Study from God’s Word… Job, Chapters 8 – 10 … Passage for Reflection: Job 9: 14 – 15 … NIV 14 "How then can I dispute with him? How can I find words to argue with him? 15 Though I were innocent, I could not answer him; I could only plead with my Judge for mercy.
My Journal for Today: The title for today’s devotional from Dr. LaGard Smith comes from the old 60s song by Jim Croce; and it gives a pretty clear reference to the way Job must’ve felt as he described his dilemma to his second “friend,” Bildad, the Shuhite. And also in Job’s reply to Bildad, he begins his plea to God, feeling very low, which we could certainly understand, given his horrible physical and emotional state. Remember Croce’s song, “You don’t tug on Superman’s cape, and you don’t spit into the wind.”
I like Dr. Smith’s word picture as he compares Job’s feelings of smallness to the image of what we might feel like if we were the size an ant and we’re in the hands of someone the size of a human. Being the size of an ant in the hands of a human, we’d likely feel totally at the mercy of this giant creature; and we would feel it impossible to plead our case for mercy from the human to refrain from squashing us like the “bug” we know we are.
Have you ever felt about as big as an ant and being in the hands of a God Who seems so big and uncaring? Perhaps you’ve seen an ant on your kitchen floor and squashed him like the bug he is, having invaded your space. And maybe, given your set of circumstances, you image that God may see you like that ant, way too big to hear you; and maybe you feel like you don’t deserve to be in His presence.
As one reads and meditates through Job’s retort to Bildad, as I did this morning, you get the idea that Job felt way too small to plead his case before the God Whom Job dearly loved and the One he had followed so faithfully in his life to that point. But here he is, broken completely, knowing that God is God and could have prevented this from happening; and knowing that he really doesn’t deserve – at least in his estimation – to be where he is.
Ever been there; – or at least emotionally felt that way? Sometimes, because of our circumstances, we feel that God is distant; and because of God’s promises to always be with us, we can’t understand His seeming absence or distance. Well, my friend, those are times when our beliefs are tested, probably beyond the limits of human understanding; and our faith is bent almost to the breaking point (or maybe past that point). These are the times when – if we’re believers in Christ’s sacrifice as the God-man and we believe that God’s word is ALL COMPLETELY TRUE – our understanding and belief in passages like Romans 8 or Ephesians 1 is tested to the human limits of understanding. Do we really believe what the Psalmist wrote in Psalm 116: 1 – 2 [linked]? Does God really [and ALWAYS] want to hear what we have to say? Again I take you back to Romans 8 or Ephesians 1 [each linked for your study]; … does God really care about us that much?
Well, if we believe that 2nd Tim. 3: 16 is true and we hold to the truth that ALL SCRIPTURE is the inspired word of God Himself, then we must conclude that God, though He may SEEM far away, is lovingly always within earshot; and His word must be true that He wants to hear our laments, our pleas, our confusion, and yes, even our anger.
So, if you’re feeling like you’re that ant who’s crawling in the hands of a WAY BIG GOD, cry out to Him. He will not only hear you, He will lovingly listen; and if you’re one of His, He’ll keep you in His loving arms forever. So go ahead, tug on His cape; … and yeah, even spit into the wind.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, You are way too big for me to comprehend You. But I feel Your love; and I’m thankful for Your loving presence. Amen
Showing posts with label depression. Show all posts
Showing posts with label depression. Show all posts
Friday, September 10, 2010
Monday, October 26, 2009
2009 – Day 298.Oct 26 – From God’s Perspective
Passage for Study: Romans 8: 22 – 23 from the context of Rom. 8: 18 – 25 … Linked for your study …
My Journal for Today: Chuck Swindoll, my devotional author and guide this year, brings up an interesting point (i.e., lesson) today. And besides using this powerful passage from Romans 8, that great theological treatise, he quotes the famous Christian author/teacher John Stott, who wrote, concerning this passage, “Some Christians, …, grin too much and groan too little.”
It’s not that Christians shouldn’t be joyful. Swindoll points out that Christians, certainly much more than the lost, should choose to live joy-filled lives; but we often don’t know how to deal with a fellow Christian who is depressed, down, or has what Paul is picturing as a “groaning spirit” from this text today. And Swindoll cautions us not to try to encourage one of our brothers/sisters in Christ who is obviously down by telling them to “smile more” or to try to shame them for their depression.
