We are in the middle of some real winter weather where I live in Southeast Texas. We are not use to this. Snow and ice for multiple days. Not being able to make it to work. Today I got up, worked out, put my extensions in and make up on to make me feel half way normal. As I was doing all of this I started filling myself with good preaching. With good word. Uplifting myself some.
I listened to a podcast I listen to on a normal basis now. It is call Talking It Out. It stems from the Joyce Meyers Ministries. Today I listened to about "Overcoming Depression" Episode number 53. I looked up some statistics on depression just now. On the Anxiety and Depression Association of America Website it states that depression is one of the most prevalent mental conditions in the United States. In 2017 alone 7.3% of adults had one depressive episode that year. There are several other statistics listed on that page. My point is it is a real thing. I know because I have been through it myself. I won't go through all details but I will say this if you are going through it right now or have been through it in the past, you should not feel ashamed to talk to someone about it.
Sometimes, I know for me, I did not want to talk about it to people. If I feel it arise inside of me now, I still don't want to talk to anyone about it. It is almost like we feel like a burden. For me that is something that I struggled with. I thought to myself I should not feel this way. I don't want to feel this way. There is so much to live for. Why do I feel like I'm in a pit and can't get out.
The truth is there are several things that can cause you to get in the pit. One is a traumatic experience. Something unexpected can turn your world upside down. Where you thought you had it all together, can be ripped in apart. Where you thought the most confident part of your life was ok, suddenly its not. Maybe you lost a loved one. Maybe you have been put down, and you have been told you were not pretty or worth anything. Sometimes hormone issues are involved. Whatever it may be, you are not alone.
You are sitting here reading this and maybe you can relate with a couple of the scenarios that I wrote above. You are wanting to dig yourself out of the pit. You are wanting to feel normal. You are wanting to be able to be yourself in a group of people, and not hide in the corner. If that is you, I may not know all the answers, but I can definitely help you start to heal. Maybe what I say will help motivate you to get out of bed with a little my pep in your step. Maybe it will help you see some hope. Let's face it, when depression sets in, you have drive. You have not pep to accomplish anything. You are almost stagnant, stuck, in a stand still. There seems to be no life within you.
That is not where God wants you to be. He desire so much for you. You were created with a purpose. A purpose that requires you to move. Requires you to get out of bed. Requires you to be able to talk to people, and not hide away. What is the opposite of depression? I would say joy is. What is a scripture that probably would stick out to most people? "The joy of the Lord is my strength." So, your sitting there and feel blah, feel nothing, feel weak in the episode you are having called depression. A good place to start is that scripture. Read it again, "The joy of the Lord is my strength." That is where you start getting your strength back. Through the Lord. Through His Word. Through prayer and praise and worship.
A little something to think about. You are stuck right now. That is exactly where Satan wants you to be. If you are stagnant and not believing the scripture, then he has done his job. You do have authority over him. You have a responsibility no matter what has happened to pull yourself up. Sometimes that may mean taking a step and talking to someone. Sometimes that may mean literally pushing yourself off the couch and brushing your teeth. Sometimes that may mean smiling at someone instead of frowning. Sometimes it may mean meditating on the word for awhile. You must take action. Psalms 37 says "Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart." Dig deep. No matter what you say, sitting in a dark room is not your desire. Break through is your desire. Don't be ashamed to start taking baby steps to healing.
On the podcast I mentioned at the beginning of the post, Michelle Williams (from Destiny's Child) was the guest speaker. She stated how she had dealt with depression from a young age. She said that it is ok to pretty much take baby steps. Sometimes it is a process. We should be patient with ourselves as we begin to evaluate what we must do. I'm learning not to judge where a person is at. My concern is that we all take the necessary steps to help God help us. We can pray all day long, but until we begin making some kind of steps, I don't think those prayers will help. We do have a responsibility here to live out his plan. Good emotions, and good things will not necessary just drop in our lap. We have to believe his word, and actually live it out. The word, again, says that the joy of the Lord is your strength. Start reading his word. Start learning what he says about you. You are a masterpiece. His plans for you is way better then you could ever dream of. That is pretty spectacular to me, because I have high expectations for myself. Start looking to his word for hope. I hope this helps you. I hope you know that you are a spectacular masterpiece.
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