Finding God When You Need Him Most - Experiencing God When You're Troubled and Depressed, Part 1

Lou, down, depressed. We all get that way from time to time, but when that emotion threatens to pull you under what you do where you go who you turn to the Bible, still with stories of people who faced deep trouble and depression and today we can consider a passage from Psalm 77. That is, help me more than any passage in Scripture. I struggle with depression. I think it's can help.

Thanks for joining us for this Tuesday edition of Living on the Edge with living on the international discipleship Bible and continues a series finding God when you most the message he calls experiencing God when you're troubled, depressed the support program always available any time now with today's message from Psalm 77 appears not experience God when you feel depressed. I will touch on what depression is a little bit of information but I want to say at the outset or talk about that normal kind of depression the ups and downs that all of us have from day-to-day.

I have ups and downs but little or in fact that there's personality types and struggle more than others, by the grace of God.

I'm one of those that doesn't much but when I do I don't think little and depression ever going the same sense of me I don't get it off and that when I do I go straight to the tank.

1994 in August. I remember was the beginning of the study break was the hardest most difficult year. I never had my life to that point and and you know how when there's something you gotta do something you gotta do something got do you keep pushing to keep pushing keep pushing and then you stop. I stopped in August and I still remember because the 11th day I was up at Donner and the 11th day in August.

I woke up one morning and there's just a tiny little barrel tiny flicker of joy. Maybe a little happiness.

Not much and I just realized how depressed I was. I was unmotivated I was having thoughts.

The first, 10, 11 days of August. I don't like doing what I don't live this way anymore.

I want to be a pastor, I want to teach God's word.

I don't want to get up I want to go anywhere.

My anger was just underneath the surface. My poor family, you know I'm not a yeller and a screamer but I just do not want to be disconnected. The phone rang is not for me. I didn't want to go to a meeting. I do want to see people. Some of you understand exactly what I'm talking is depressed is really depressed now. I learned that there are a lot of good reasons for that. I learned some things were unwise about not getting the emotional renewal that I needed. I learned that fatigue and stress, and physical things can pour into this deal and I made some decisions in 1994 about how I would live the rest of my life that I've stuck to depression work for my good in the long haul.

As you pull out the teaching handout. I put an excerpt from a book that might be helpful for all this.

Follow along as I read this I want you to get some perspective on this. It says depression is as old as human history, the Bible has many examples of people struggling with despondency and despair in his depression and fatigue. Elijah asked for his life to be taken pretty godly man and he said God take me out. Jonah felt deeply despondent after God did not destroy Jeremiah regretted the day he was born, Job's wife advised him to curse and to hunt and die in the mist of his suffering and pain and then even well-known church leaders like Martin Luther and John Bunyan Charles Haddon Spurgeon and JB Phillips had massive struggles with depression. World leaders like Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln clearly documented and waived his depression that were debilitating to their life depression. In fact, is no respecter of persons.

It is been called the common cold of emotional disorders and it appears to be on the rise in the United States. It's the most prevalent and most serious of mental disorders. It afflicts about 20% of the population at some time in their life, and according to something red recently. 1/8 people in America will need metal medical attention for the depression at some point in her life. People of both genders get depressed although women are twice as likely as men to suffer from depression. Now before you turn the page on ask a couple questions. Where is God when this happens to me when you feel depressed where's God wears your faith. Where's the inventory is Christian life. Where's the peace that passes understanding. Where's that abundant life. John 1010 that you've experiencing told other people about and how how are you supposed to deal with this. I mean, what would God say how do you deal with this.

Do you deny it you fake it to you. Do you repress it when you feel really down really blew really sad really depressed what's what's the right response by new toy turn on the TV, eat more, have an affair doesn't kind of things people do pretend it doesn't exist. What exactly would God have us do. When we experience what so many of us do experience and what we all will experience from time to time. Now, turn the page and what I like to suggest is that answer those questions are very complex and what I want you to know by way of expectation is unlucky to try and give you a $0.25 answer to a $25,000 question depression is very complex and has multiple causes. It has to do with situations that involve your whole life physical issues spiritual issues relational issues psychological issues but here's what I want you to know for sure God under stands your depression and God wants to help you in your depression and what I also want you to understand is that when you're depressed and doesn't mean God is left.