Paul certainly knew what being depressed was all about; but he did put our feelings of physical, emotional, or spiritual depression into the perspective of the truth we have, as Christians, … that hope we have in Christ. And that is what is expressed in today’s passage, as wall as so many other truths which come from God’s word, pointing us the eternal truth of what Christ has given us by His suffering on the cross.
But being physically down or emotionally drained is a reality of our human existence; and we shouldn’t try to put a guilt trip on fellow Christians who are in the dumpers viewing a present life filled with pain. Who knows, … your depressed friend may be dealing with a diagnosis of terminal cancer; or maybe they have suddenly lost a loved one in an accident; or quite possibly, like a friend of mine right now, they are dealing with chronic, intractable migraine headaches. Certainly in these scenarios, wouldn’t we expect our pain ridden fellow Christians to “groan” in their suffering? Of course, we would; … so how do we help them?
Well, I think all we can do is share their pain, listen to their feelings, and genuinely share the truths from God’s word which might be a balm of soothing help. We should possibly help our friend[s] in pain see that they are not alone in their depression. There are a number of giants of the faith who were in such pain and/or anguish that they wanted to die or never to have been born. In our studies from Great Days with the Great lives we seen this from Elijah, exhausted under the broom tree, and Moses who needed encouragement from His brother, Aaron, when God’s people grumbled and brought their challenges to him. And we know of situational depression grabbing hold of Job, who voiced – to God – the desire never to have been born rather than bear the suffering Satan had visited upon him (of which he had no knowledge). And even Paul had his “woe is me times,” as we read in Romans 7: 14 – 23 or 2nd Cor. 12: 7 – 10 [each linked here for your study].
And these are passages which, if we can point our depressed friends toward, perhaps they can see that though they are down because of the suffering they have encountered, God still desires for us to live – as much as we can – in the hope which is IN CHRIST. And then, sharing these things, we just need to be there to listen and to empathize as much as we can with anyone dealing with a depressed spiriti, sharing God’s love and helping, as much as we can, to refocus our friends on the glory ahead which is in Christ.
Perhaps, in your life, or the life of a friend, we need to grin less and groan more; and as I do so often, we need to do what is expressed in that priceless and powerful old hymn, which I’m blessed to be listening to on my Ipod even as I write this …
Turn you eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.
My Prayer for Today: Lord Jesus, help me … when I’m down or I’m trying to help a depressed friend, to see You and Your ever faithful love as well as the truth of the hope we have - and can only have - in You. Amen
My Journal for Today: Chuck Swindoll, my devotional author and guide this year, brings up an interesting point (i.e., lesson) today. And besides using this powerful passage from Romans 8, that great theological treatise, he quotes the famous Christian author/teacher John Stott, who wrote, concerning this passage, “Some Christians, …, grin too much and groan too little.”
It’s not that Christians shouldn’t be joyful. Swindoll points out that Christians, certainly much more than the lost, should choose to live joy-filled lives; but we often don’t know how to deal with a fellow Christian who is depressed, down, or has what Paul is picturing as a “groaning spirit” from this text today. And Swindoll cautions us not to try to encourage one of our brothers/sisters in Christ who is obviously down by telling them to “smile more” or to try to shame them for their depression.
Paul certainly knew what being depressed was all about; but he did put our feelings of physical, emotional, or spiritual depression into the perspective of the truth we have, as Christians, … that hope we have in Christ. And that is what is expressed in today’s passage, as wall as so many other truths which come from God’s word, pointing us the eternal truth of what Christ has given us by His suffering on the cross.
But being physically down or emotionally drained is a reality of our human existence; and we shouldn’t try to put a guilt trip on fellow Christians who are in the dumpers viewing a present life filled with pain. Who knows, … your depressed friend may be dealing with a diagnosis of terminal cancer; or maybe they have suddenly lost a loved one in an accident; or quite possibly, like a friend of mine right now, they are dealing with chronic, intractable migraine headaches. Certainly in these scenarios, wouldn’t we expect our pain ridden fellow Christians to “groan” in their suffering? Of course, we would; … so how do we help them?
