To The Depressed Christian
I close my eyes, turn toward the back of the couch and curl my knees up to my chest.
Dont hang up, I cry softly into the phone. Im afraid to be alone.
My husbands coming home early. Todays one of the bad days.
If I admit my thoughts to someone, theyll think Im crazy. Am I going crazy?
No, youre not.
For me , depression came with the winter, though warning signs could be felt and seen much sooner. A born and bred Southern girl, Id gotten married, started a new job and moved across the country to Minnesota all within two weeks, and just in time for the cold.
I was tired. Really tired. I was edgy and emotional and anxious. I began noticing that I felt exactly like it looked outside gray and miserable. Numb. I sank further and further until finally breaking down one day at a work conference. I just could not go through the motions anymore. I felt like I was dying inside.
If youre in the thick of the dark and lonely place that is depression, I wish I could wrap my arms around you and cry with you, because I know how badly you hurt.
I am a Christian, but depression tempted me to distrust God. I was desperately seeking deliverance. He seemed to be withholding it from me.
Why will you not lift me out of this pit? Id cry. Are you not a deliverer? Why do the voices of despair sound so much louder than yours?
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So What Is Gods Solution To Fear And Anxiety In Our Life
Gods solution is simple. It is to bring our concerns to Him in prayer and He will provide His peace in our life which He did for me about my sons daily safety. These verses do not say that God will change our difficult and stressful circumstances, but rather that God will provide an inner and supernatural peace that will guard and protect our heart and mind so that our difficult circumstances will no longer consume our life. Rather than always being anxious about my sons safety, I simply began to pray each morning for God to protect him. Rather than worrying about something that I could not change or control, I began committing my son into Gods care each day. Once that happened, Gods supernatural peace began to deeply influence my heart and mind and helped me to rest in His control over all things.
Prayers For Your Loved One Experiencing Depression And Sadness
- Hope BolingerAuthor
We have a wonderful and gracious God who heals and comforts us. He sits with us in our pain and gives us reasons to hope and have joy. So whether you need a prayer for depression for a friend, or for yourself we have provided some examples below.
You may know someone in your life who can hear the comforting words of a prayer for depression. In fact, you may be that someone who had entered a difficult season. Depression can vary from seasonal bouts to a lifetime. A person may experience depression symptoms for months or even years.
Depression also doesnt always have a cause. Yes, perhaps you have lost someone dear to you or have entered difficult circumstances But sometimes depression happens with no triggers. As it is diagnosed as a mental illness, an organ, the brain, is affected by it.
But we have a wonderful and gracious God who heals and comforts. He sits with us in our pain and gives us reasons to hope and have joy.
So whether you need a prayer for depression for a friend, or for yourself we have provided some examples below. Please dont feel as though you only can pray these prayers written in this article. These serve as a template for when you dont feel you know the right words to say.
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Devotional On Anxiety Step #: Above All Else Make Time For God
Lets begin with an honest question.
How much time do you currently commit to praying to God, each day?
I dont mean casual pray-as-you-go time . Heh.
Nope, Im talking about purposeful, focused, daily sit-down time with our heavenly Father.
5 minutes a day? Maybe 10? 20?
Well, the reality is many of us often choose to spend our time on other activities, besides prayer time.
For example, we often opt to work longer hours, socialise more regularly with friends, browse the Internet for hours on end, play video games, binge the latest Netflix series
You get the drift.
Of course, Im not saying these activities are necessarily bad in and of themselves.
However, the contextual point is: many people dont put God as a top priority in their lives.
Instead, God is kinda taken-for-granted as being always there but in the background.
And the result?
Well, we inevitably expose ourselves to more anxiety by letting the things of the world consume our hearts while turning away from the peace that God offers.
Put God first.
If we truly want to start overcoming our anxieties, we must begin by putting God first in our hearts.
Jesus is clear in saying this:
Notice that the verse doesnt say Seek first your work, your friends, your Netflix subscription then, if theres any time left, give the leftover to God.
Nope!
Instead, God says seek Him FIRST and, in so doing, He will give guidance for all matters in life .
What form of divine guidance will He give us?
Books About Depression And Anxiety For Your Christian Reading List
For easy browsing of this collection, checkout the anxiety and depression category on our Amazon storefront here!
I Changed My Mind by Jimmy Evans
Becoming a Christian doesnt fix all your problems.
