Many people know what it is to feel empty, low and without hope, sometimes for a long time. If that is you, the Bible does not brush you aside. Some of God\u2019s own people felt this deeply, and God did not despise them for it.<\/p>\n
\n\u201cWhy are you downcast, O my soul? Why the unease within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.\u201d (Psalm 42:11)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Why do I feel so empty and depressed?<\/h2>\n
There can be more than one reason, and they are not all spiritual. Illness, exhaustion, loss and long strain can all weigh the mind down. When the prophet Elijah sat under a tree and \u201cprayed that he might die\u201d, God did not begin with a rebuke. He gave him sleep, and food, and sleep again: \u201cGet up and eat, or the journey will be too much for you\u201d (1 Kings 19:4\u20137). God knows that we are body as well as soul. So do see a doctor. Having depression is not a measure of how strong your faith is.<\/p>\n
But there is also an emptiness that no medicine reaches. King Solomon had wealth, pleasure, learning and success, and wrote, \u201cSo I hated life\u2026 For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind\u201d (Ecclesiastes 2:17). He saw that whatever we build is left behind at death. If this life is all there is, he was right.<\/p>\n
What is the reason for life\u2019s emptiness?<\/h2>\n
We were made by God and for God. He made us in His own image, to know Him. That is why nothing else finally satisfies us. When we look for happiness without Him, we are like someone trying to fill a deep well with a cup.<\/p>\n
The Bible\u2019s word for living without God is sin, and it has left the whole world out of joint, including our own minds and feelings. This does not mean that your depression is a punishment for something you have done. It means that we live in a fallen world, and that our deepest need is to be brought back to God.<\/p>\n
So what comfort can we take from that?<\/h2>\n
There is a real purpose for living, and it is found in knowing God through Jesus Christ. He said, \u201cI have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness\u201d (John 10:10). He died for sinners and rose again so that we could be forgiven and brought home to God. Turn to Him. Confess your sin and trust Him, and you will be received as God\u2019s own child.<\/p>\n
That will not necessarily lift the darkness in a day. But it changes what the darkness means. You are no longer alone in it, and it is no longer the last word.<\/p>\n
If you belong to Christ<\/h2>\n
Believers can be depressed. The writer of Psalm 42 was. Notice what he does: he speaks to himself instead of only listening to himself. \u201cWhy are you downcast, O my soul?\u2026 Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him.\u201d He does not pretend to feel better. He tells his own heart what is true.<\/p>\n
To lose the sense of God\u2019s love is not to lose His love. Some things that help:<\/p>\n
\n
- Keep God\u2019s word near.<\/strong> Learn a verse or two, and say them when your thoughts are darkest. \u201cThe LORD is near to the brokenhearted\u201d (Psalm 34:18).<\/li>\n
- Do not withdraw.<\/strong> Depression tells us to hide. God tells us \u201cnot [to] neglect meeting together\u201d (Hebrews 10:25). Let other Christians carry you for a while.<\/li>\n
- Pray, even if all you can say is \u201cHelp me.\u201d<\/strong> When words fail, \u201cthe Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words\u201d (Romans 8:26).<\/li>\n
- Accept ordinary help<\/strong> as God\u2019s kindness: rest, food, fresh air, a doctor\u2019s care.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
If you are thinking of ending your life, please tell someone today: your doctor, a friend, a pastor. In the United Kingdom and Ireland you can ring the Samaritans, free, at any hour, on 116 123.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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