Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you disquieted within me?
Psalm 42:5a (NRSV)
If I were going to give this message a subtitle it would come from what one of my friends wrote to me about my question: How does depression feel? She wrote:
Depression feels pretty good when you are sunk in it. At least, that’s the way it was for me. I felt sorry for myself and hoped everyone else would, too. If I had been offered the chance to come out into the sunshine, I would have chosen the dark.
In some ways, at least, depression is all about choosing the dark! Sometimes it is our reaction to life’s circumstances and our core beliefs about the way life ought to be. A preacher wrote about the Biltmore House… “It’s a fantastic place. No other home like it in America. I’ve been there many times. Over the years we’ve taken several guests to tour. At first we noticed new things and really enjoyed it. Then we began to hear the same things from the tour guides. Now all we do is give our friends directions to Asheville. [1]
Life can go dim like that; once you were interested, excited – and now you can’t even muster-up an appearance of joy or civility. My friend, who wrote to me of choosing the dark, also shared some of her descent into the abyss that is depression:
The times were difficult. In the space of one or two years we had a series of things that were hard to deal with. My husband lost his good job and never got another in his field. I was the sole breadwinner. Oldest daughter married an Iranian Muslim in Germany, and we couldn’t afford to go to the wedding. Even after the marriage ended, she held this against us. Younger daughter got pregnant having a summer fling with an old boyfriend. The young man disappeared, never to be seen again. Our alcoholic son was also hooked on illicit drugs. My mother died. I continued to function, and many people didn’t know anything was wrong. I smiled and moved through the day with a black heaviness inside.
Where Does This Come From?
We all want to know where this kind of soul-foulness breeds; how do even vibrant, faith-filled believers come down with this awful “black heaviness inside”? I would like to share with you some of what I’ve learned about depression over the years. Admittedly, a sermon is not an exhaustive medical treatise or a psychological “Dear Abby” column; the information I’ll share with you makes no such claims.
What I will share with you comes from professional training as a minister, reading, casual observance of people over a lifetime, the counseling done in a pastor’s study, and my own personal struggles with the demon of depression.
In fact, it is a good place to start there! I’m a Christian, and a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. That being said – yes, Virginia, Russell struggles with depression; Russell is in very good company. The Bible’s pages are filled with fellow-strugglers who were believers – Jeremiah, King Saul, Paul and more. King David poured-out his heart in Psalm after Psalm of the sometimes losing battle of his sanity sinking into the western sky.
In the history of the church depression has afflicted many a servant – it drove Martin Luther to distraction. It was during an epic bout with depression that this great Reformation hero stumbled across what would be the resounding cry of Protestant reform: salvation by grace alone! Calvin, John Bunyan, and even Methodism’s founder, John Wesley were all plagued by the beastly malaise of Blue-Monday-ism.
Christians get depressed. It is not a sign of spiritual maturity to walk around in public with a plastic smile glued to your ears if depression’s got you wrapped in chains as you’re going under for the last time. If anything, it proves you know very little of the authentic human behavior with which Jesus wants his disciples to live! A genuine walk in Christ does not begin or continue in a lie; we walk in truth, by faith…even when we’re depressed!
This morning we will look diagnostically at depression’s sources, symptoms and solutions. Of course the Bible will be our chief test and X-ray machine. The good news is, you don’t have to present your insurance card….this stuff is free!
Depression’s SOURCES
There are three primary sources of depression
1. Situational Stress
Situational stress relates to just about any kind of loss a human can suffer. The long list includes: Economic loss (job, financial), Relationship loss (death, divorce, moving away from friends), and Physical loss (Aging, injury). If you go to a psychologist you will be given a long questionnaire to fill out. The therapist wants to know how many stressors (losses) you’ve had recently which might trigger depression. As my friend shared, she had most of them all at once.
2. Chemical Stress
Medications can induce depression. Certain types of blood pressure medication list “mood swings” as a possible side-effect. Substance abuse also can happen with legal drugs that overwhelm your system; it doesn’t have to be LSD!