Youre saved, but you arent freeyet. Your daily life is still plagued by the fear of failure and weighed down by worry. Bad attitudes keep you stuck. If you want to move forward, then you must be willing to change your mind.God shows us in His Word a better way to think. Are you willing to trust Him with your thoughts?
Next to salvation, changing your thinking may have the single greatest impact on your life.Change your mind.
The Book of Psalms Bible Reading Plan
How can we, as Christian women, keep our focus and sustain our passion when reading the Bible? Offering a clear and concise plan to help women go deeper in their study of Scripture, this book will equip you to engage Gods Word in a way that trains your mind and transforms your heart.
Spiritual Depression by D. Martin Lloyd-Jones
When I Dont Desire God: How to fight for Joy by John Piper
We all want to experience liberating, love-producing, risk-taking satisfaction in God. But the reality is that we often struggle to find, and hold onto, true and lasting joyeven when we have embraced the good news of Gods grace. So we face a crucial question: What should I do when I dont desire God?
Running Scared, by Edward Welch
Christ doesnt say you can be or may be or will be free. He says you are free. Dare you believe it?
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The Thoughts That Sink Us
A ship does not sink because of the water around it but because of the water that gets in .
This quote recently caught my attention as I was browsing through Facebook. As a therapist, it made me think about my clients and their struggles with and . Life can be tough, and everyone feels like they are sinking at times.
For me personally, I thought about how the busyness of life can set me over the edge. Its during these times that I find myself tempted to yell at my kids or be rude to my husband. I, too, let things get in when Im out of balance, when life gets too busy and when Im giving my emotions too much reign.
Can Fear Or Anxiety Be A Good Thing
It is important to understand that some level of fear and anxiety often can be a good thing because it forces us to be more careful and to be much more cautious. I love to work with wood and have been making things for over 40 years. Several years ago I was working next to a wood machine, my hand too close to it and part of my thumb was cut off. Today, I am so respectful of that saw that I will never make that same mistake again. In fact, I have made a guard and I use it every time I have to use the wood machine. So, in my case, having a healthy fear is a very good thing. It is the fear of what the saw can do to me that actually keeps me safe. So, what we want to see in this series is how God actually uses the things that make us afraid as His supernatural tools to strengthen our life to trust Him in every circumstance of our life. Coming to God in the midst of troubling and stressful situations is always Gods solution to fear and anxiety.
Pray this week:
Father, will you please help me to see how you are able to use the stressful moments of my life to draw me closer into your supernatural peace?
Are you willing to make a list of all of the different things that you are constantly worrying about and then commit them each day to your heavenly Father with a grateful heart as to what He is doing through those stressful moments to draw you closer to Him?
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Anxiety Depression And The Christian Life
Your hands are sweating, your heart is racing, and your brain is in overdrive. You are feeling lonely, sad, and not sure anything is going right for you. Stress, anxiety, depression, and fear are all feelings most of us are no strangers to. May is Mental Health Awareness month, and as someone who has struggled with anxiety and depression, I want share my heart with you.
I have struggled with anxiety and depression for 15 years and have always tried to manage it on my own. I grew up in a Christian home and in the church, but I never knew how to humbly come before God and ask him for help. I re-dedicated my life to Christ at the age of 21 when I found my home church and a pastor who graciously understood the struggles of anxiety.
I think I finally realized this was an issue many Christians battle. I knew I could not face these battles without Christ at the center of my heart and my world. What a relief to know that I could openly talk to my heavenly father about the struggles I was facing. I often think of Paul as he wrote Philippians 4:6-7:
Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
Facing Depression As A Christian: Beware These Misconceptions
Not only can depression make you question God or feel distant from Him, but it can also make navigating Christian community more difficult. Depression can be even more challenging for Christians because, unfortunately, there are misconceptions and stigmas associated with depression in many Christian communities.
When you or the people around you do not understand the reality of depression, it makes seeking help more difficult. Depression can already distort your perception of reality or make you doubt your judgment. Its crucial to be able to recognize what is and is not true about depression.
Many well-meaning people may actually give you bad advice because they dont understand depression.
