Depression: Looking Up from the Stubborn Darkness by Edward T. Welch Read Free Book Online Page A

at all costs; now we must understand that the path to becoming more like Jesus goes through hardship, and it is much better than the path of brief and superficial comfort without Jesus. When we understand this grand purpose, we discover that suffering does not oppose love; it is a result of it (Heb. 12:8). We are under the mistaken impression that divine love cannot coexist with human pain. Such thinking is one of Satan’s most effective strategies. It must be attacked with the gospel of grace.
    Humble yourself before the Lord. When you are depressed, you feel like you can’t be any lower. But an appropriate and strengthening response to the love of Christ is humility. Humility is different from feeling low. It is lowering ourselves before God and accepting his sovereign will.
    Humility says, “God owes me nothing.” “He is not my servant; I am his.” “God is God, and he has the right to do anything he wants.”
    This is the gift God gave Job in Job’s spiritual battle. Whereas Job wanted to question God, he was instead questioned by God, and after hearing God’s fatherly questions, Job was humbled before him. “ ‘I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth’ ” (Job 40:4). When you have a growing knowledge of God, your natural response is humility. In the face of such a powerful spiritual response to the knowledge of Christ, Satan is powerless.
R ESPONSE
    Consider your response to spiritual warfare. Do you believe it is happening? If so, you are on the right path. The Spirit is at work in your life.
    Now take some small steps to engage in the struggle. Consider reading Job 38–42. The questions might seem harsh, but realize that this is the way Hebrew fathers taught their children. The context is love.
    Does this discussion seem irrelevant? If so, you will want to consider two questions. First, is your allegiance to Jesus Christ? If it isn’t, be open to knowing Jesus. How could you refuse an opportunity to consider a person who promises life and hope? If you are not sure of your allegiances, do the same thing. Be open to knowing him better. There are ways that you will know Jesus in your suffering that are unique and profound.
    If you have publicly voiced your faith in Jesus but now are filled with doubts, can you distinguish between depression and faith? Don’t forget that depression casts its shadow on everything, even faith. As a result, faith won’t feel jubilant. But that doesn’t mean you don’t or can’t believe. That is your job. Jesus said, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent” (John 6:29). Say, “Amen” when someone speaks the truth to you. Begin your day with “Yes, Lord, I believe,” however weak your faith may be.
    The other question to consider is this: Do you want to change? As bizarre as it might seem, depression can come to feel like a friend. You wouldn’t choose this friend if you had a choice, but now that you have him, he is comfortable and predictable. You can even derive personal identity from him, which is especially tempting when you feel like you have no identity without him. If you are not engaging in the spiritual battle we have discussed so far, it is possible that you are deceiving yourself. Perhaps you are merely going through the motions. Then you can say that you have tried when you haven’t, and you can have a clear conscience when you remain entrenched in your hopelessness.
    This is a battle. If you want change, you must be willing to take yourself to task.

CHAPTER
8

Remember
    At first I thought a dose of positive thinking would help Steve out of depression, so I tried to convince him that there really were some good things happening in his life. He still had a job, friends, basic needs met, abilities, and so on. It all sounded good. I actually thought I was encouraging him. My job was done. But it didn’t take long for me to hear what those words sounded like to him. “Blah, blah, Steve, blah, blah,