Depression – Fog after the Fire. Pit after the Peak. Gloom after Boom, Clamp after Climax

 

Elijah was Afraid – Ran for his Life

  • Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”
  • 3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life.1 Kings 19:1-3a

 

Prelude to Depression

  • Intimidation
  • Fear, anxiety, stress
  • Activity without rest – worn out
  • Digital overuse – dopamine depletion, chronic fatigue syndrome
  • Defeat & Disappointment
  • Dejection, rejection & depreciation
  • Disease
  • Shame & rejection


HOW TO GET DEPRESSED IN 5 EASY STEPS
 

  • When he came to Beersheba in Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the desert. He came to a broom tree, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the tree and fell asleep… 1 Kings 19:3b-5a

 

Five Steps to Depression

  • Wear yourself out.
  • Shut people
  • Focused on himself
  • Focus on the negative.
  • Forget God.

 

 

 

1 Multitasking – demand over supply

  • “Why am I so depressed?” You’re wearing yourself out.  Some of you, it’s not just a physical exertion, but it’s all up here.  It’s just a, “I’ve got to be there for them, and I’ve to make sure that, that they’re covered.  And I’ve got to be strong for everybody.  And I’ve got to be the provider.  I’ve got to help nurture them,” and it’s all this stuff going off in here.  You’re totally exhausted.  You’ve worn yourself out.

 

Step 2 – Isolate Yourself

Step number two is to shut people out, and that’s exactly what Elijah did.  He abandoned his closest friend, his servant.  He said, “You stay here, and I’m going on.”  And quite honestly, that’s what a lot of us do when we get overwhelmed, like, “I’m not going to let you in.  I’m not going to tell you what I’m going through.  If I did, you wouldn’t understand, anyway,” so we wall up and we start to push people away

 

Step 3 – Focus on Yourself

  • Only I am there – no. there were 7000 others who did not bow to Baal
  • I am no better than my ancestors – but God is

 

Step 4 –Self Pity, focus on negatives

  • Number 4, focus on the negative, which is exactly what our hero, the man of God in great faith did.  What did he say?  He said this.  He said, “I’ve had enough.  I’m, I’m no better than my ancestors.”   Nobody was asking if he was, but in his mind, this self-pity started to take over.  And what self pity does is, it exaggerates.
  • This pain must be cancer!!

Negative Prophecy

  • Self pity exaggerates. “I’m never going to be any good.  I’m always going to be stuck in this life.  My life’s never going to get any better.  I’m never going to get into that school after this grade.  I’m never going to get the promotion.  I’m, I, my, my kids are never going to come to Christ.  I, I’m never. My business will collapse.
  • You know, it’s, it’s just exaggeration, it’s focusing on the negative

 

Step 5 – Forgot God

  • All that we saw God do in the life of Elijah, supernatural protection and provision, birds feeding him, water from a brook during the draught, raising the dead, fire from Heaven. “Oh, God, You’re not going to come through for me,” I can look back at the faithfulness of God in my life.  He was there.  He provided.  He comforted.  He, He was a strength.  He was everything I needed, but in this moment, when I am depressed, when I’m down, I forget the faithfulness of God.
  • Therapy – God Says To Eat And Rest.
  • 5b All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again. 1 Kings 19:5b-6
  • 7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 1 Kings

  • GOD’S PRESCRIPTION FOR OUR DEPRESSION
    step 1 Eat & rest
    The very first part of the prescription for our depression, God says to eat and rest. “All at once the angel touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat.’ ”  Verse 6 says, “Elijah looked around, and there by his head was a cake of bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water.”

Keep God’s Sabbath

  • Some of you, the most spiritual thing you can do is not go to another meeting, not read another Bible verse, but the most spiritual thing you can do is rest. In fact, perhaps one of the most disobeyed commands of God in the world we live in is, people don’t rest.  Honor to God with the Sabbath, and yet, we just shake that off like it, like it’s nothing.

 

Step 2 – Go where God is

“Strengthened by the food,” and certainly by the rest, “Strengthened, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.”  Now, this is the same mountain, where God gave the Ten Commandments to Moses.  Basically, “Eat, rest, and go to church.”  Go to the place where God is.  God’s prescription for depression:  Eat and rest, and now, go to the place where you will experience God. “Strengthened, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God.” God’s prescription for, for depression:  Eat and rest, and now, go to the place where you will experience God.

