The Truth About Depression

I have wrestled with depression since I was 16, or so, both personally and with family members whom have been effected by it also.

Years ago, it changed my moods and affected me physically as well.

I considered anger management for some time, but after becoming a Christian, I began to see a change in what was happening to me. This caused me to dig deeper into the spiritual possibilities of what was going on.

No matter what I blamed my depression on,... the loss of a girlfriend, job, past decisions, etc,.. negative thought patterns were ALWAYS prevalent and or associated within these periods of depression.

What I mean is, Let's take loss or lack of affection, (a girlfriend broke up with me) for instance. If a girlfriend broke up with me, (regardless of the reason) I would begin to think of negative things like, the loss, the loneliness, what was wrong with me, would I find someone else, etc, etc,... and any or all of these negative thoughts would play through my mind in the hours, days, and even weeks ahead. I had gotten use to entertaining these thoughts one at a time until I could rule them out somehow 'or' until something else *restored my emotions to *normal, like the restoring of the relationship, meeting a new potential girlfriend, or something exciting yet unrelated, even.

NOTE: I want to come back to these two words with the * later in this study.

I chose loss or lack of affection, above, but it could be lossing my job, a bad decision, the way I was raised, someone getting a better model of the car, boat, tricycle, etc,... than the one I had. It doesnt matter what it is that I was depressed about, but the negative thought pattern was always associated with my struggle.

This depression, as many of you know can range from short to long, light to heavy, and from mental to physical.

Often, in my case, anger was one of the fruits of my depression. I had considered anger management for sometime, but eventually I had become a Christian for other reasons (     How I Became a Christian

before learning to deal with my long time struggle.

Now, please stay with me through all of this study. I really believe Christ wants us to understand this.

I did not get over my depression when I got saved. Maybe someone you know did, but for me, I've had to walk with the Lord for a while to this point of Victory over my depression. What Gods Word began to teach me was spilling over into my long time self diagnosis of this old enemy, 'Depression'. For one thing, the bible has much to say about the mind.

For instance, in Romans 12:2 we understand that with the Spirit of God, we can be transformed (change) by the [entire] renewing of our minds [by its new ideals and its new attitude], so that we can prove [for ourselves] what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God, even the thing which is good and acceptable and perfect [in His sight for you].

In John 8:32, we see that we will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free.

And from John 8:44, we must believe that there is a devil loose and there is no truth in him. In fact, when he speaks a falsehood, he speaks what is natural to him, for he is a liar [himself] and the father of lies and of all that is false.

From these scriptures, we see there is truth and there is a lie. We see where truth is from and where lies come from. Now we are getting close to seeing what I believe the Lord has shown me concerning 'Depression'.

Lets go back to my being depressed because my girlfriend left me.

In this situation, I was enternaining thoughts that were uncomfortable for me to deal with. One was that I was feeling alone. Was I alone? From Hebrews 13:5, we know the truth is that I was not alone. Now, in those days I was not aware of the truth. But as I have grown in the knowledge of His Word, His Truth, I have become used to REPLACING those things that are NOT true (lies) with the Truth.

Please pray about this, my friends. I trully believe the Lord is the key to putting Depression under your feet.

I have no degrees in Psychology or Medicine, nor am I a Preacher. There is no personal benefit to me other than knowing that you will be freed by the truth. The only good in me is from God now residing within me. So PLEASE consider this:

Maybe your husband left you some time ago and the weight of Depression has its grip on you today. Maybe, you are focused on the negative things. Why dont you consider how blessed you may have been to have experienced such a blessing for as long as you did? Its the truth. Regardless if it was Gods perfect will for you to have been married 9 months or 9 years or if He allowed it by His Grace for another purpose, it WAS a blessing. And what does He have planned for you next.

Maybe your Depression stems from not having things turn out the way you wanted with your childs education, or the sale of your house. Why dont you trust in and rely on God? Why dont you replace the lies of the devil with the truths from Gods word? Amen?

Now this is also very important. If you do not know God, you cannot know His Word. I studied the bible and many other religious teachings before I came to Christ, and before the Holy Spirit came into me, I could not understand the bible.

If you know God and are still holding onto sin, you will not find peace. You will continue to fight depression by yourself, because sin will not allow the Spirit to operate within you.

Finally, depression will never totally go away. I still feel its presence, but I have learned to ignore it. My experience with depression is similar to the movie, 'A Beautiful Mind'.

This is a true story of ProfessorJohn Nash. From the heights of notoriety to the depths of depravity, John Forbes Nash, Jr. experienced it all. A mathematical genius, he made an astonishing discovery early in his career and stood on the brink of international acclaim. But the handsome and arrogant Nash soon found himself on a painful and harrowing journey of self-discovery. After many years of struggle, he eventually triumphed over his tragedy, and finally - late in life - received the Nobel Prize. http://www.abeautifulmind.com/

At the end of the story, Prof Nash, having learned to ignore the characters from his disease for many years, and now at the hieght of his succesful career, is asked, if he still struggles with his disease.

Prof Nash looks out into the corridor and the 3 imaginary characters are standing there. He looks at them and says to his friend, yes, their still there, but I've learned to ignore them.

I am not suggesting you should stop taking medicine, if a doctor has prescribed one for you. This was dangerous and complicated in the true story of Prof Nash. But you can still take your medication and try what I believe to be from Gods word and see the power of Truth over Depression.

God is not asking you to ignore the stressful experiences you are going through either. He wants us to focus on the truth. He wants us to trust in and rely upon Him in all things.

I love you.

Some Good Godly Web-sites concerning Depression.

http://www.seekgod.org/message/depression.html

http://www.titus2menandwomen.org/Articles/JayAllbright/BiblicalRemedyForDepression/PrinterFriendly.shtml