lower and lower. Many times we don’t realize that we have walked down the staircase of depression until it starts to affect us in physical ways. Even then, it may be hard to understand what is going on.
Here are some steps that take us down to depression:
STEP DOWN #1 - Difficult changes in life
The author of this psalm was most likely David. The psalm was written when David was driven out of Jerusalem to the Jordan river. He was run out of Jerusalem during a rebellion. His son Absalom tried to take his throne. This was a difficult change in King David’s life.
In the same way, many of us have had times in our lives when life seems to be changing so fast. You get married, you move, you change jobs. You try to adapt to the changes and sometimes it is very hard. This can cause you to step down a bit.
STEP DOWN #2 - Someone’s negative words
Needless to say, David is going through a difficult time in his life. He is also hearing a few people who are making accusations against him.
I say to God, my rock: "Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?" As with a deadly wound in my bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me continually, "Where is your God?"
(Psalms 42:9-10 ESV)
Perhaps you know people who taunt you, or speak only negative words against you. If you are feeling like you are depressed, you may be listening to the oppression of other people. Some people can really be insulting, and unhelpful to you. These words add to the feeling of depression.
STEP DOWN #3 - My own emotional insecurities
The psalm starts with the statement:
My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God?
(Psalms 42:2 ESV)
As you read through this psalm, and even in many other psalms, you find that King David is quite emotionally insecure. He admits that he is not strong enough to handle the challenges that come his way. Some of his most famous psalms are expression of his emotional insecurities.
First, you can notice that this person is apparently exhausted. The psalmist is so tired and worn out that he is thirsty.
Second, you can notice that this person has other emotional insecurities.
My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me continually, "Where is your God?"
(Psalms 42:3 ESV)
This is a poetic way of saying that his emotions are getting out of control. Sometimes, you feel the effects of depression, you feel so alone. This loneliness causes you to just simply weep. Sometimes you can’t control it. You just start to weep. Many times the source of this weeping is related to the first step down. You have encountered so much stress that the only release that helps is to just cry.
I remember when I conducted my first funeral. It was very overwhelming. Watching a funeral is one thing. Being related to the deceased is another. And it is still another unique exprience to pastor and lead a funeral.
The funeral was for a man in the church I pastored. I was asked to officiate with another pastor over this funeral. I was asked to prepare the eulogy. I remember that all was fine until an hour before the funeral. I visited with the family one last time, and made corrections to my text. At the end we prayed, then the family left. I was so overcome with emotion that I began to weep.
STEP DOWN #4 - Satan’s accusations
Of course, Satan is going to use the opportunity to attack you. He knows that when you are down, it is hard to get back up. He will just take a simple thing and use to bring you one step lower than before.
STEP DOWN #5 - My own thoughts
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation
(Psalms 42:5 ESV)
On top of the stresses of changes, the negative words of others, your own emotional insecurities, and Satan’s accusations, you even bring yourself down by the way you talk to yourself.
Notice that King David realizes that his own soul is in turmoil within. David has thoughts that seem to betray him, and he knows it. You know, you can talk yourself into more depression.
Walking yourself into depression can feel like walking into a hole so large that you cannot get yourself out. But the Bible does show ways to get out of this hole of depression.
Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me! For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you rejected me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling! Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God. Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
(Psalms 43:1-5 ESV)
What are some steps that we can take to bring us back out of the hole of depression?
For each step that took you into the hole, there are step that brings you out of depression. So, in a sense, these steps parallel one another. These steps may sound simple, but they have a powerful effect on your life.
You stepped down into depression because of the stress related to your circumstances. These stresses added up on top of you and they pressed you down. You encountered so many changes that it became difficult to adjust.
The fact is, you can adjust. Many scholars agree that Psalm 43 is a continuation of Psalm 42. That means that Psalm 42 and 43 are essentially one psalm. If this is true, then some of the solutions in Psalm 43 will help you when you are in Psalm 42. For example:
Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling!
(Psalms 43:3 ESV)
You know when you step into a hole, there is a bottom to the hole. When you reach the bottom, the only way to look is up. Now many people, when they are feeling depressed, they keep looking and talking down. But that will not help you. When you are in a hole, the first thing that you do is start to look up. You look so that you can find a way out. The same is true with depression. You can adjust, and it requires that you begin to start looking up. How do you do that? How do you start to look up out of the hole and then climb out?
Before we talk about the first step, let me say something that God will do. I don’t know about you, but with me, when I start to get myself down, God starts to show me that my problems are really not that bad. Sometimes he brings to me a person that is in a harder situation than myself. Many times he opens my eyes to the world around me, so that I am not focused on me and my problems.
I have to start saying to myself that my problems are not that bad. Yesterday we went to a concentration camp in Bergen-Belzen. After you have seen this, your present problems are nothing in comparison. God will show you that your situation is really not that bad. But not just this, you have to write down positive words that you see good about yourself. This is part of the first step out.
STEP UP #1 - Wisdom and words of help to adjust
David is asking for God to send some wisdom and help his way. David is asking God for help. David is asking God to draw him out of his hole of depression. God’s light and truth will help David adjust to his situation. This wisdom will help David deal with the problem that he is in. The same can be true for you. God can lead you in your decisions. He wants to share with you ways to adjust. He wants to be a "light in your path". He wants to be the "way, truth, and life" for you.
God leads us up out of our hole of depression, and He does it with His light and truth. God leads us out. One of the ways to let God show you is to see what is good and true about yourself. Ask God to show you what is good about yourself. Then write it down. Don’t concentrate on the negative. Ask God in prayer and then make a list of what you know is good. For example: You have a roof over your head, you have food in the refrigerator, you have your family, money in the bank, whatever you can say that is good. You need to start looking at the good in your life, not the bad.