3. Genetic Predisposition
Psychiatric diagnosis and treatment of those things we’re born-with, or born with a proclivity towards, is a wide and widely-disputed field. Are you born with a gene that makes you gamble or abuse alcohol? I’ve always wondered, do I have the gene that makes me crave Breyer’s Butter Pecan?
Bi-Polar depressive/hyperactive illness is not a germ you caught on the bus, nor a result of too much candy. If you do a simple internet Google search on “bi-polar” you come up with nearly 7 million hits. Here is one reputable definition:
Bipolar disorder, also known as manic-depressive illness, is a psychiatric disease characterized by periods of abnormally elevated moods, often followed by episodes of depression…. Manic-depressive illness is known to have a strong genetic basis. [2]
Depression’s SYMPTOMS
Whatever the sources of depression, its symptoms are more commonly known. Let me just touch on a few, and make a few comparisons to some folks you know.
Symptom #1. Expressionless voice
King David went depressed on occasion. His chin scraped the floor – his voice was flat and low. A person suffering from depression isn’t just bored – when you’ve lost interest in just about everything, it will show up in the way you interact with others.
Symptom #2. Appetites diminished
By the look of many of us it would be a safe supposition to assume we have never suffered a moment’s depression. People in depression often eat despite the loss of appetite. When depressed, people don’t really have a hearty appetite; food sometimes just serves as a “comfort” activity. Other appetites for normal activities such as sex, work and the like, often suffer during times of depression.
Elijah the prophet sat under a juniper tree and didn’t want to participate in life; he didn’t want to eat, drink or move. His plan was to sit there and die.
Symptom #3. Feelings of Emptiness
Emptiness within can mimic a hunger pang. One reason people sometimes eat without actually having an appetite is the physical symptom of emptiness. Jeremiah was empty – he got to the point of feeling sorry he’d ever been born. Of course Job also cursed that day; that emptiness can lead to thoughts of suicide.
Symptom #4. Worthlessness
In answer to my Pastor’s Partners question, How does depression feel? one of the group wrote:
Like you are really worthless; that you're in a place where you just can't escape this deep, dark feeling that you don't matter, and nobody cares.
Worthlessness “feels” like a trap – being cornered, and unworthy of being rescued. This vacuum-like hellishness sucks the desire to engage with life right out of your veins!
Symptom #5. Helplessness
The Disciples on the Road to Emmaeus felt helpless – they thought it was all over. Jesus was dead, and they were part of his group, so they would probably be hunted-down and killed too. Helpless!
There are many more than this basic list of symptoms…but let’s move to:
Solutions to Depression
There Are Common Solutions
Solution #1. Denial
Many people immediately deny the reality of depression. “Me? Oh no…noooooo! I’m not depressed!” The very idea of having a weakness like depression is for “other people”.
Solution #2. Drowning
Drowning is the art of exchanging something of no value for something that masks the worthlessness of it all; you drown your weakness so you’ll feel stronger. This is also a form of denial.
Many people begin seeking after material things, or get deeply involved in activities….sheer willpower and movement are supposed to take care of that little “blue spell”. But all the activity, without real meaning, drives depression into a stronger foothold.
Some folks try medication after medication. Please do not misread this – sometimes medication is the best solution – especially where there is genetic illness that cannot be addressed otherwise. I am speaking of the first and foremost recourse as always being medication. Medication overload is not the solution for depression.
There is a Biblical Solution
Begin with Acknowledgement
Understanding the problem of depression as a spiritual problem – particularly a psycho-spiritual problem is the key to Biblical solutions. We are primarily spiritual, soul-ish beings. The body is not irrelevant, but too many therapists approach healing of a person created in the image of God as if electrical impulses guided by protoplasmic natural selection were the entire equation – body and mind, plus nothing! We are SOULS who have a body and spirit – not simply bodies alone.
Spirtual problems require scriptural answers. The primary need humans have in the pursuit of mental and spiritual health is confession – an acknowledgement of illness begins a process toward healing.
