Today's "Be Happy" tip is also this week's Wednesday's Word. It's powerful. This may very well be the cure for every spiritual and emotional ill. It's that powerful.
Tip #15 - To know the love of Christ.
Wait - don't gloss over this. I know it sounds simple, especially if you are a seasoned follower of Christ. Hear me out. I believe that the foundation of despair, of hopelessness, of pretty much all sin, is a lack of embracing this truth.
When the Apostle Paul wrote the letter to the church at Epheseus, he knew he was communicating with folks who were already believers. He addressed them as "faithful saints" in chapter 1. So these folks were obviously not unfamiliar with the love of Christ. And, yet, in chapter 3, his desire for them was that they be bold and confident and not lose heart...and his prayer was "that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God" (vs. 17-19)
Knowing that we are loved is a powerful force. God created us all with a need to be loved - that is not a weakness nor a handicap but rather a God-given need. Just like we need air, we need love. And just like we will fight and struggle against something that blocks our air intake, so we will also strive and wrestle to be loved. To feel loved. And, just like our physical bodies can pass out when air is withheld too long, so our spirits can become weak, listless, despondent when we don't feel loved.
The problem is not that we are NOT loved - we are!!! It's that we don't KNOW it enough. That's why all the way through Scripture, God tells us over and over and over again that He loves us. He loves us so much that we cannot even comprehend it. And He loved us before we were worthy of being loved. And here's a most amazing truth to me - He doesn't love me because He made me....He made me because He loved me. Did you get that??? He dreamed me up and loved the idea of ME, so He made me. He orchestrated all the details of my birth and my time in history and my coming to Him, just exactly in the way that pleased Him, in the way best assured the development of my relationship to Him. Same for you. He loves you...so He made you...for Himself.
Knowing we are loved gives us confidence and joy. We can withstand rejection and disappointment and pain because we are enclosed in the arms of the One who loves us without limit. We don't need circumstances to line up just right or people to treat us just so in order to be happy. We are loved. Absolutely. Completely.
So, what if you don't feel like you are loved? Well, first thing, God's Word says you are and His Word is true-er than your feelings. You need to repent of believing a lie and turn towards the truth. And then, run to Him with your heart. Ask Him to cause your heart to respond to His love.
That 3rd chapter of Ephesians ends with great assurance of His desire and ability to help you know His love. Vs 20-21 "Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus, throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."
Be happy Tip #14
Sometimes people ask me "Isn't my depression spiritual warfare? Isn't Satan attacking me?" Well, I certainly believe in spiritual warfare - because Scripture tells us in Ephesians 6:12 : "For we struggle not against flesh and blood, but against the kingdoms, against the powers, against the world leaders of this darkness, against spiritual wickedness in the high places". And the Bible also warns us that "your adversary, the devil, walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (I Peter 5:8)
So, is everything undesirable that happens to us a casualty of this battle? I don't think so. Yes, we need to be sober and vigilant (I Peter 5:8a) and yes, we need to be armed and able to wage war successfully (Ephesians 6). But we don't need to fear and we don't need to always chalk all our problems up to The Enemy of our Souls. I like how John Piper puts it "Give the devil his due, but no more".
Use the offensive weapons that God has designated for this purpose (The Word and prayer). Keep your armor on (helmet of salvation, shield of faith, a heart protected by right-living, belt of truth and feet that are prepared to go and live the Gospel wherever He leads). Absolutely.
But let's remember a few very important points.
1. Satan was defeated at the Cross. Not only did Jesus pay for our sin, He disarmed the rulers and authorities of darkness, ridiculed them, triumphed over them (Colossians 2:14,15)
2. We who are in Christ are filled with this same power. I John 4:4 assures us that "greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world".
3. Yes, Satan is powerful and we shouldn't forget about him. Yes, he wants to steal our joy and he actually wants to destroy us. But he has already been defeated. We can be victorious in our battle with him if we apply Scripture.
4. Sometimes, we need to acknowledge that our own flesh is at least as powerful an enemy as Satan. He would love to take credit for our depressed state because he loves the attention and he knows that will keep us from focusing on our personal responsibility. If we fight the wrong enemy, we will continue in defeat.
