“Jesus, I can’t do it.” “You’re right..."

I had another “Come to Jesus” moment this last Saturday. 

Overcoming “overcoming depression”

The last two Sundays I’ve shared my testimony on overcoming depression as part of a congregation’s sermon series on mental health. One church’s tagline was “Because not talking is not working.” The other’s was “It’s okay to not be okay.” Praise God for both courageous congregations! I pray for many more!

I’m so deeply grateful for the way Jesus works - turning our messes into our messages! What a privilege to share a message of hope with countless people who continue to struggle with depression or other mental health issues.

I’ve learned, though, that it’s as predictable as clockwork that when I have such an opportunity, satan the liar is going to drop by with a “Remember what depression feels like, Dave? Are you sure you’re qualified to speak on healing?” Saturday morning was one of those times.

Getting real

Every pastor has had the regular reminder of the importance of practicing what we preach. So I did what I teach: I went to Jesus. I was honest, saying, “These last couple weeks have been so heavy and taxing; I don’t know if I have what it takes to keep going through tomorrow.” I’m still learning post-depression what my capacity is for high-intensity events back to back. I just might have put a few too many in these two weeks! (I recorded a video on that topic in the Both/And Life series a few weeks ago too. More preaching-practice!)

Jesus’ surprising answer

I didn’t get the pep talk from the Lord I anticipated. I was honest with my wife also, who wisely knew to simply pray for me, which she did. We were sitting together in the early morning on the back patio of our new home, both of us coming to Jesus. To my “I’m not sure I’ve got what it takes for today, Jesus,” He simply replied, “You’re right. You don’t.”

Then He continued: “I’m helping you put to death self-reliance. Again. Remember 2.5 years ago when you unwisely made peace with depression, assuming it was your ‘thorn in the flesh’?  Well, the rest of that passage says, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, because My power is made perfect in weakness.’ You’re absolutely right. You can’t manage today. You never can, but it isn’t always as obvious as it is today. You can’t… but I can. Rather than thanking Me later, how about thanking Me now for that?”

My wife’s reaction

Resist the devil, and he flees. That’s biblical, too. Praising God for His all-sufficiency in the face of all my many limitations chased all those depressive feelings right away. Precious Val was quite amazed at how quickly the change happened. Score another one for Jesus.

Two footnotes: 

1) If you’re struggling with depression, this little article probably isn’t going to be helpful in isolation. Check out the video HERE from the Both/And Life, which talks about how all three components that contribute to depression need healing.

2) I’ve reflected quite a bit since Saturday morning, and my quotations above for what I heard from Jesus are far more developed now than in the moment.