Power of Depression

Key Scripture:  “He shall be like a (stripped, destitute) bush in the desert and he will not see good when it comes.”  Jeremiah 17:6

Power Point:

One day Julie, my prayer partner and I were asked to pray for a lady who was suffering extreme depression. She could not see good anywhere in her life. She was hopeless and powerless. The interesting thing was that as I looked at her life she was actually in the middle of a glorious oasis of spiritual life. It was happening all around her but she wasn’t allowing herself to see it. Her focus was on her problems and that focus caused her to turn away from God plans for her.

It reminded me of Jeremiah 17:6. It says we are truly “cursed” if we trust only in ourselves or other people to help us; when we make “what we can see” the source of our strength. When we do that we are moving out of the supernatural into the natural.  

Goodness will pass right by us and we will not see it."

That is the perfect illustration of this woman’s life. She was in a beehive of spiritual growth and activity yet she was choosing to shut herself off from it. That happens every time we forget what God promises us and we “depart” from Him in our hearts. When we forget that the glorious power of His words are sent out to save us, to deliver us and to make us whole, we are putting ourselves in “desert” territory and we will NOT see goodness when it comes.  I don’t know about you but I don’t want to miss one ounce of His goodness for my life. I have too many issues that need the kindness and goodness of God, don’t you? I guess that means that if I don’t want to live in a desert in the middle of an oasis, I need to start “re-thinking things”. I need to remind myself that God’s goodness is always around me and always coming toward me. It’s always running behind me to overtake me. It’s always shielding me, rescuing me, making my life an example of the power of His love for me.

The thing is, Beloved, the Lord says, “I search the heart and I test the mind in order to give to every person “according to his ways, according to the fruit of His actions.” (Suzanne version)  He’s already given us the promises hasn’t He? Then it’s our job to believe them, take them and incorporate them into our hearts so that they can bear good, good fruit. He’s done His job. Now it’s our turn to put into action what He has done.
We do that by believing Him and receiving His promises.

One of Satan’s favorite tactics is to make us so depressed that we can’t see God’s goodness. What an awful way to live! What would happen if, instead of allowing him to “press you down, you began to “press on”?  How about acting in the exact opposite spirit that has led you into that dark, destitute place? How about being determined to remember that God loves you and is there to help you. He will show up for you and He will rescue you and make you safe and sound. In Psalms 27:13 it says, “I would have given up if I hadn’t believed I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”

Don’t give up, Beloved. Believe. And you will see.

Power Thought:

Flowering Bush In The Desesrt

If we are firmly convinced that God is always and only good, we’ll always see His goodness- no matter what. When we believe it, we will see it. When we don’t, we won’t. Our choice.