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Emerging Trends In Substance Misuse:
- MethamphetamineIn 2019, NSDUH data show that approximately 2 million people used methamphetamine in the past year. Approximately 1 million people had a methamphetamine use disorder, which was higher than the percentage in 2016, but similar to the percentages in 2015 and 2018. The National Institute on Drug Abuse Data shows that overdose death rates involving methamphetamine have quadrupled from 2011 to 2017. Frequent meth use is associated with mood disturbances, hallucinations, and paranoia.
- CocaineIn 2019, NSDUH data show an estimated 5.5 million people aged 12 or older were past users of cocaine, including about 778,000 users of crack. The CDC reports that overdose deaths involving have increased by one-third from 2016 to 2017. In the short term, cocaine use can result in increased blood pressure, restlessness, and irritability. In the long term, severe medical complications of cocaine use include heart attacks, seizures, and abdominal pain.
- KratomIn 2019, NSDUH data show that about 825,000 people had used Kratom in the past month. Kratom is a tropical plant that grows naturally in Southeast Asia with leaves that can have psychotropic effects by affecting opioid brain receptors. It is currently unregulated and has risk of abuse and dependence. The National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that health effects of Kratom can include nausea, itching, seizures, and hallucinations.
Resources:
These Depression And Anxiety Quotes Can Help In Your Daily Struggle
On darker days, its important to have mantras that can bring you up from a spell of anxiety or depression, and these depression and anxiety quotes can do just that. Learning how to deal with anxiety or manage the signs of depression takes daily effort, particularly if outside factors are exacerbating your anxiety or depression . If you require a mantra or saying to help manage your mood, try one of these quick, memorable options.
If your anxiety or depression feels unmanageable, its important to first turn to family, friends, or professionals for help. If youre already using apps for anxiety or working with a therapist or other professional to help manage your anxiety and/or depression but need a bit of a boost, though, these inspirational quotes for depression and anxiety can helpor just remind you that what youre feeling is normal and not permanent.
Like love quotes or good morning quotes, these positive depression and anxiety quotes can be used for yourself, shared on social media, sent to a friend, or used on a letterboard as a more permanent reminder that managing your thoughts can help manage your mood. Pick your favorite inspirational depression and anxiety quotes and keep them handy the next time you need a little mental boost: With some persistence, youll find that you can take steps to better manage your mental health.
1. I found that with depression, one of the most important things you could realize is that youre not alone. Dwayne Johnson
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St Francis Prayer For Peace
Dear Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love
where there is injury, pardon
where there is doubt, faith
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
where there is sadness, joy.
O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.
This prayer was heavily used during World War I and World War II. It’s a powerful prayer used to bring hope during challenging times.
Misconception: Depression Is A Sin
Variation: Being depressed means you are failing to trust God. Being depressed means you are failing to be joyful in all things or to give thanks to God.
Reality: Depression is an illness, not a sin.
If you get a cold or suffer from back pain or any physical illness, does anyone ever tell you that youre being sinful or failing to trust God because you are in pain? It sounds unreasonable because it is. Its just as unreasonable to say suffering from depression or any other mental illness is a sin.
God created a perfect world, but when evil entered, perfection was shattered and the world was never the same. We all suffer in some ways from the results of evil breaking into Gods perfect creation. Illness, whether it be physical or mental, is one of the many ways we see how broken our world truly is.
Yes, mental illness is often triggered by stressors or negative environmental factors, but that does not mean it is not real. Physical illness is also frequently triggered by stressors and negative environmental factors. Stress can cause ulcers and increase the risk of a heart attack, very serious illnesses that, like depression, need treatment, not condemnation.
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Misconception: You Can Always Tell If Someones Depressed By Outward Appearances Or Actions
Reality: You cannot always tell that someone is depressed from how they look or act.
Many people with depression are so skilled at hiding their condition that you would never know from the outside.
I have heard people say something along the lines of, But you do not look depressed. Im not sure what exactly people think depression should look like, but depression can look a lot of different ways.
You can wish you no longer existed but look fine to the people around you. This is especially true for someone struggling with bipolar disorder, which includes high moods, called manic episodes, alternating with deep, severe depression.
Sadly, Ive had a friend and a teacher who suffered from bipolar disorder die from suicide. Both were very outgoing and fun to be around much of the time. I remember meeting so many people at their funerals who were stunned and confused. I heard comments like, Hes the last person I would ever have guessed would be suicidal, or, But he was always so happy.
You cannot assume someone is okay based on external appearances.