It’s time to fight depression, the Christian way. Here are four must-try methods that can bring you relief from the ever depressing world that surrounds.
- Remember who you are
- Persecution is part of the path.
- Spiritual warfare
- Spend time in prayer.
Let’s be honest, this world is hopelessly depressing. With everything from the world news to personal drama, it’s hard not to get weighed down by all the chaos. If you are a truth seeker and are able to see past the illusions of this world, it’s easy to get depressed. People may not understand the truth you try to expose them to, you may feel superficial conversation is boring, you may even get ridiculed for your beliefs. To put it simply, seeking the truth is a trying path.
And with depression being a slippery slope, once you have slid down into it’s all consuming pit, it feels impossible to find your way out. If you are in a depressive slump right now, I’m calling out to you to tell you there is a way out. You don’t have to stay where you are, you haven’t been abandoned and your depression doesn’t make you abnormal.
As a Christian, there are ways to get out of depression that don’t require you to take prescription drugs or see a professional. Here are seven Christ-led ways to be delivered from depression:
1Remember who you are
By reading scriptures that remind you how important you are to God, your faith and confidence will increase. At the end of the day it isn’t others opinion of you, its your true calling by Jesus and what he has already said about you that matters.
In John 15:16 Jesus says,
Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
You are chosen, your sin was paid for with the price of Jesus’ life.
1 Peter 2:9
But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvelous light;
The darkness that used to surround you before you were saved, may try to creep it’s way back into your thoughts from time to time, but you must remember that in the moment you were saved, everything changed. You were reborn and pulled forth out of the darkness into the light of Christ. Nothing in this world can remove the love that God has for his chosen people.
2Persecution and oppression are a part of the path
First Jesus told his followers that they were chosen, then he warned them about the persecution faced by everyone on the Christian path. Too often pastors seem to skip over the teachings about persecution and oppression that Christians desperately need to hear. They make it seem like everyone is meant to love one another and they fail to touch on the hard times in life.
Jesus warned us that being that we are no longer of this world, worldly people are likely to hate us.
John 15:18-19
If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
The worldly people that Jesus spoke of will try to tear you down out of their hate. They will try to hurt you and put you through hard times. Little do the oppressors know, God planned for them to do just that!
It is the hard times that make us who we are. It’s the hard times that make us conquerors! The battles of life teach us Christs victory on a whole new level. The defeats humble us and the victories give us faith in the tough times.
When was the last time you experienced a victory through Christ? What was the most faith building experience of your life?
When you think through questions like these, you can feel the faith of those moments spring forth. The moments that pop into your head are the moments your faith took a step forward, and the more you remember those times, the easier it will be to know that God will get you through this tough time or depression.
3 Spiritual warfare
Sometimes depression is more spiritual than we think. If you are struggling to draw near to God, it could mean that you are under spiritual attack in attempt to keep you from seeking God. The spirit of depression or despair robs us of our joy. The following is an example of a deliverance prayer to pray against several demonic spirits that wish to bring you down.
I COMMAND EVERY SPIRIT OF GLUTTONY, BULEMIA, ANEXORIA, SUGAR ADDICTION, OVER-INDULGENCE, COMPULSION, ADDICTION, CRAVING, LACK OF SELF CONTROL, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, ANGER, UNWORTHINESS, DEFORMITY, UNBELIEF, DEPRESSION, OPPRESSION, SELF-HATRED, HATRED OF MY BODY, UGLINESS, REJECTION, REBELLION, INCONSISTENCY, DECEPTION, FAILURE, FEAR, INTIMIDATION AND ALL OTHER CONNECTED AND RELATED SPIRITS NOT OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST TO COME OUT NOW IN THE NAME AND BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS CHRIST. YOU ARE NOT ALLOWED TO DWELL IN, AROUND OR ATTACH TO ME IN ANY WAY. IT IS FINISHED. BE GONE, NOW.
I put on the full armor of God and declare that I am more than a conqueror through Jesus Christ! No weapon formed against me shall prosper. I have been chosen, divinely called out of darkness to dwell in the house of the Lord!
Spiritual warfare is a powerful weapon against the enemy. The declarations of the mouth come from the heart, and when your heart is unhindered and fully for Jesus, speaking the prayer above aloud will stir up passion inside you. The boldness that Jesus portrayed will start to appear within you and depression will be cast far from you!
4Spend time in Prayer
Draw near to God through prayer. He has great compassion for us as we go through troubles.
Psalm 34:17-19
17 The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles.
18 The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the Lord delivereth him out of them all.
Have faith, the word of God is absolute truth. God is not a liar and will not break any of the promises he has made. It’s easy to be afraid to be vulnerable in prayer with God, but remember that the more honest you are with him and with yourself, the closer your relationship will become. So don’t be afraid, let down your walls and barriers and pour out all your concerns to the most high! He loves you unconditionally and wants a relationship with you!