Well, I think all we can do is share their pain, listen to their feelings, and genuinely share the truths from God’s word which might be a balm of soothing help. We should possibly help our friend[s] in pain see that they are not alone in their depression. There are a number of giants of the faith who were in such pain and/or anguish that they wanted to die or never to have been born. In our studies from Great Days with the Great lives we seen this from Elijah, exhausted under the broom tree, and Moses who needed encouragement from His brother, Aaron, when God’s people grumbled and brought their challenges to him. And we know of situational depression grabbing hold of Job, who voiced – to God – the desire never to have been born rather than bear the suffering Satan had visited upon him (of which he had no knowledge). And even Paul had his “woe is me times,” as we read in Romans 7: 14 – 23 or 2nd Cor. 12: 7 – 10 [each linked here for your study].
And these are passages which, if we can point our depressed friends toward, perhaps they can see that though they are down because of the suffering they have encountered, God still desires for us to live – as much as we can – in the hope which is IN CHRIST. And then, sharing these things, we just need to be there to listen and to empathize as much as we can with anyone dealing with a depressed spiriti, sharing God’s love and helping, as much as we can, to refocus our friends on the glory ahead which is in Christ.
Perhaps, in your life, or the life of a friend, we need to grin less and groan more; and as I do so often, we need to do what is expressed in that priceless and powerful old hymn, which I’m blessed to be listening to on my Ipod even as I write this …
Turn you eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.
My Prayer for Today: Lord Jesus, help me … when I’m down or I’m trying to help a depressed friend, to see You and Your ever faithful love as well as the truth of the hope we have - and can only have - in You. Amen
Saturday, August 22, 2009
2009 – Day 233.Aug 22 – Words of Comfort
Passage of the Day: Job 3: 1 - 26 … Linked for study ...
My Journal for Today: I read Chuck Swindoll’s devotional this morning; and it speaks to my life and feelings this morning. He writes about how Christians unsuccessfully dealt with the shame surrounding depression back in the 1960s. He recalls, as a young Christian student, that preachers just didn’t say much about “nervous” mental conditions back then; and Pastors would never even mention emotional or mental illness at funerals. It was as if they were ignorant of or oblivious to Chapter 3 of the book of Job as well as ignoring some of the giants of the faith, like Moses, Jonah, Elijah, Peter, or Paul, all of whom witnessed to crises of depression in the Bible.
And above I said that I can understand these feelings of confusion and quandary today; because yesterday a dear brother in Christ, who had been separated from his wife, who was suffering from bipolar waves of depression, could not raise her by phone yesterday and went to her apartment where the security people at the apartment and my friend found her dead. I don’t know all the particulars even yet; but I do know that this dear Christian lady had suffered from severe bouts of depression and very low self esteem. And apparently, 40-50 years ago such conditions were likely to cause Christian people to question the faith or the salvation of the declared Christian suffering from these mental conditions.
Swindoll is right. We have no right, as Christians, especially Christian leaders, to get on a high horse, like a couple of Job’s friends will be in subsequent chapters, by questioning the faith or behaviors of someone who is confused by life and depressed by its circumstances. Job was given the latitude, and we read it in Chapter three of his story, to cry out to God … to rail with his depression and express his feelings of remorse and anguish. So, why shouldn’t we give our depressed brothers and/or sisters in Christ the opportunity to do the same thing without judgments or self-righteous counsel?
This next week my wife and I will be going to the funeral of our sister in the faith who died while in the pits of depression. They don’t think suicide was involved; but even if it had been, we must ask ourselves, as the body of Christ, if we were there to do all we can to help our depressed friends to walk through the “valley of the shadow of death.” We need to be Christ for them, showing that all the love and grace our Lord has for them, … being there with them, … walking with them, … listening to them, … hugging them, … and listening more to them. And yes, if we need to help them get competent, CHRISTIAN, counselors, psychologists, or psychiatrists, then we must do just that too.
In the case of this dear, departed friend of ours, we happen to know that this sister got all of that from the body of Christ; and yet, somehow, for some reason, she is now with God; and her husband and the rest of us who loved here are here to ponder how her passing had meaning. That was the position of Job in this Chapter 3; and we may have to deal with life in much the same way, now or someday, when we can’t explain why we are in the pits of life or why we’re having to deal with such circumstances.
