God and depression: Can both exist in the same space?

Growing up as a Christian doesn’t automatically give you a free pass against any mental health issue, any more than growing up the child of a doctor prevents you from contracting any cold or virus. One does not guarantee the other.

Yet somehow there is a belief among many Christians that depression is a sin, or something that can be prayed away. Now, before I get an inbox full of heated mail, let’s be clear about something: There is not a single thing in the world that God cannot heal. He is all-powerful and sovereign over all things, and if He wanted to heal your depression, He could. I have personally witnessed this miraculous healing in many people.

However, just as frequently (if not more so), I have seen God choose to not heal depression, but instead give people strength through it, and ultimately use their story to reach others who are struggling. In fact, this example is more evident in biblical heroes than the former. We’ll get into those examples in a minute.

For Christians struggling to make sense of God and depression and where they can find hope through it all, here are three important things to remember:

1. Depression is not the same as losing hope.

We are pulling no punches with this first one. One of the most detrimental things I have heard in my years as a pastor is that you can just pray away depression.

Again, let me be clear. Yes, absolutely pray for God to take your depression away. Pray for healing. I firmly believe that God has the power to do these things.

But, what I have heard over the years sounds more like “Oh, you have just lost your hope. You just need to pray more and everything will be fine.” Or the really detrimental saying, “Happiness is a choice.”

Again, both of these are true for people who are just having a bad day. But telling these things to someone who is battling actual depression is like telling a car crash victim that they can will themselves to stop bleeding out. It just doesn’t work that way. And it creates an added sense of shame, blame and failure onto a person who is already struggling over something that they have absolutely no control over.

So, again — yes, pray every day. In Hebrews 4:16, Paul tells us to boldly approach the throne of grace with our requests. And you should. Every single day. But God may still choose not to heal you, and that’s not your fault. Assuming that you can pray something away is the assumption that you can control what God does, and that is a dangerous assumption. God may heal you, or He may give you the grace and strength for you to get stronger through this trial and ultimately use it for God’s glory.

You cannot control that. Pray every day about your depression, but don’t take on the impossible burden of trying to control God’s response.

2. Depression is scientific.

There is a school of thought among some religious people that Christians shouldn’t go to therapy. This is an extremely dangerous thought, one that has led to the unnecessary pain and suffering of so many people.

Let’s go back to the car wreck analogy. Say you were in a horrific accident, and you had a broken leg. You prayed and prayed for God to miraculously heal your broken leg (which again, He can do), but God chose not to heal you immediately. Would you just lie on the side of the road until you gathered the strength to go home, and then would you learn to live a crippled life with your broken leg?

No, absolutely not. You’d go to the doctor immediately and have them fix your leg. And then you’d probably praise God for the outcome of a healed leg.

So why oh why would we not do the same when there is something wrong mentally? We treat the mental differently than the physical, but we shouldn’t.

God is a God of intellect. Look at everything He has created. He gave us incredible intelligence to study the things He has created, so we can learn more about the gifts He has given us, and ultimately learn more about Him. When we choose to not see a doctor for an ailment, or not lean on science to help heal us, then we are choosing not to use the gift of intellect that God has given us.

Throughout the Gospels, Jesus quotes the law in Deuteronomy that you should “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” Loving God with your mind means seeking to understand His creation through intellect.

If you’ve been waiting for healing but haven’t made the move to seek professional help, I encourage you to do that today. There are many Christian counselors who are licensed mental health professionals (LMHPs).

There’s an anecdote that goes like this:

A ship captain was thrown overboard and was drowning. He cried out to God, “Lord, save me!”

A couple minutes later, a boat came by. A man on the boat threw a raft out to the captain, but the captain said, “No, I’m OK. God will save me!”

A few minutes later, another ship came by. Again, the captain turned down the offer and said, “No, I trust that my Lord will save me.”

Not too long after, the captain drowned. When he got up to heaven, he said to God, “Lord, I asked You to save me. I begged and pleaded. Where were You?”

And God said, “I sent you two boats.”

The point of the story is this: Sometimes God reaches down and miraculously saves us Himself. And sometimes He saves us through other people whom He sends. Healing and mental health are available, but you have to be willing to accept the help that God has sent through licensed mental health counselors.

3. God does not abandon us in our darkness.

Remember earlier when we talked about many of the biblical heroes not being healed from depression, but rather being given the strength to get through it? Let’s dive into that.

One of the biggest lies that depression tells you is that you are alone. You are isolated from your people and from God.

That could not be further from the truth. You are not alone.

The problem is that you feel alone. When this feeling hits, you have to focus on impartial truth that does not change, even when your feelings are just not there. Turn to a trusted friend who can speak truth over you, even when you aren’t feeling it.

And remember, God does not abandon you in these seasons of serious depression. He walks with you and carries you through until you gain the strength to move past it. Need proof?

• Elijah — Elijah was one of the greatest prophets in the Old Testament, and yet he battled depression and, at times, suicidal thoughts. Specifically, after his intense victory against the prophets of Baal at Mount Carmel, Elijah escaped Queen Jezebel’s vengeance by running away to the mountains. He fell into a season of deep depression and prayed for death. But God did not abandon him. Nor did He miraculously heal him. Instead, God sent angels to minister to Elijah until his strength returned, and then He showed His presence to Elijah (see 1 Kings 18-19). God did not leave Elijah alone. He walked with him through his season of deep depression, just like God walks with you, even when you don’t feel His presence.

• David — Anyone who has read Psalms knows that David suffered depression. He was Israel’s beloved king and a man after God’s own heart, and yet there were seasons of deep despair where David described feeling like he was drowning in a sea of sorrow. If you’ve ever experienced depression, you understand how accurate that description is: waves of sorrow and grief pummeling you with no abatement. But even in his darkest moments, David wrote of God’s faithfulness. In Psalm 139:7-12 (NIV), David writes:

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.

God does not abandon us in our darkness. He sits with us in our sorrow, and He pulls us out of our darkness. No sorrow or depth or realm of depression is too dark or too far for God to reach in and pull us back out.

If you are suffering from depression, know that you are not alone. And that there is help available to you. God has not abandoned you; He has made a way for you to find healing and wholeness. Take a look at our resources to learn more about options for mental health counseling.

You can also listen to these talks from our leadership team about their personal battles with depression, anxiety and other mental illnesses. We are here for you.