King David was an exceptional believer; as king of Israel he loved God and was a just and wise ruler. Then he lost his way. He allowed his carnal appetites to take over. He committed adultery, conspiracy and murder. The once-loving, sensitive and integrity-driven shepherd boy-crowned king – a man after God’s own heart – became estranged from God and as depressed as a human can be. When finally confronted about his sins by a prophet God sent, David crumbled in confession. That began his healing. Hear his confession:
1 Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. 2Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. 3For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. 4Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are justified in your sentence and blameless when you pass judgment. 5Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me. 6You desire truth in the inward being; therefore teach me wisdom in my secret heart. Psalms 51:1 - 6 (NRSV)
Now, as we’ve previously said, depression has many sources, causes. Not all depression is particularly caused by sin. However, most faulty solutions are steeped in denial. Confession of that denial is the beginning point of healing. You must acknowledge your need before you can move towards health. You have to say it: I’m depressed! Then…
Trust the Anchor
The anchor is a symbol of hope; it’s a symbol of our ties with safety and sanity.
Anchoring is a definite, irretrivable act of faith.
19We have this hope, a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul,
a hope that enters the inner shrine behind the curtain Hebrews 6:19a
Christ is our anchor. There are a number of definite acts of faith that help us anchor our hope in Him, and begin the pathway away from depression.
PHYSICAL
Diet, exercise and rest are all routine and necessary parts of taking care of yourself. While there are natural results to these, they are also part of spiritual cooperation with God’s plan for healthy humans.
PSYCHOLOGICAL
Everyone needs someone to come alongside for support. A counselor can be a friend or a professional. She or he should be someone whom you trust, and can be objective. If you start with a friend, and the depression keeps hanging-on, you need someone who is trained to diagnose and treat. Don’t rule out professional help. There are Christian counselors who can help you anchor your life using techniques and practices that do not compromise your Christian values.
HOPE
Family life and church-family are important parts of the anchor God designed to help us combat things like depression. Being part of a loving family group is essential to finding wholeness. We are created for relationship, and are incomplete without that. Most of the pictures we see which are representative of depressed people are pictures of persons alone! This is math that’s not too hard for anyone – depression is an “alone activity”. Even God said when He created Adam that it was not good for the man to be alone. Hope comes in relationship.
This past Wednesday during Bible Study I used an illustration to teach a Lenten practice about commitment. It is a decidedly secular item that has spiritual implications. It’s from the psychology of betting in a poker game. (After the study I told them they could go home and call all their friends to tell them their Pastor taught them to gamble tonight!)
In “Texas Hold-em” you can “limp-in” or you can go “all-in”. To limp-in is to just bet the minimum, trying to stay in the game, but not get too radical, so as to lose your shirt. It’s not a very committed way to play; it’s a very timid and self-preserving way to play; you’re not going to win big! On the other hand there’s “all-in”. You can push your chips…every last dollar you have…into the center. If the others want to continue, they can match your bet; otherwise they must pull out and you win by default.
There is a parallel in Lent. As believers we can come to church a little, give some money and promise to be nice. That’s kind of a minimum “limping-in”. Then there’s “all-in”. It’s kind of jumping-into the family and saying: “ta-daaaaa – here I am, deal with me….I’m part of the body and I’m depressed…somebody talk to me”. Now, that’s a far cry from limping-in once or twice a month.
The question is….how do we get the depressed guy from limping off into the corner…. To go all-in…to go right down to the middle of the chips?
It’s called a leap of faith! There comes a time with faith, family, friendships and even depression, when you’ve got to either be satisfied with limping-in, or in a decisive moment calling “all-in…I’m all-in here”!
Faith calls for a decision. Sitting alone on the sidelines requires nothing – but it’s more depressing than we can tell. There comes a time when it’s up to you what you will do with this depression issue that’s screaming for attention. There’s an anchor to hold you up; his name is Jesus, and he’s got a family here that’s waiting to love you. The question is will you limp-in, or go all-in? Your call!
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ENDNOTES
1] Brian Matherlee, Boredom At the Biltmore, on SermonCentral.com
2] © 2009 PDR Network, LLC. All Rights Reserved
