Have you ever woken up feeling as if someone had hit you in the stomach? Or
maybe someone had changed your room decorations into that of a morgue? You look
around and butterflies look like bazookas, mosquitoes like dive bombs and you
spouse looks like Frankenstein (never tell him/her of that! Believe me, he/she
wouldn't be flattered!). You are overwhelmed by your circumstances. The blues
are hitting you so low that you feel like throwing up. You are depressed!
Why? WHY? WHY?
But more importantly, what can be done about it?
As a teacher, I have often met kids who look like the sky has fallen on their
heads. They're somber looks of abandonment drive some to tears, while the others
just become more and more defiant. If I can succeed in getting them to talk
about their problems, the conversation goes something like this:
"Tell me what's wrong."
"My best friend Amanda won't talk to me any more."
"Why? What happened?"
"I don't know! One day we are best friends and now this @#$! (we are trying to
avoid non-uplifting vocabulary. Sorry about that!) Is ignoring me!"
"Something must have happened!"
"Nothing happened! She told me a @#$! Secret. But she didn't tell me it was a
secret until AFTER she got mad at me for telling Shari! It's all HER fault! She
should have told me not to tell anyone! I would have respected her! That @#$!"
"Have you talked with her about how you feel?"
"I can't. She's ignoring me!"
"Let's call her over and see what can be done about this."
"No, please. Don't do this to me! This is a @#$!"
"Amanda, can you come here for a moment?"
"Nooooo! Don't do this to me!"
"Yes sir."
If I can get the two kids to talk to each other, generally they leave with
genuine smiles replacing the tears and the defiant stances.
"What about that little secret?"
"Oh, that was nothing!'
Why do we so often let circumstances control us? In this case the breakdown was
restored because I was able to get two kids to talk to one another again, but
what do you do if you have no mediator available? What do you when you are
surrounded by bazooka-like attitudes and dive-bomb personalities?
Did you know that Jesus was once very depressed?
"He began to be sorrowful and troubled. Then he said to them, "My soul is
overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death." (Matt 26:37-38 NIV)
He had known years in advance that He would eventually be crucified and rise on
the third day. He even told His disciples: "We are going up to Jerusalem, and
the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the
law. They will condemn him to death and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be
mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"
(Matt 20:18-19 NIV)
However, now the time had come. Within minutes He would be arrested, beaten and
ridiculed. The burden of what was to come hung so heavily on His shoulders that
His sweat looked like drops of blood: "His sweat was like drops of blood falling
to the ground." (Luke 22:44 NIV)
This wasn't going to be fun! This was going to lead to His own death!
How did Jesus react when facing these disastrous circumstances? He prayed! He
prayed not once or twice, but three times! (See Matthew 26: 39, 42, 44)
His prayers were not filled with complaints and discouragements. Instead He
said: "My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I
will, but as you will." (Matt 26:39 NIV)
He relied completely on God's will and not on His own. He trusted in God. He
knew that God was with Him and no circumstances could ever change that!
It's amazing how prayer can give us such strength! Minutes before, Jesus was
filled with anguish. After He prayed and heard from God, He was able to say to
His disciples: "Are you still sleeping and resting? Look, the hour is near, and
the Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Rise, let us go! Here
comes my betrayer!" (Matt 26:45-46 NIV)
All anguish was gone. The depression was evaporated. Jesus was able to face the
upcoming grueling circumstances by holding His head up high. He knew He was in
the will of God. God was His partner. He had nothing to fear!
And amazingly, these were the exact words He spoke to his disciples after His
resurrection: "Do not be afraid." (Matt 28:10 NIV)
When facing depression, let's all follow Jesus' example. Let's remember His
first words after the resurrection: "Do not be afraid!" We don't need to be
afraid. Jesus is with us! He promised: "Surely I am with you always, to the very
end of the age." (Matt 28:20 NIV)
Prayer is invigorating. It raises you out of the myrrh of dirt and lifts you up
into the Heavenly realms of God's presence. From God's viewpoint, we have no
cause to be depressed. We are victorious through the blood of the Lamb: "But
thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ." (1 Cor
15:57 NIV)
No need for bazooka-like butterflies and kamikaze mosquitoes! These belong to
another world! Not my world of reality!
Rob Chaffart
The Illustrator: This daily newsletter is dedicated to encouraging
everyone to look towards Jesus as the source of all the solutions to our
problems. It contains a daily inspirational story, a Bible verse and encouraging
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The Nugget: Published three times a week, this newsletter features inspirational devotionals and mini-sermons dedicated to drawing mankind closer to each other and to Christ.