But God also has given wisdom to other people - people who have been in similar situations that you are now in. God also wants you to ask from others wisdom.
STEP UP #2 - Comforting words by others
Paul says that we should ask from others who have been in our situation. This is why in Titus 2, he instructs the older men to teach the younger men, and older women to teach the younger women.
When you have been hurt by others, you will want to receive comfort from other people. This is why the Bible says that as believers, we should comfort others. We should comfort others because at one time we have been comforted.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.
(2 Corinthians 1:3-4 ESV)
God comforts you and you comfort other people when they go through a difficult time. This is especially true when you have been walking down the staircase to depression. When you feel depressed, you need to hear more encouraging words. Scientists says that for it can take 10 encouraging and positive words to overcome 1 discouraging and hurting word. Now, imagine that. If this is in any way true, then we should think more, and speak less. And when we speak, we need to speak more words of encouraging.
Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!
(Psalms 43:1 ESV)
It also means that if you are receiving negative, discouraging words, you need to get away from that. It is as if this person is pushing you down the steps. You are being pushed down the steps of depression.
STEP UP #3 - Worship (Focus on the securities in God)
We all have emotional insecurities. For someone to say that they have NO emotional insecurities is someone who is saying that they have it completely together all the time. No one is completely together all the time. All of us encounter challenges and changes that make us insecure. All of us deal with other individuals. Relationships magnify your emotional insecurity. Husbands, you can lie to everyone else about how you are, but your wife knows it all. Parents may not know all of their children’s insecurites, but someone does. We all rely on someone else to help us when we feel down.
But there is a problem with laying all of my emotional insecurities on my best friend. It brings my best friend down. There is a problem with laying all of my emotional insecurities on all of my friends. Everyone starts to feel it and it will put a strain on your friendships.
So what are you going to do? David shows us that you can take your insecurities to God and focus on the securities that come from God.
Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God.
(Psalms 43:4 ESV)
When you are feeling no joy, go to God, who will release to you His joy. This can be done in worship. Music has an amazing power on people who are sick and especially on people who are depressed. The Bible has examples of Saul going to David and asking him to play the harp. It soothed Saul’s soul. Worship will soothe your soul as well.
I have found that many times, when I feel insecure, when I can’t go on, worship lifts me up. Worship in the church is one time, but I am often so nervous that I cannot focus on worship as I often should. So I spend some time in worship at home. I put in a CD and just start to listen. At times of my greatest grief, I cry. A song touches me and the emotions come up. Then when it is over, I am relieved.
And worship is more than just an emotional cleansing for me. Worship affects me deeply. God soothes me more in worship than in any other way. I can see God and His power, His joy, and His love. I am visualize the hope that I have in Christ when I listen or sing praises to Him.
STEP UP #4 - Spiritual comfort through prayer
Related to worship is the spiritual comfort that comes through prayer. Many times we have to come to God in prayer for comfort. This is especially true when we going down the staircase of depression. When we start to get really down, Satan will try to really keep us down. He starts to make more accusations - none of which are true.
Do you know that everything that Satan tells you is a lie? Satan never tells the truth. He doesn’t know how to tell the truth. He spits out lies like a gun that spits out bullets. Each lie hurts, causes pain, and makes you want to end it all. But God can give you comfort and help you overcome the attacks of Satan.
During Jesus’ most intense time of difficulty, angels came and comforted Him.
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
(Psalms 43:5 ESV)
Salvation in this verse, which is repeated two other times in Psalm 42, does not mean eternal salvation. The word means deliverance, or the sense of helping someone out of their difficulty. This is what God does during times of depression. He will deliver you. You have to hope in Him, and decide that God can help you. He will, but you have to be willing to take His hand.
This leads to the last step:
STEP UP #5 - Getting help
If there is any way to deal with being in the hole of depression, you have to get help. Depression feeds on loneliness. You have to starve that depression by asking for help. Some people are not so far in depression and they can come back up with worship, encouraging words and adjustment. But the further depressed you are, the more help you need.
There is nothing wrong with asking for that help. Let me share with you my experience. When I went to my first pastorate, I left seminary, my family moved, my friends were all gone, and I went to a church in the middle of no-where. The people were as old as my grandparents, and while they were lovely folks, I really started to have problems the second year of my pastorate.
I went to a doctor to tell him my symptoms. They were severe enough that he wanted to send me to a psychologist for "shock therapy." Well, I did not think you needed to use 12th century methods to handle a 21st century problem. So I got a second opinion. This person recommended a Christian counselor some two hours away. I went to this therapist for about 8 weeks. It was the best money I spent to help myself.
God has gifted these people to help people with these special difficulties. Not everyone needs to go to a specialist. But some do. For these that do need to go, they should take the time and effort. It will help them tremendously.
I refer people whom I think need more specialized help. I can’t help everyone nor do I think it is my job to help everyone. But you can get help from someone. I have found most people don’t go to get help for whatever problem they have because they either don’t think it is important, they don’t want to be open about their problems and solve it, or they don’t want to pay for it.
I will tell you it is irresponsible for you if you have problems and you don’t go get help. If these first four steps don’t help, it is worth your money to go talk to a Christian counselor.
Depression is hard, and it a deep hole that is hard to overcome. But God is bigger than any depression we may be feeling. Knowing what steps takes us down, and what steps will bring us back up can be invaluable when we encounter difficulties that can get us down.
