Should a Christian Feel Depressed?


Several years ago a man came into
my office and said, "Pastor, I think
there is something wrong with me.
I want to serve the Lord, but, I have
trouble with depression. Sometimes
I get up in the morning and just
feel blue. What’s wrong with me?" 
Depression is far more common
than we realize. One therapist told me that 80% of his clients complain of this debilitating emotion. All of us have suffered from it. So, what’s wrong with us? Should a Christian feel depressed?

       In order to understand the question we must first define the term. Depression can be divided into two categories: 1.) Clinical Depression; 2.) Common Depression. Clinical Depression is characterized by long, continual periods of sadness, inactivity, difficulty in thinking and loss or increase of appetite. Concentration becomes impossible; sleep patterns are effected; and, there is a sense of overall dejection and hopelessness which can lead to suicidal tendencies. Those who suffer from this type of depression need to see a physician to determine the causes of their condition. If you struggle with these symptoms daily and it has continued over several months, please seek professional help.

     Most of us, however, suffer from a considerably milder form of depression I call "Common Depression". There are days when we live under a dark cloud of gloom. We don’t feel happy and energetic. We are dissatisfied with life in general. We find it hard to get out of bed in the morning. Sometimes, it manifests itself in a general sense of sadness. We say, "Boy, I’m really down today." Should a Christian feel that way?

      Depression is part of the human condition. It is a result of the Fall in the Garden of Eden. Throughout the Scriptures we see instances of God’s children suffering severe sadness and grief. For example, David in Psalm 6:6 said, "I am weary with my groaning; all the night make I my bed
to swim; I water my couch with my tears." The prophet Jeremiah lamented, "Mine eyes do fail with tears, my bowels are troubled, my liver is poured upon the earth, for the destruction of the daughter of my people; because the children and the sucklings swoon in the streets of the city."   (Lam 2:11)   The shortest verse in the Bible records Jesus sadness over the people’s reaction to Lazarus’ death - "Jesus wept.”  Christian, you will struggle with depression at various times in your life. The question is not "should we"; but, how will we respond to that depression in a way that pleases God?

We must understand that depression is an emotion. As God’s people we are to control our emotions with clear thinking rooted in the Bible. For example, look at the emotion of anger.
What do we read in Scripture? Proverbs 12:16 says, "A fool is quick-tempered; a wise man stays cool when insulted." (The Living Bible)  We are to control our anger. In fact, Solomon says, "A man without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls."(Proverbs 25:28 taken from The Living Bible)  Depression is like anger in that it is an emotion that can sidetrack us from serving the Lord.

Sadly, many Christians live by their feelings (emotions). When our emotions control us we have moved our eyes away from God’s Word and fixed them on ourselves. Peter’s exhortation is appropriate here: "Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."(1 Peter 1:13) The word "sober" means "self-controlled, disciplined". We are to saturate our minds with the Scriptures – God’s eternal truths - allowing them to control us. In other words, we are to faithfully obey God in the midst of our sadness. To feel the emotion is not sin; to allow it to control us is.