Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a tree of life.
(Proverbs 13:12)
Depression! Just saying the word can be depressing. We don’t like to talk about it – until we get depressed – and then there seem nothing else that we can talk about. Most people who are depressed either deny it or don’t even realize it. Yet researchers tell us that 12% of us regularly suffer from it.
In most cultures, depression is seen as a character flaw because it has such a debilitating effect upon its victims… and because depressed people are not much fun to be around. Among most Christians, depression is viewed as sin; something we merely need to repent of in order to make it go away.
What these same Christians often overlook is that even some of the Bible’s greatest men of faith battled bouts of depression. Moses often wanted to resign because of it. Elijah ran away and hid in a cave. In the Psalms, we see that David frequently battled against it. Even the venerable Paul spoke about being so overwhelmed by problems that he “despaired even of life.” (2 Corinthians 1:8). The renowned minister and preacher Charles Spurgeon dedicated an entire chapter in his book Lectures to My Students on what he called The Ministers Fainting Spells. That’s code for depression!
So what is depression? The New Oxford American Dictionary defines it as: “severe despondency and dejection, typically felt over a period of time and accompanied by feelings of hopelessness and inadequacy.” If you have never felt like this, then you are not alive. Depression comes sooner or later into every life, because sooner or later something happens that makes a person feel hopeless and inadequate.
Not all depression is a consequence or evidence of sin. Low levels of a brain chemical called serotonin can contribute to depression and many other emotional disorders. By taking medications that contain this chemical, depression and other emotional stress can be greatly reduced
But most depression comes from a more common cause; Solomon called it heart sickness caused by hope deferred (Proverbs 13:12). Our hearts get sick when we have a hope, a dream, an ambition, or an expectation that suddenly falls apart. The loss of a relationship, the loss of a job, the loss of wealth or health, all cause one’s heart to become heavy – and then sick. Some depression is associated with a sense of irretrievable loss; the belief that something that is essential to our happiness has been taken from us and will never be restored. This type of depression often masks itself with angry feelings, followed by deep regrets.
For the psalmist Asaph, such depression came when he concluded that following God was not working out in his best interest. Listen to how he describes his depression in Psalm 73:
…my feet had almost slipped; I had nearly lost my foothold. For I envied the arrogant when I saw the prosperity of the wicked…. This is what the wicked are like—always carefree, they increase in wealth. Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure; in vain have I washed my hands in innocence. All day long I have been plagued; I have been punished every morning… my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered… When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me…
But then Asaph comes to a revelation about God that gave him a totally new perspective:
…till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny… How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors! …My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Those who are far from you will perish; you destroy all who are unfaithful to you. But as for me, it is good to be near God. I have made the Sovereign LORD my refuge…
David put it more directly when he wrote in Psalm 27:
I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living. (Psalm 27:13 KJV)
David's point was that hope deferred does not have to mean hope lost forever. It’s only deferred: “put off to a later, more beneficial time.” His confidence was based not upon circumstances but upon the goodness of the Lord. Similarly, Paul reassured himself and us by reminding us:
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them. (Romans 8:28)
There is a third source of depression: Spiritually-induced depression. Paul illustrated it as the fiery arrows aimed at Christians who have let their guards down (Ephesians 6:10-18).
How and in what ways does a Christian "let their guard down"? Earlier in Ephesians, Paul warned about giving the Devil an opportunity to insinuate his agenda into one's life:
“In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold… (Ephesians 4:26-27)
Anger is a sure foothold under the nimble grip of Satan. That anger often comes through disappointment and disillusionment with others, which in turn become the fiery darts that pierce our armor and leave us vulnerable to spiritual depression. When allowed to simmer and seethe inside the heart and mind, they bring an ever-deepening depression, which left unaddressed, will destroy you.
Spiritual depression requires a spiritual remedy. The next time you find yourself depressed, ask yourself: "Have I myself provided the foothold?" And if the answer is "yes," Get rid of it:
… do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. (Ephesians 4:30-32)