But we do, or we should, know that God either allowed or led us into the valley of darkness for a reason – His reason. And, He will be there with us and lead us through that valley because of His love and mercy and grace. If you’re in a dark valley, my friend, maybe even as you read this, hold on to truths such as those in Deut. 31: 8, Psalm 23, Matt. 11: 28-30, 1st Cor. 10: 13, 2nd Cor.12: 7, and 1st Pet. 5: 7; and I’m going to ask to look those up and meditate upon them if you don’t know them by heart; because in them we can know that our God is always in control; and He will never allow us to be anywhere, involved in anything, where we – with His help – cannot walk with God through to the other side.
Remember, as you meditate on those scriptures above, those are God’s promises, not mine. Those are the words coming right from God; and I can only hope you believe them and can be uplifted by them.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help us to ministry to the husband and family of this dear friend who now is with You and suffered so while she was with us. Amen
My Journal for Today: I read Chuck Swindoll’s devotional this morning; and it speaks to my life and feelings this morning. He writes about how Christians unsuccessfully dealt with the shame surrounding depression back in the 1960s. He recalls, as a young Christian student, that preachers just didn’t say much about “nervous” mental conditions back then; and Pastors would never even mention emotional or mental illness at funerals. It was as if they were ignorant of or oblivious to Chapter 3 of the book of Job as well as ignoring some of the giants of the faith, like Moses, Jonah, Elijah, Peter, or Paul, all of whom witnessed to crises of depression in the Bible.
And above I said that I can understand these feelings of confusion and quandary today; because yesterday a dear brother in Christ, who had been separated from his wife, who was suffering from bipolar waves of depression, could not raise her by phone yesterday and went to her apartment where the security people at the apartment and my friend found her dead. I don’t know all the particulars even yet; but I do know that this dear Christian lady had suffered from severe bouts of depression and very low self esteem. And apparently, 40-50 years ago such conditions were likely to cause Christian people to question the faith or the salvation of the declared Christian suffering from these mental conditions.
Swindoll is right. We have no right, as Christians, especially Christian leaders, to get on a high horse, like a couple of Job’s friends will be in subsequent chapters, by questioning the faith or behaviors of someone who is confused by life and depressed by its circumstances. Job was given the latitude, and we read it in Chapter three of his story, to cry out to God … to rail with his depression and express his feelings of remorse and anguish. So, why shouldn’t we give our depressed brothers and/or sisters in Christ the opportunity to do the same thing without judgments or self-righteous counsel?
This next week my wife and I will be going to the funeral of our sister in the faith who died while in the pits of depression. They don’t think suicide was involved; but even if it had been, we must ask ourselves, as the body of Christ, if we were there to do all we can to help our depressed friends to walk through the “valley of the shadow of death.” We need to be Christ for them, showing that all the love and grace our Lord has for them, … being there with them, … walking with them, … listening to them, … hugging them, … and listening more to them. And yes, if we need to help them get competent, CHRISTIAN, counselors, psychologists, or psychiatrists, then we must do just that too.
In the case of this dear, departed friend of ours, we happen to know that this sister got all of that from the body of Christ; and yet, somehow, for some reason, she is now with God; and her husband and the rest of us who loved here are here to ponder how her passing had meaning. That was the position of Job in this Chapter 3; and we may have to deal with life in much the same way, now or someday, when we can’t explain why we are in the pits of life or why we’re having to deal with such circumstances.
But we do, or we should, know that God either allowed or led us into the valley of darkness for a reason – His reason. And, He will be there with us and lead us through that valley because of His love and mercy and grace. If you’re in a dark valley, my friend, maybe even as you read this, hold on to truths such as those in Deut. 31: 8, Psalm 23, Matt. 11: 28-30, 1st Cor. 10: 13, 2nd Cor.12: 7, and 1st Pet. 5: 7; and I’m going to ask to look those up and meditate upon them if you don’t know them by heart; because in them we can know that our God is always in control; and He will never allow us to be anywhere, involved in anything, where we – with His help – cannot walk with God through to the other side.
