07 September 2010
“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?" Hebrews 13:5‑6
When you are depressed, statistics are meaningless. Talking about causes of depression is also nearly worthless, but knowing what to do to climb out of the pit is like a breath of fresh air in a dungeon. Without fail when I do a commentary on depression, our mail response skyrockets.
The first great truth that turns depression to flight is that we, as God's children, have been adopted into the family of God and, therefore, are heirs of the Father's wealth. This experience is the result of personally accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior. "As many as received him," says John 1:12, KJV, "to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name."
Depression stopper #2 is that God is in control of planet Earth and our lives personally, so there is no need to fear or worry. Do you believe that? "Well," you may say, "I wish it were that simple. I'd like to believe it, but every time I pick up the paper it gives me cold chills...." You believe what you read in the newspaper, in spite of the fact that even the best-intentioned reporter may have his facts incorrect. So why not believe what you read in a time‑proven book called the Bible? For 2,000 years men have been proving the validity of the statements contained in Scripture.
The New Testament clearly says that He has a will and a purpose for you as His child, and that He will keep you in the midst of the storm because you belong to Him. Underline Romans 8:28 and memorize it, along with Ephesians 1:11, which says God "works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will."
I am indebted to one of our listeners for the following story, which illustrates this truth. "A...traveler in Norway visited a great electric power plant in one of the country's deep mountain valleys. After seeing the immense turbines in the plant, he was invited to inspect the reservoirs that controlled the flow of water to the giant turbines. These reservoirs were caverns cut into the mountain side some eight hundred feet above the power plant, and were reached by means of a small cable car drawn up the side of the mountain. The car itself was a tiny ‘flat top,’ perhaps four by six feet, with a plain seat at the lower end.
"As the visitor seated himself, for what to him seemed a rather precarious trip up the steep mountain side, a little girl with a small basket on her arm and a happy smile on her face stepped up and sat down beside him. The signal was given and the little car moved upward. It was not without apprehension that the visitor in the course of the trip looked down from the dizzy heights. Then turning to the child beside him, he asked solicitously, ‘Have you gone up here before?’ ‘Sure, I go here every day. This is the way I go to school,’ was her cheerful answer. ‘But aren't you afraid to go up and down this steep mountain all alone?’ continued the visitor. ‘Oh no,’ was her confident reply, ‘it is not dangerous; Father is up there. He runs the machinery.’"
The knowledge that your heavenly Father is running the machinery, and that life is not simply the result of fate and chance, helps you to eliminate fear as to what might happen in the world tomorrow. When Father is at the helm of planet earth, there is no need to worry or be afraid because He has promised so beautifully, “‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'" (Hebrews 13:5‑6).
Resource reading: Hebrews 13:1-8