So, yes, sometimes we are attacked by spirits of despair and despondency. Absolutely. But we don't have to yield to them. We can fight back because of Christ's victory over them. However, let's don't attribute more to the Defeated One than necessary. Sometimes, we need to deal with our own sin.
Amen.
Be happy - tip #13
Let's review the tips so far:
1. Check out possible physical problems (fatigue, hormones, illness)
2. Acknowledge God's command to be joyful
3. Don't blame others - accept responsibility for your own joy
4. Confess sin
5. Address systems errors (ways to do things better/more successfully)
6. Accept the unchangeables.
7. THE WORD - get in it.
8. Pray. And listen.
9. Talk to yourself - but be sure and preach the Truth!
10. Monitor music and media
11. Immerse yourself in God's creation
12. Don't go to the extreme of over-activity or of isolation.
Tip #13 - Serve others.
This is honestly one of the most effective tools to combat depression. Come to think of it, serving others combats lots of undesirable things - selfishness, boredom, insignificance, apathy, on and on the list goes. Serving others is absolutely a great idea.
Especially serving those who are poor and needy....and cannot repay you in any way.
The prophet Isaiah instructs the people of Israel how to find happiness, to be free of burdens this way:
chapter 58:6-8 - Is not this the fast that I have chosen? to loose the bands of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and to let the oppressed go free, and that ye break every yoke?
7 Is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry, and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house? when thou seest the naked, that thou cover him; and that thou hide not thyself from thine own flesh?
8 ¶Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the Lord shall be thy rearward.
Check out that passage - feeding the hungry, showing hospitality to the poor, clothing the naked is inextricably linked to joy (being free from wickedness and burdens and oppression...LIGHT breaking forth, HEALTH (!!!), and seeing the glory of God).
This may very well be the MOST powerful tip of them all.
Don't miss it.
p.s. - if you live in the Athens GA community and need somewhere to serve like this, message me. I have lots of suggestions for places that need you.
Be happy - tip # 12
We humans tend towards extremes. And, generally speaking, life is well-lived with things in balance. So it is with tip #12. When trying to shake the sad state, I have found it best to avoid the extremes of isolation and over-activity.
Either of these can push me towards feelings of depression and either can certainly prolong those feelings. Seems to me, that we can use "over-activity" as sort of anesthesia. Keeping ourselves "too busy" means we don't have time to deal with difficult issues...or to feel pain. Althought that might seem like a good thing, it's not. Pain is not always bad. It's an indicator that there is a problem that needs our attention. If we go without feeling pain for too long, we never address the problem. And so things get worse. Just as physical pain can be helpful (ever touch a hot stove?), so can emotional pain. Always avoiding the pain can lead to bigger problems. Too much busy-ness is just not good. AT ALL.
Just as too much activity/time with others is an extreme that we don't want to live in all the time, the same is true for isolation. Now, don't hear what I'm not saying. I strongly support time alone, time away from the crowds and routine demands. Time to refresh and replenish. And repair. But we were made to need other people- and for them to need us - and when we find ourselves continuously pulling away from friends and family and responsiblities....and pulling inside ourselves, we need a red light to go on in our hearts. Signalling trouble.
Happiness comes with a balance of time alone, time with others, time giving, time receiving. Check out your "extreme-o-meter" and see if you are registering too far in one direction or the other.
Be happy - tips 10 & 11
Tip # 10 - Monitor music and media
We already mentioned this briefly in another tip post but it bears being singled out as its own post. Check out your time on social media, watching movies/TV and what you are mindlessly listening to. Major mood influencer. Beware of thinking you are spending less time than you actually are. Cut out all social media and screen time for a solid week and see if you wind up with spare time on your hands.
Tip # 11 - Nature
Scripture says in Psalm 19 - "The Heavens declare the glory of God". Get out there and look at it! Use your senses to take in the wonder and glory of God - listen to a nightingale's song; look at a breathtaking sunset (or better yet- sunRISE!); taste the sweetness of fresh strawberries straight from Washington Farms; smell honeysuckle on a walk through the woods; rub the wool on a lamb's back. Experience this amazing world that God created with generous beauty. Soak in the message His creation sends - we serve a mighty God.
And He is bigger than you and me....and our sadness. Soak that truth up all the way into your bones!