Remember, as you meditate on those scriptures above, those are God’s promises, not mine. Those are the words coming right from God; and I can only hope you believe them and can be uplifted by them.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, help us to ministry to the husband and family of this dear friend who now is with You and suffered so while she was with us. Amen
Friday, August 21, 2009
2009 – Day 232.Aug 21 – Raw Reality
Passage of the Day: Job 3: 1 - 26 … Linked for study
My Journal for Today: If you’re a parent these days; and you have small kids or grandkids, do you find yourself using the remote control to edit out or change the channels when the raw reality of some of raw commercial or violent program hits the screen and you don’t want your little loved ones to see scenes which are just too raw for them at their age? Well, as Swindoll points out after we’ve had the character of Job built up in Chapter 1 and 2 by Job taking all he did from Satan’s two knockdown punches, here we come to the raw reality of a man who is so deeply depressed he’d rather not have been born.
Chapter Three of Job’s account is a lamentation of desperation. It’s a song of depression. It’s a cry of “WHY am I here?” And here we were, thinking Job was above all that. Didn’t God set him up to be the Lord’s example to Satan of character strength? And here our hero is setting out a song of self hatred and a lament, questioning why he was born in the first place. … Well, my friends this, to me, is the beauty of God’s truth in His word. Because God doesn’t tell in His Bible an edited, goodie-two-shoes, version of Job’s life. No, in God’s word we see the raw reality of a man, who needs to express to God that he’s reached the end of his life’s intended rope. And in this plea for understanding, we can all identify with being in that place called by David in Psalm 23, “the valley of the shadow of death.”
Well, the raw reality for Job in Chapter 3 is that he’s down about as far as his mind/heart can go; and he needs to let these feelings out. And he does just that. As Swindoll calls it, we are at the place of “raw reality.” Have you ever been there? Maybe you’re there right now. You know, and Chuck Swindoll rightly points out that we humans, as fallen creatures, have a wildly distorted view of life. It’s like we feel entitled to the “good life.” Some how, we, as Christians, come to the understanding that, as Swindoll writes, “God loves (us) and He has a wonderful plan for our lies.” Well, that’s true; but our idea of “wonderful plan” and God’s idea can be – and often are - vastly different.
We think that God’s “wonderful plan” should include good health, financial security, happy marriage, and well-behaved children. And when things go south into the valley of the shadow of death, some how we get the idea that God has abandoned us for this reality of desperation; and this just couldn’t be God’s plan; … could it?! Well, that’s where we find our hero, Job, right now in Chapter 3 of his life story. And it’s not a pretty sight. But then again when situational depression coming over us, it’s never a pretty thing to experience, is it?
And Job is not the only Bible hero, whom we read about in Scripture, who comes to a place of desperate confusion and depression, questioning their very existence. Moses was in that valley, as was Jonah, and Elijah and King David in the OT. And then there was Peter after having denied Jesus as well as Paul’s lament in Romans 7 in the NT. No, the Bible doesn’t gloss over our human weaknesses as being part of His grand plan, … His schema for redemption. And right now we’re reading of Job’s raw reaction to his raw reality.
So, as we read Job, who truly is one of the biblical models for Christlike character in the midst of horrible trials, Chapter three give us the reality that we can bring our laments and our cries to our God. And we can keep crying out, as we’ll see Job doing for many chapters in this book. And as it will be for Job, it may seem like God is silent as we hear from the world or from others; but God’s word is clear and we can bank on it with our faith … that God will never leave us, nor forsake us. And I hope you know where to find that truth by this point. If not, try Deut. 31: 6, 8 or Joshua 1: 5 or Hebrews 13: 5, all of which are promises from God that He’s the one, not only leading us, as David said, through the valley of the shadow of death, but He’s leading us to the place of peace and rest and restoration on the other side.
But right now, Job is being given the opportunity to vent; and vent he does. And in this we can realize that God doesn’t expect us to remain silent with our feelings. No, God can take it if you’re mad at Him? Let Him know about it; but as we’ll see, we must keep on keeping on, doing all we can to see God’s way and His will, … seeking out His light to follow through the darkness.
