Depression affects everyone it touches in different ways and to varying degrees. We understand this about other diseases. Some people are genetically predisposed to cancer, while some people increase their chances of getting cancer with their life choices, and some people who have cancer make their situation worse by ignoring the symptoms and avoiding the doctor at all costs. The very same things can be said about depression.
I love this simple definition of depression that Dr. Curt Thompson once shared on the Maybe God Podcast: Depression is what happens when we’re no longer able to regulate our anxiety. He also said anxiety is what happens when our shame takes over; we get anxious because we’re not doing enough or not good enough. And when our anxiety outpaces our capacity to regulate it, depression can take root in our minds.
Many people aren’t aware how much the Bible has to say about depression. They see Christians acting artificially happy all the time; therefore, they assume the Bible must be superficially pleasant. But this is not the case. The Bible is grittier than most churches are and more honest than most Christians are. In some churches, if you’re struggling with depression, they might tell you to have more faith and offer you some platitudes about how you’re “too blessed to be depressed”, but the Bible never deals with depression that way.
In fact, the way that the Bible addresses what we call depression and mental illness is in lock-step with the most recent science on the subject. Experts have been saying for years that depression:
• often stems from a predisposition, an inborn brokenness
• is an illness of the mind
• is intensified by a lack of connections – connection to meaningful work, community, family, nature, and a lack of connection to who you really are – your identity.
This is some of what the best science is suggesting about depression, and the Bible affirms all of it.
For those struggling in any way with depression, the Bible has three clear messages that believers can carry around with us like it’s ammo for the fight of our lives. First, the Bible recognizes the role that our minds play in our overall well-being. It’s not just what you do that defines you, or how you feel, but your thoughts that have the power to define you. Your thoughts form the foundation on which you stand. Learning how to direct your thoughts is part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. Consider this reflection from the Apostle Paul:
Philippians 4:8 – Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.
But the Bible doesn’t stop there – the Bible writers go deeper to acknowledge mental illness. They were way ahead of their time in their awareness that, just as our bodies can get sick, our minds can get sick, too, such as Paul’s insistence that Christian men and women prioritize the health of our minds:
Romans 12:2 – Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind…
So, the Bible’s first message for all of us when we’re suffering with depression is, “You’re broken. Your mind needs some fixing.”
Second, the Bible is clear about the role of community in our fight against depression. Not only is it important for us to know that it’s normal for Christians to struggle, the authors of the Bible really wanted us to know that the heroes of our faith went through episodes and seasons that sound eerily familiar. Why else would the authors of the Bible choose to share their most vulnerable moments with us?
Consider the great Old Testament prophet, Elijah, who said in 1 Kings 19, “I’ve had enough, Lord. Take my life,” or King David, who had it all and still struggled with depression. He is the one who wrote, “My God, why have you forsaken me” in Psalm 22, and in Psalm 6 he lamented: “I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping.”
Even Jesus struggled mightily with acute anxiety and appears to have battled through depressive episodes. The Bible calls him a man of sorrows, acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3).
Many skeptics will say that the Bible is merely a myth or a legend, but it would be extremely atypical of a legend or a myth to celebrate a host of heroes who are often in despair, if not deeply depressed, and some of whom even contemplate suicide.
Why does the Bible divulge such delicate details about its greatest heroes so transparently? Because if you’re struggling with depression, God wants you to know that you are not alone.
Third, the Bible authors rightly make the connection between toxic thought patterns like depression and a crisis of identity. The first Christians had this radical idea that, when Jesus died on the cross, our afflictions died, too. We still have to deal with their collateral damage, but their power over us was nailed to the cross with Christ. And now the Holy Spirit is in us, restoring us to our original condition, which is the image of God, our true identity.
Galatians 2:20 – I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
The gospel’s answer to depression is to remind us that depression is not our true identity. Your toxic thoughts do not define who you really are; only Jesus on the cross defines who you really are and what you’re really worth.
The next time you feel the darkness closing in around you, remember three things:
First, depression’s battlefield of choice is in your mind. Insofar as it is up to you, choose to think about whatever is true, good, and holy.
Second, you are not alone. In fact, you stand in a long line of other believers who have cried out to God from the depths. Many others in The Story congregation have battled depression, and many are struggling with it today. If you need support, never hesitate to ask.
Third, your true identity and worth are defined by nothing less than the cross of Jesus Christ.
You are forgiven.
You are loved.
You are worth dying for.
You are a child of God.
