January and February are said the be the worst months of the year for depression, at least in the northern hemisphere (I have not checked about the southern hemisphere). The Lord has brought me through some things in this area, and since nothing is wasted with Him, I know that He intended me to pass on things about this subject with others.
For my own part, for some years when I was a young adult and very “wise in my own eyes”, I had the attitude that Christians who suffered from depression, or such things were, “wicked” and/or needed to “repent” of something. The Lord has a way of humbling us so often with the very things we despise in others. My lack of compassion in this area (which I did not inherit from my parents, by the way – I wish to make that clear), was something that He literally knocked out of me by allowing me to go through that same tribulation that I had contemned in others . It was a hard lesson, very hard. But, out of that He brought me to some realizations that I am sure He wants me to pass on to others. I am by no means an expert on the subject. Far from it! But, I can try in a small way to pass on the comfort wherewith He comforted me.
2 Corinthians 1:3-5 Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ.
Mercifully, the Lord gave me a good friend who has been through 12 years of depression, some of it sever depression. She was a tremendous help to me in learning to deal with the anxiety disorder that I have, and later her wisdom helped again in dealing with the Seasonal Affected Disorder (SAD - really seasonal depression) that became a terrible trial as well. He also gave me other friends who were familiar with natural remedies that helped me a lot, and He showed me other helpful things too. The Lord also kindly saw to it that I was not put on a powerful mind-altering drug, but rather on a much milder, slower working one which was very beneficial. He gave me friends and family that encouraged me, prayed for me and helped me in many ways. Lastly, but most importantly perhaps, the Lord gave me parents who are sympathetic and compassionate toward those with troubled minds/emotions and who believe His word above all else; and then, adding blessing to blessing, He gave me a husband who also is this way and is willing to deal with my weaknesses in this area!
This web page which I am linking to here is far from finished. I wish that there was more on it, actually. But, I hope that it will help someone, and so I felt that I should write up this (very) brief account of my own experience and share the link here in hopes that it might encourage someone in need, particularly at this time of year. :-)
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