He’s out there my friend. So, you when feel down, let Him hear your cry … but keep moving toward Him; and He will be found.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, right now I am in that peaceful place; and I’m feeling okay; but I know you’ll be there too when things may go awry. Thank you for your unshakable love and promise for tomorrow. Amen
My Journal for Today: If you’re a parent these days; and you have small kids or grandkids, do you find yourself using the remote control to edit out or change the channels when the raw reality of some of raw commercial or violent program hits the screen and you don’t want your little loved ones to see scenes which are just too raw for them at their age? Well, as Swindoll points out after we’ve had the character of Job built up in Chapter 1 and 2 by Job taking all he did from Satan’s two knockdown punches, here we come to the raw reality of a man who is so deeply depressed he’d rather not have been born.
Chapter Three of Job’s account is a lamentation of desperation. It’s a song of depression. It’s a cry of “WHY am I here?” And here we were, thinking Job was above all that. Didn’t God set him up to be the Lord’s example to Satan of character strength? And here our hero is setting out a song of self hatred and a lament, questioning why he was born in the first place. … Well, my friends this, to me, is the beauty of God’s truth in His word. Because God doesn’t tell in His Bible an edited, goodie-two-shoes, version of Job’s life. No, in God’s word we see the raw reality of a man, who needs to express to God that he’s reached the end of his life’s intended rope. And in this plea for understanding, we can all identify with being in that place called by David in Psalm 23, “the valley of the shadow of death.”
Well, the raw reality for Job in Chapter 3 is that he’s down about as far as his mind/heart can go; and he needs to let these feelings out. And he does just that. As Swindoll calls it, we are at the place of “raw reality.” Have you ever been there? Maybe you’re there right now. You know, and Chuck Swindoll rightly points out that we humans, as fallen creatures, have a wildly distorted view of life. It’s like we feel entitled to the “good life.” Some how, we, as Christians, come to the understanding that, as Swindoll writes, “God loves (us) and He has a wonderful plan for our lies.” Well, that’s true; but our idea of “wonderful plan” and God’s idea can be – and often are - vastly different.
We think that God’s “wonderful plan” should include good health, financial security, happy marriage, and well-behaved children. And when things go south into the valley of the shadow of death, some how we get the idea that God has abandoned us for this reality of desperation; and this just couldn’t be God’s plan; … could it?! Well, that’s where we find our hero, Job, right now in Chapter 3 of his life story. And it’s not a pretty sight. But then again when situational depression coming over us, it’s never a pretty thing to experience, is it?
And Job is not the only Bible hero, whom we read about in Scripture, who comes to a place of desperate confusion and depression, questioning their very existence. Moses was in that valley, as was Jonah, and Elijah and King David in the OT. And then there was Peter after having denied Jesus as well as Paul’s lament in Romans 7 in the NT. No, the Bible doesn’t gloss over our human weaknesses as being part of His grand plan, … His schema for redemption. And right now we’re reading of Job’s raw reaction to his raw reality.
So, as we read Job, who truly is one of the biblical models for Christlike character in the midst of horrible trials, Chapter three give us the reality that we can bring our laments and our cries to our God. And we can keep crying out, as we’ll see Job doing for many chapters in this book. And as it will be for Job, it may seem like God is silent as we hear from the world or from others; but God’s word is clear and we can bank on it with our faith … that God will never leave us, nor forsake us. And I hope you know where to find that truth by this point. If not, try Deut. 31: 6, 8 or Joshua 1: 5 or Hebrews 13: 5, all of which are promises from God that He’s the one, not only leading us, as David said, through the valley of the shadow of death, but He’s leading us to the place of peace and rest and restoration on the other side.
But right now, Job is being given the opportunity to vent; and vent he does. And in this we can realize that God doesn’t expect us to remain silent with our feelings. No, God can take it if you’re mad at Him? Let Him know about it; but as we’ll see, we must keep on keeping on, doing all we can to see God’s way and His will, … seeking out His light to follow through the darkness.
He’s out there my friend. So, you when feel down, let Him hear your cry … but keep moving toward Him; and He will be found.
My Prayer for Today: Lord, right now I am in that peaceful place; and I’m feeling okay; but I know you’ll be there too when things may go awry. Thank you for your unshakable love and promise for tomorrow. Amen
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