It doesn't necessarily mean you send and I also want you to know that if you're depressed, you're in good company. A lot of very very godly people, people much more godly people with more faith than you or me will ever have struggle with depression. In fact, look at the text. Here we have what I've entitled a song of comfort for the dark night of the soul by David's choir director, Asa. He wrote the Psalm inspired by the Holy Spirit. Listen carefully to the first nine verses what you hear, even among the most godly of people. There are days there are times when depression just slams us to the ground and you hear this man of God pour out his heart. Verse one. I cried out to God for help. I cried out to God to hear me when I was in distress. I sought the Lord at night. I stretched out untiring hands and Mike. My soul refused to be comforted. I remembered you, O God, and I groaned and I mused in my spirit grew faint to hear those words, the these are the words of a very depressed guy.

In fact, literally the first line there it's it's my voice to God. The author puts it in an unusual word order to let you know there's emphasis there's pain there's hurt my voice. I'm trying to get up to God and more to learn. He's in great distress, but his experiences God can't be found.

Look at verse four. You kept my eyes from closing translation.

I can't sleep.

I was too troubled to speak. I'm confused inside. I can sort this in. I thought about the former days the years long ago, I remembered my songs in the night is so depressed many starts to reflecting how you do that he thinks you. I used to be up at night but not like this. I'm getting up in the middle the night and in unit that he's a musician and Simon get up in the night singing songs to you, Lord. I remember rehearsing the great things you did in the answers to prayer and the great relationships and the joy in my heart. And then he goes on to say when I remember back in reflect. He says I mused that that word means. I thought I considered. I meditate I pondered in my spirit inquired and you see in the next few verses. He's going to ask ask six rhetorical questions and behind these six rhetorical questions are two premises and the premises are mainly this he is questioning he so depressed.

His thinking is become so distorted. He is so down.

He's in the dark night of the soul. He's been a question, two things that are at the core of our existence. The promise of God's presence and the commitment of God to keep his promises and his can be so depressed. Basic basically these six questions and asked God, are you even there, doubt, confusion, distress, and God, are you didn't you do what you said you would do me can you be trusted to keep your word look at the six questions.

First, will the Lord reject forever. In other words, is this can go on and on and on what he never show his favor again are all the good memories can be in the rearview mirror. Nothing in the windshield of my life has his unfailing or tested. His covenant love vanished forever as his promise failed for all time.

Has God forgotten to be merciful God is that the problem is there's are some but I did wrong and understand I am alone, I heard I'm down I'm sad I'm blue and two things have got but I can understand where are you and what about those promises.

And here felt like have you ever felt just like what he say boy I sure have.

I get little waves probably few days a week. Not big just little waves and if they get stacked up and if you don't deal with these kind of feelings and these kind of thoughts well they can grow into big waves can't and they can get to where the alarm goes off and you don't want to get up they can get to where when the phone rings you let it ring is just one more layer one more guilt one more pain one more message to return want you to know God understand your depression and today he wants to help you bring a look at two major life lessons and under the Second Life lesson or principal about how to handle depression more than a look at specifically how God teaches us through a self how to deal with those low blue feelings. The first life lesson times a depression are something that even the most godly wrestle with on occasion translation. This is normal.

This is normal. Know what I like to do is spend some time and I don't have time and got barley three or four part series I could do on depression of the folder about this thick on the subject studied the area quite a bit.

What I want to do is try and briefly before we go on to find depression a little bit talk about some of the symptoms that I don't have to spend too much time on because when you're there, you know it and give you just a brief rundown on the causes, so the lease were all on the same page in the kind depression were talking about.

To do that.

Let me give you first some very quick symptoms. This is what happens when you're depressed you have feelings of hopelessness and apathy you lose perspective it's hard to concentrate others off physical side effects, sleeplessness, total loss of diet or just the opposite, change, loss of sex drive, often a sense of I don't care, low self-esteem, you start not liking yourself. You tend to withdraw from people and relationships you begin fantasy. Thinking like you want to escape but I just want to get out here.

There's times when I've been really feeling low and I finished the last service and I just felt like I talked to one more person my heads bust right off my shoulders and I wanted to say amen at the end of the service and turn and run out the back door. But that's not usually not, but don't look at me that way. I just had you know you guy have a bad day now and then tell that I have to go to work when I'm having a bad day to I just pray my way through it when it gets very severe, often suicidal thinking you know you get so helpless. Specially it gets to be clinical depression, you're oversensitive to what others do you interpret others' actions you think everybody's against you. Anger becomes a real issue. It's just below the surface, you tended cast it where it doesn't really belong at yourself and others. A lot of guilt is involved. To start, not liking yourself feel bad.

