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Victory Over Depression Part 1 Victory Over Depression Part 2 A Choice for God and Against the Flesh Healing in His Hands Good, Like Medicine Take Care Until He Comes Removing the Root Cause Our Bodies, His Temple	Victory over Depression – Part I By Renée Lubinski I desire to approach the subject of depression very carefully and with somewhat of a disclaimer in that I am light years away from being an expert on the subject. I am neither a physician nor a professional counselor. According to those who are, feelings of depression can stem from a number of causes. I am convinced, however, that God’s hand in medicine extends to all areas. He is our Great Physician over every intricate detail of our hearts, our spirits, our souls, our bodies and our minds. I think you would agree that we all want the best medical treatment possible. As Christians we can thank God for the blessings of modern medicine that relieve so much human suffering. But no matter how rich we are, no matter what kind of health plan we have, there are still some antibiotics and antidepressants that are only obtainable from God’s pharmacy. The good news is that you can overcome depression. God has provided you with resources in both the natural and the spiritual realms to defeat depression and anxiety. As you take the positive steps outlined throughout this two-part teaching, hope should begin to rise as you learn and apply ways to obtain inner peace, replacing depressive, anxious thoughts. Your loving Creator has fashioned you in His likeness and is deeply concerned about every aspect of your life. The apostle Paul prayed, “May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (I Thess. 5:23). It is the spiritual dimensions spoken of in this verse that makes us as Christians unique, and separates us from the rest of creation. Let’s visit God’s pharmacy and learn first from the Word about key building blocks to vigorous spiritual and emotional health. Later we will take a look at some proven natural remedies. Beginning with Proverbs 17:22 which states, “A joyful heart is good like medicine, but a broken spirit dries up the bones.” A joy-filled inner being brings soundness to your whole being, but a broken, crushed spirit dries up the bones. Although joy is vital to our emotional well-being, we rarely pray for it. When is the last time you or someone you know prayed, “Lord, fill me with the joy promised”? Philippians 4:6 exhorts us to pray about everything. The Lord desires to replace feelings of hopelessness and depression with joy, but we must first begin by asking and believing God for it. The NKJV comes even closer to the meaning of the Hebrew text in Proverbs 17:22. It reads, “A merry heart does good, like medicine.” This verse could be interpreted as follows: A merry heart works a good healing, bringing improvement, and powerfully advancing recovery. The root of the Hebrew word denotes the healing of a wound, even to the removal of a scar. The “medicine” that brings such deep healing is a heart filled with the joy of the Lord. In stark contrast, a broken crushed spirit will dry up the bones. And we’re talking in a literal sense as there is significant medical evidence that shows depression leading to bone density loss. This same study has revealed that when depression is lifted, new pockets of calcium amazingly form and strengthen weakened bones. Ironically, in Proverbs 17:22, Solomon spoke through the Holy Sprit concerning this more than 3,000 years ago! Let’s look to more good medicine within God’s Pharmacy. Second Corinthians 4:13 says, "We having the same *spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak" (emphasis added). The “spirit of faith” spoken of in this verse believes the Word of God for what it says. It believes what God says more than it believes external evidence to the contrary. If you desire to develop the spirit of faith, spoken of in II Corinthians 4:13, you must believe God’s Word above what you see or feel. For example, when you read in Psalm 103 that God "crowns you with loving kindness and tender mercies," you must agree with that verse and choose to believe it, despite how you may feel. Don't argue with it. Don't think, "Well, I certainly don’t feel* crowned with the goodness and mercy of God. I feel more like a failure and my life is a mess. My past is a mess and the future doesn't hold much hope either." We must caution ourselves against basing everything on how we feel. If we don’t take caution here we’ll quickly be destroyed. Say, for instance, you wake up in the morning and you hear this voice – “I feel like I should just stay in bed. … “I don’t feel like going anywhere today. And anyway, I feel depressed.” It’s through your spirit that you can tell your emotions how you choose to feel. What do I mean? Look to the example of David and how he dealt with his depressive emotions … He said, “Emotions, it’s time to rejoice!” Psalm 42:5, “Why are you cast down, O my soul?” (Notice how David is talking to his down-trodden emotions here). He continues, “And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance.” Wow! The spirit-David was speaking to the soul-David (emotional part) saying, “Rejoice in the