Scripture Reference: Psalm 42

Believe me, depression is a normal part of our lives. Rain, for instance, is absolutely essential for health and life on this planet, but we wouldn’t want rain all the time. Right? When there is too little rain, parching drought is the result. When there is too much rain, there is flooding, and we are overwhelmed with it. Yet, we need some rain. We can’t have all sunshine. We also must have night. God set it up where we have daylight and darkness. So both darkness and daylight are necessary. We need balance. Without balance there is chaos and God separated the chaos for a reason in the beginning of our creation story.

But the problems still arise. There is a normal depression we will experience in the course of our lives, but it becomes abnormal when it lingers without abatement, and sometimes nothing we can do helps. Everything we try seems to make it worse. When it hangs on, then the depression gets out of hand. Most of us can readily identify with the psalmist in this matter, and we need to examine it. How does the Christian reach up from despair? How does the Christian yearn for God when we don’t feel like yearning?

The Christian has supernatural resources the non-Christian does not have. When an unsaved individual comes to discouragement, despair, and depression, he may use drugs, alcohol, recreation, or sex as escape valves. But the unbeliever finds that when he tries to escape into these devices, ultimately he has not escaped himself and must face himself. In fact, his escapist tactics only become links in a chain that strengthens the imprisonment he has experienced. Escapism only forges another link in that chain. But the Christian does have resources he can call upon, and that is the main principle of this inspired psalm.

Now this is for sure from the very start. Making us feel guilty because we are discouraged or depressed is not the answer; in fact it is a trick or tool of the enemy. It only drives us further into depression. Our emotions can’t and don’t change on command. If I tell you, “Don’t feel depressed,” that is an impossible command. The answer is not trying to feel bad because we feel bad; not becoming depressed because we are depressed. All of that compounds the problem.

There are times when our depression has physical causes and ought to have medical attention. For instance, certain forms of illness can cause depression. Erratic blood pressure, abnormal blood sugar, and other chemical imbalances can contribute to depression. We also need to remember that our brain is a physical organ just like our other organs and there are natural things that can affect it. When there is acute or severe depression, a competent Christian counselor ought to be enlisted. But there are steps all of us can take to overcome depression. Just as surely as night follows day, all of us have periods of discouragement. So depression and discouragement are a normal part of our lives, but they can become a wedge to drive us away from God, to separate us from those we love, and to destroy our lives. That has always been the enemy’s tactic; to destroy relationships.

However, there is practical, applicable help in this psalm. There are three things that I want to show you in this psalm. First of all, there is the desire of the psalmist.

To Be Continued

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
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