Feel guilty of dependency can grow and you need help and then when people help you than your angry at you because you feel helpless and that's not a good cycle and finally how we act and were depressed tends to unless we make some radical choices promote further depression. Now let me give you some kind of definitions of depression just a couple definitions here so that were on the same page 1 depression is an emotion, like any other emotion is just a description of how you feel. Second, as an emotion.

Depression is for the most part you ready for this morally neutral. In fact, some depression is very normal. Grief is a form of depression. Depression varies tremendously. We have it from the mild forms of disappointments and letdowns are feeling a little blue to what you call clinical depression where suicidal thoughts in your you can't eat.

You don't want to eat and escapism behavior.

Depression is not sin. It's a normal reaction to what's occurring spiritually, psychologically or physically, but let me add it can be sent Psalm 32 you might jump that down. David has sinned, and I mean he exhibits in Psalm 32. The characteristics of clinical depression, unresolved sin and guilt before God will bring about depression but depression and of itself.

As you can see is a lot of different causes, not necessarily sin. Depression is a screen it's a message that we have neglected some area of our life, or there is a need in our life and that our perception of reality is been distorted. Depression also can be a warning system that were moving toward deeper water.

It's a protective device to remove us from stress, to give us time.

Here's the goal to recover, explore its purpose and grow from the process if were willing to use it in that way. I made decisions that have changed my life and my habits forever as I decided if I live like this and luckily do this in. I decided what I'm gonna do in some priorities with my family. I decide about emotional renewal what's can be building my week if I'm to keep doing this job and that depression serve me well. Finally, although depression is normal.

That's not to say that we should linger in depression it can quickly grow into a monster that saps our strength and paralyzes our life by way of causes of depression there. I think at least four major causes you could put them in three categories really. One is physical to his psychological and three spiritual and you know what I'm gonna go briefly because here's all I want to do on I want to paint a quick background so that when we get back into the text. You'll understand the kind of depression.

This text is dealing with and get help. But for some of you if you're clinically depressed there's some things that happen in your brain, and the neurotransmitters in your brain. The synapses don't connect anymore, and you have some chemicals in your brain. But when those things don't happen in your brain right. I'll take what you can't think right. There are some of you and some of you feel very badly about their own medication you're on antidepressants and you had clinical depression and and I want you to know that there are certain times you need medicine to get your thinking and your brain working away so you can begin to work through the issues and facts. Some of you have physical problems that cause your depression, hi. There's a type of blood pressure medicine medication that will cause us to happen. If you have an underactive thyroid. If your electrolytes get low. There are multiple physical reasons why people get depressed, fatigue, hypoglycemia, endocrine imbalance, certain kinds of diet viral infections. Those of you that had babies 1/10 women experience severe postpartum depression. Those are physical causes that can lead people to severe depression.

Praying isn't the only answer Melanie quick to say because I know I'm on delicate around here.

Many people get depressed in a sort of a chicken versus the egg which comes first, and there's unresolved issues and there's unresolved anger and their stress and there's lifestyle changes and spiritual changes need to happen. You get clinically depressed. You get on medication. Let me be quick to say, medication is not the answer you may need medication temporarily to get your body right so you can deal with the root issues but to use medication to mask those and not work on those issues is as faulty thinking is saying that medication is never right so I'm trying to balance out that I think is very important to say this root causes of depression.

Some are physical summer psychological a great loss of any type real or concrete anger. This turned inward.

That is 95% of people's depression, guilt, real or imagined stress major transitions in your life going through adolescence career choice, marriage, parenthood, first home teenagers midlife retirement grief, faulty thinking, where you been to have a poor self-image.

Unrealistic expectation, self-pity, spiritual cause of the depression. There's times where it spiritual spiritually. When you have an intensive period of ministry depression can happen when there's true guilt, spiritually, you can get depressed I we have a wrong perspective, wrong expectation. Psalm 73. You can get depressed when their Satanic attack. You can get depressed when you trying to do the will of God out of the energy of the flashing set about energy and power. The spirit you can get depressed when your priorities are out of whack. Spiritually, you get depressed when you have a relationship breakdown, you can get depressed.

You see how complex this is depression is rooted in physical issues psychological issues emotional issues and relational issues. And unlike how we think God did not make us where we have a spiritual compartment and a physical compartment and relational compartment.

