Don’t ever underestimate depression. She has some fancy moves.

Consider the Triple whammy.

Ah, that’s a scary one. I know. I have felt it’s pain. The first whammy comes out of nowhere – a hopelessness that presses down like a rain-soaked  mattress.

Life is over. Nothing matters. It’s hard to breathe when all the air’s been sucked out of your dreams.

Guilt.

That’s the second whammy. It can come from unexpected places like mini-lectures or unsolicited advice.

• You should have been stronger,
• had more faith
• or showed a little more effort in keeping it together the first time around

It doesn’t matter if you’ve been fighting wayward hormones, racing thoughts or lies from the past, you feel like you have done something terribly wrong.

The worst whammy of all?

The feeling that you are all alone. Sometimes it’s so powerful you  start to believe that  God himself has left town.

Hold on for this newsflash.

The opposite is true.

God knows His way around the darkness, the deepest of pits. He understands when we wrestle with depression and despair.

Don’t take my word for it.

Ask

• the prophet Jonah.
• David King of Judah.
• Prophet Elijah.
• the twelve disciples who followed Jesus.

They were human like you and me.

Some made flawed decisions based on bad experiences in the past. Others became so exhausted trying to do the right thing they couldn’t think straight. Gave up. Ran away. Prepared themselves to die alone.

But, God was there. All the time.

Maybe that’s why I love Psalm 139 so much. It’s not just another platitude. It’s the truth that King David held onto when everything else was going wrong. He wrote –

Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.

If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.

Ever come in contact with alien-abduction buffs? Some of their theories are pretty crazy. But, they got one thing right.

We are not alone.

Now, don’t start looking for

• creepy lights in the night sky
• or strange symbols in farmer’s fields.

What really matters is that we are not alone in our darkest moments.  

God is there.

Why?

Because He loves us. He created us, every tiny aspect of the intricate beings that  sustains our beating hearts.

Our souls bear His image. He knows our name.