Lord.” He commanded himself to rejoice and in the end he became strong in his spirit because of it. After his self-talk he just went into praising his God! You, too, can become strong in spirit in situations where it appears hopeless. You, too, can offer up to God a sacrifice of praise! And, like David did, talk to yourself. Talk yourself right out of those dark feelings of despair. Through the spirit of God within, tell your emotions how you chose to feel. Often times a person will wake up in the morning with depressive thoughts, hearing an inner voice that says I feel this or I feel that. If this happens to you just jump out of bed and say, “Well hallelujah, I don’t live by how I feel!” I mean you can just run the devil off if you start doing some of that stuff! Sometimes we need to just shock the enemy when he tries to putt feelings of hopelessness on us. Having worked in a medical clinic in the treatment of patients we often heard complaints of depression. When I’d ask the patient to describe their depression with one word, overwhelmingly the common response was, “Darkness.” Satan is undoubtedly the prince of darkness and in him there is no light – he creates feelings of dark despair. The best he can do is masquerade as an angel of light. On the other hand, within our loving Father there is nothing but light -- no darkness exists with God whatsoever (1 Jn. 1:5). Often when someone is struggling with depression, they begin to think and speak with despair as was the case with these patients. Therefore, it is important for your emotional health, as a Christian, to use the Word of God to change how you think. Don't think of yourself or see yourself as hopeless and pitiful. Think about yourself the way God does. Think about the fact that the God of the universe dwells on the inside of you. When you're tempted to feel down, refuse to dwell on that, and begin to think about the fact that you are crowned with loving kindness and tender mercies instead. Create a picture of yourself in your mind’s eye that comes from what the Bible has to say about you. Stop thinking those same old thoughts about yourself. Gain new thoughts from the Word. Perhaps much of your life you've heard things like, "You're never going to amount to anything. You're not smart. You're a failure." Maybe those thoughts go around in your head like a broken record. If that's the case, you can begin today to create a new record. Start spending every moment you can reading, studying and meditating on the Word of God. Pray out the Scriptures and fellowship with the Lord. Get so full of what His report is of you that you no longer hear that old report in your mind anymore. Instead you’ll begin to hear the Lord speaking to a renewed mind. When God speaks to your spiritually renewed mind you’ll hear, "Greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world." God will say ever so clearly and lovingly, “You are crowned with loving kindness and tender mercies, my precious child.” As you read more you’ll find He says, you are healed. You have abundant life. His plan is to prosper you and not to harm you. He has a good inheritance stored up for you. He will lead you and guide you in the way you should go. Then start purposely expecting what God says to come to pass in your life. Develop this habit the moment you wake up in the morning. Purposely arise and expect each day to be a good day. Say out loud as you wake up out of bed, “This day I will see the goodness of God working in my life!" I believe you will be amazed at the transformation. When we find ourselves under pressure we become tempted to confess negative words of hopelessness, so plan ahead to purpose in your heart now to refuse to confess negative things about your life. First Peter 3:10-12 gives us a timely warning: "He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; let him seek peace and pursue it. For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayers; but the face of the Lord is against those who do evil." Do you want to enjoy good days? Then stop confessing things like, “I’m so sick. I'm depressed. I'm confused. I'm worried". If you’ll replace those words with confessions of what God says about you instead, depression will have to leave. Even if all you can do is whisper the name “Jesus”, do it. There is such tremendous power in His name. I must warn you that the enemy will do what he can to oppose you on your stand. He will try to assault you with doubts and assail you with negative emotions in an effort to stop you from speaking forth God’s powerful Word. If you've been severely depressed, it may almost seem you are physically unable to do it. But as you steadfastly look to God, He will make you able. Make up your mind to do it. Then by the grace of God, open your mouth and speak the Word. Sing the Word. Declare the Word until you are fully persuaded that what God has promised He is able also to perform, as we read in Romans 4:21. Look for Part II in this two-part teaching to learn even more ways to have Victory over Depression. Need prayer? Send your request to our prayer team today and we’ll be happy to pray for you. * * * * * Feedback is welcomed. Please feel free to email your comments, questions or suggestions! Back to top