 

 

Step 3 – God Replaces Our Lies With His Truth

  • 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” 10 He replied, “I have been very zealous for the Lord God Almighty. The Israelites have rejected your covenant, broken down your altars, and put your prophets to death with the sword. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me too.” 1 Kings 19:9-10

 

False Self Raise to Truth

  • Verse 10, He, “He replied, ‘I have been very zealous for the LORD God Almighty.”   “The Israelites have rejected your covenant,” true.  “broken down your altars,” true.  “and put your prophets to death with the sword.”  True.  “I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.”  False.  “I am the only one left.”  False.  “I’ve been doing all the work.”  False.  “I’m the only one who cares.”  False.  “I’m the only one that can get it done.”  False.  He owned more responsibility than was actually his.

 

Me Only Self Exaltation

  • He had done what God had asked him to do, and he thought he was supposed to do everything. “There’s no one who cares like me.  Everybody’s depending on me.  I’m all alone.  Nobody understands.”  Well, if you read on in this story, God’s actually going to say, “Well, Elijah, the really, truthfully, there’s seven thousand other Israelites.   7000 who have not bowed down to the false gods of Baal and Asherah.  There are seven thousands others still seeking Me and praying.  Don’t believe the lies.  You’re not the only one.”

 

Other Lies – even God can’t, when I can’t

  • “Oh, my marriage could never be healed.” With God, all things are possible. Replace the lie with the truth.  “My kids, oh, they’re never going to come back to Christ.”  Why?  With the faith as small as a mustard seed, God can remove mountains.  “Oh, I got this medical report, and I’ve got thirty days to live.”  Ohhhh, is that too hard for God?  And so many of us, we believe the lies.  “My life’s never going to be any better.  I’m never going to have an intimate relationship.  I’m going to be all alone for the rest of my life.  I’m stuck in this dead end job.  I’ve got no real ministry.  I can’t make a difference.  My husband’s never going to believe in Christ.  I’m always going to feel alone.”  God takes those lies and replaces it with truth.  “Take every thought captive,” scripture says, “and make it obedient to Christ.” 

4 Soft Voice of God – into our turmoil

  • Verse 11, “The LORD said to him, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.  And after the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a,” a what?  Would you say it aloud?  “After the fire came a, a gentle whisper.”  Sometimes, when we are lowest, God seems to speak the softest.  Have you ever noticed that?  When we are the lowest, God often speaks the softest. – just the voice

 

God Speaks Soft inside a Sermon

  • through my words, and between my words, and behind my words, and in my words, God can and will speak to you. If you listen closely enough, you may just hear that still, small voice.  “I’m here.  I’m with you.  I’ll never leave you.  You’re not alone.  I am enough.”
  • Step 5 Restoration – Get to Next Assignment
  • To overcome depression, God says, “Eat and rest. Replace the lies with truth.”  God speaks in a small voice, and then God gives us that divine assignment.  Look in verse 15 and 16.  The Lord says to Elijah, “Go back the way you came, and go over to the Desert of Damascus.  When you get there, anoint Hazael king over Aram, anoint Jehu son of Nimshi king over Israel, and anoint Elisha son of Shaphat from Abel Meholah to succeed you as prophet.”

 

Get on With What God Has For You

  • In other words, “Go back to doing what prophets do. Go back to doing what prophets do,” and I believe the Spirit of the Lord will speak unto many of you today and say, “There is something yet for you to do.”  You, you feel down.  You feel blue.  You feel hopeless.  You feel afraid.  You’re unsure.  You’ve lost your confidence.  You don’t see it, and God may say, “If you are still alive, you are not done!”  If you are still here, it is because God has something to do.  Go back to doing what prophets do

 

Get Back to Humble God Works

  • You may say, “Well, I am not a prophet.” Well, what are you?  You’re a mom, go back to doing what moms do.  Are you a business person?  Go back to doing what a business person do … Are, are you a person of prayer?  Go back to praying like people of God pray.  Do you have the gift of serving?  Go back and serve someone.  Do you have the gift of giving?  Go and give something.  Go back and do what God called you to do, and watch as He brings life back out of you!  Go back, oh man of God, and do
  • Christ Our Sufficiency
  • in this world you have trouble. Jesus, I quoted Him.  “In this world you will have trouble, but take heart,” He said, “for I have overcome the world.”  Even if your greatest “what if” does come to pass, He will be with you, and He will be enough.
  • There are some of you, you are so low, you’ve got nowhere else to look but up. Look up to Christ.  Others of you, you’re on the top of the world and you are still empty.  Look up to Christ.  There is no one else.