All those things fit together. And so what you need to do is you need to understand a little bit about who you are what God is doing but by and large, this can be maybe 10% of the people are less who are clinically depressed and you need medical help, but for the 90% of us, we just basically have ups and downs ends and flows. It's responding to life responding to people responding to kids responding to some minor health issues responding to lumen anger and what can happen is that depression can take us down the two. How do you respond to that trip.

Be right back this application for today but if you're just joining us, listening to Living on the Edge Chip Ingram and the message you just heard is from chip series finding God when you need him most. Finding God when you need them most gives you a biblical perspective on facing tough times and difficult circumstances. It's a look at what God really wants us to know when things are going well because his promises are a total game changer when it comes to finding the strength and the courage to trust him no matter what's going on listening again may be just what you need to help these promises sink in. So let me encourage you to check out the resource options and discounts for finding God when you need them most. You'll find everything you're looking for@livingontheedge.org or give us a call at 188833360030. Be right back in just a minute to talk about this very very important subject of depression and and how to respond and deal with it. But before I do, I just want to say that there is a group of people that are doing something very special so that you can hear this message. There's a group of people that give financially to the ministry and as a result of that we actually buy airtime from a radio station and then we make this program and then we create resources to give to you to help you and I'm very thankful for them.

But what I'd like to ask you to do if you're benefiting from the ministry you listen, it's encouraging God says when we deposit and invest spiritually in people.

They have a biblical responsibility to invest financially and in all were going to do with all of it is turn it back into the ministry to help other people like you and so if you've never given to the ministry or you've done it and think you know I haven't done that in quite a while. The bills keep coming in and the ministry keeps going on.

I'm just asking.

Would you partner with us today.

Whatever God leads you to do will be very grateful for, but we need people who realize that consuming God's teaching is important but I also need to be a contributor to get it to me and to others. So all I'm asking you to do is just do actually act on whatever God chose you to do and by the way thank you in advance will as you prayerfully consider your role with this ministry. I want to remind you that when you partner with Living on the Edge. No gift is insignificant ministering together, our efforts under resources are multiplied in ways that only God can do to send the gift just call us at 1-888-333-6003, or if you prefer to give online just go to LivingontheEdge.org partnership is a great encouragement.

Now, with his application.

Here's chip as we close today's program.

Let me give you a brief review that will help us think through this issue of depression because it is very widespread. In fact, the number one drug prescribed in America to all Americans is antidepressants now. We made a very clear distinction in the teaching that there is clinical depression was physiological causes that require medical attention.

That is not what I'm going to talk about now. This will be helpful for that. But what I'm talking about is sort of the normal everyday discouragement. The turns to the blues we get depressed. The lose perspective, I'm gonna talk about how do you deal with that because in Psalm 77 that's what God was speaking through the psalmist so number one remember, depression is normal. I mean, David got depressed. Charles Spurgeon got depressed. Great leaders get depressed, you're not bad or sinful. Just because you get depressed. Number two. Remember, there are varying degrees of depression and so if it's over a long period of time you start getting suicidal thoughts. You lose your appetite, you're in bed all the time you need to go get medical help and see a good counselor number three. Remember, depression is rooted in physical, spiritual and emotional causes week. We tend to divide these and we think that were not made as a whole.

The fact of the matter is there's physical things that can get your emotions out of kilter that begin to cause you to be depressed. There's times when we sin, we know from Psalm 32 David Sands and I mean he he goes into clinical depression because he doesn't deal with it and so he talks about the physiological issues. Depression is normal. It has to do with the holistic person your mind, your body and your soul, your emotions, all that you are. Here's what you need to remember your emotions are triggered by your thinking and perspective and for the general depression or struggles that most of us have. It begins with wrong warped thinking and that's why we renew our mind. I don't get up in the morning and read the Bible so I can check little box and say oh I did my religious duty.

I don't I don't have to feel guilty now because I read the Bible.

I get up and read the Bible because left to myself I will get a warped view of God myself, my circumstances, I need the truth in my life.

You may not feel like it, but I will tell you the Psalms are the best antidepressant that I can give you in all the world read him and realize other people feel like you feel and you will find words of hope and life as you pray the Psalms back to God. It will great way to stay engaged and connected to chip in Living on the Edge is with the chip and remap will get free access to all the chips recent messages is message notes and much more. Not only that, but it couldn't be easier to call or email directly from the app will tomorrow. I'm Living on the Edge continues his series finding God sure to make plans to join us that Elvis is a very thing. Thanks for listening to this addition of living on the