Daily Devotions
Can Depression Be a Blessing?
Reading for October 30th: Luke 23-24
Then Jesus, calling out with a loud voice, said, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!"
Luke 23:46
Depression is a reality for many believers. Some of the greatest heroes of the faith battled this emotion--Moses, David, Elijah, Jeremiah, and others.
Depression is a black hole that can seem infinitely deep to someone down in it. It's hard for the rest of us to appreciate how helpless and hopeless it can feel. It's easy for us to judge. We think depression should be a simple thing to overcome, especially for a believer in Christ. We tell them, "Just pray to God and you'll feel better," as if they weren't praying about it already.
There is no easy solution to depression. However as children of God we can face this problem with a different perspective. Since we believe that this world has been cursed by sin, and that the promise of a new world where God will wipe away every tear is waiting for us (Revelation 21:4), we can look at depression in a different light.
What if we always struggle with this, even to the day we die, but in the process of time come to seek God more earnestly and sincerely than others whose lives seem so easy and care free? What if we develop more compassion and empathy for people who share similar struggles? What if we are made more humble and come to feel less self-sufficient? What if we, in the midst of our darkness, come to learn to pray as Jesus did, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit?"
Father, we long for the day when we don't have to struggle with these afflictions any longer! Bless those who are living in this lonely place called depression. May they accept our help as we reach out to them. May they find their hope and strength in you.
