"GOD'S REMEDY FOR DEPRESSION"

Good Evening to All!

I waited patiently and expectantly for the Lord; and He inclined to me and heard my cry. (2) He drew me up out of a horrible pit [a pit of tumult and of destruction], out of the miry clay (froth and slime), and set my feet upon a rock, steadying my steps and establishing my goings.
(Psalm 40:1-2 Amp.version)

I personally think the author of the devotion which I read tonight should have included verse 3 as well, because it brings clarity to this passage.

It reads: (3) And He has put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God.

God's Word tells us to wait patiently on the Lord. First of all, His time is not the same as our time. One day to Him may be a week or a month to us. We don't know. The only reference I remember in the Bible to time is the scripture that talks about one day being as a thousand years.

The point I'm trying to make here is that God's timing is the best timing. He knows what is best for us more than we do. What we want, when we want, may not be right for us at the time. So God waits.

Something else about this passage tells me that Jesus is always talking about "servitude". He washed the disciples' feet to get His point across about being a servant. In Matthew 25:35-40, He said (35) For I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me something to drink, I was a stranger and you brought Me together with yourselves and welcomed and entertained and lodged Me, (36) I was naked and you clothed Me, I was sick and you visited Me with help and ministering care, I was in prison and you came to see Me. (37) Then the just and upright will answer Him, Lord, when did we see You hungry and gave You food, or thirsty and gave You something to drink? (38)And when did we see You a stranger and welcomed and entertained You, or naked and clothed You? (39) And when did we see You sick or in prison and came to visit You? (40) And the King will reply to them, Truly I tell you, in so far as you did it for one of the least [in the estimation of men] of these My brethren, you did it for Me.

It brings to my mind when I was a server in a restaurant. It was our job to make sure our customers were satisfied and had what they needed. We should do the same for God. Not that He "needs" anything, but we, as the body of Christ, are His hands, feet, and mouths. We are to be about our Father's business, which means we are serving God. We are to do His bidding whether it means witnessing to someone, by telling them about God's love and His Word, or witnessing by our actions and deeds. According to His Word, it should be a combination of all three. Deeds alone will not get us into Heaven. As we are suppose to be "planters of seeds", then someone else will come along and water, then God will do the increase.

I know this passage speaks about God bringing us out of depression and despair. We have to put our trust in Him to do this. We have to believe that He can and will do this. The joy of the Lord is our strength. Therefore, the feelings of depression, and despair are not of God. When we feel these "spirits" (and that is what they are) coming on, we need to turn our focus to God. Think about how great He is, and remember that He is more powerful, and bigger than any problem that may arise. He can handle anything. There are no problems to big for Him because He is all powerful. There are no problems to small for Him either. If he thinks that something as trivial as the number of hairs on our head is important enough for Him to remember, then any problem we are going through is important to Him as well.

I love this passage because it brings several things to mind for me. The Bible tells us to expect miracles. This is called "faith". Without faith, we cannot please God.

The reason I say this is simple. It is a conclusion. It is the answer. In our prayers, when we include praising and worshiping God, by acknowledging how wonderful He is, how much we love Him, that we love Him not just for what He has done for us, but also for WHO HE IS, this will envelope us into His complete presence even deeper.

He always listens to our prayers, but to allow ourselves to be engulfed in His presence will take us to a deeper level in our prayer life.

When I start feeling depressed or even just having a momentary "pity party" because of a bad day, to bring me out of it, all I have to do is change my focus. I start thinking about what God has done for me in the past. Where He has brought me from. I start singing hymns and praise songs to Him and it brings me into His presence and lifts my spirit immediately. I even sing songs that I remember from my childhood days in Sunday School. It brings joy flooding back into my soul.

When you are experiencing feelings of depression, or even just sadness, I hope you will think of this passage and what I have suggested. Refuse to give in to those feelings because THEY ARE NOT OF GOD. They are Satan's way of getting your mind off of the things from God, meaning happiness, love contentment, patience, love, and anything else GOOD you can think of. Don't let Satan have his way by letting yourself be consumed by sadness and depression, or anger. Start singing God's songs and Satan will flee. He cannot handle being around God's praises.

Good Night to All and May God Bless!