JOURNEY THROUGH SPIRITUAL DEPRESSION
Lessons from Elijah

by  Skip Heitzig

Depression can sneak up on people as insidiously as November fog,
chilling the heart and even sapping the will to get out of bed in
the morning. Christians are not immune to depression. However,
many Christians feel guilty and ashamed to talk about this issue,
thinking that spiritual people should never feel depressed. But
spiritual depression is a recurrent theme throughout Scripture.
One example is the prophet Elijah who, despite his great faith,
fell into depression, going from the mountain top to the valley.

THE MOUNTAIN TOP:
Elijah had experienced one astonishing miracle after another. God
had sent ravens to feed him. Elijah, a widow, and her son were
miraculously provided for during drought and famine. Elijah even
raised the widow's son from the dead! Then Elijah called down
fire from heaven while confronting a group of antagonistic idol-
worshippers. As a result, there was a sweeping revival in the
nation.

THE VALLEY:
The last thing we would expect is for Elijah to fall into
depression, but he did. He spiraled downward; even suicidal
thoughts were part of his dark episode. "He prayed that he might
die, and said, 'It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life, for I am
no better than my fathers!'" (1 Kings 19:4). Elijah's situation
reveals several problems that can bring us down.

THE PROBLEMS:
1. He presumed the outcome: Elijah presumed that everyone would
repent. Things didn't turn out the way he planned. Can't you
relate? Haven't you looked forward to something, believing you
had everything mapped out when suddenly things changed? If so,
you know how disheartening it can be. The lesson for us is to
guard against unrealistic expectations by remembering that God is
sovereign; we must never presume upon his perfect will.

2. He focused on the problem: In the wilderness, at the widow's
house, and on Mount Carmel Elijah focused on the power and
greatness of his Lord. But Jezebel's murderous threats consumed
him and overwhelmed his faith. In his panic, he focused on the
enemy's power to destroy him rather than on the power of God to
deliver him.

3. He focused on himself: Elijah was in the depths of self-pity
when he said, "...I am no better than my fathers!" (1 Kings
19:4). Elijah's focus had shifted from the Lord to his
circumstances, and then from his circumstances to himself.

4. He was physically exhausted: Another reason we succumb to
depression may be overlooked -- exhaustion. By the time Elijah
got to Sinai he was weak from fatigue.

Our loving heavenly Father provides the prescriptions to
alleviate spiritual depression.

THE PRESCRIPTIONS:
1. Get some rest: "As he lay and slept under a broom tree,
suddenly an angel touched him, and said to him, 'Arise and eat.'
... So he ate and drank, and lay down again" (1 Kings 19:5-6).
God's plan was simple: rest and refreshment.

2. Get a new focus: Elijah believed that he was the only one in
Israel who was faithful and spiritual. Elijah was in touch with
his feelings, but he wasn't in touch with reality. Things weren't
as bad as he thought, so God came to give Elijah a strong dose of
reality.

3. Have new expectations: Once God had Elijah's attention, he set
out to readjust his expectations. He told Elijah to go outside
"and behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore
into the mountains and broke the rocks in pieces before the Lord,
but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an
earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the
earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after
the fire a still small voice" (1 Kings 19:11-12). Elijah had
unrealistic expectations -- God wasn't in the wind or the
earthquake. Instead, the Lord readjusted Elijah's expectations,
coming to him as "a still small voice." Elijah learned that God's
work is sometimes an inner work of the heart.

4. Take obedient action: When Elijah was up against the wall, the
Lord told him to get up and get moving: "Go, return on your way
to the Wilderness ... and when you arrive, anoint Hazael as king
over Syria" (1 Kings 19:15). God wanted him to make a choice of
godly action based on obedience rather than inaction based on his
emotions.

Many people believe that life's pressures lead to depression.
However, it's how we handle those pressures that leads us either
to depression or to victory. I pray that, if depression creeps
in, you will follow God's prescription of rest, refocus, right
expectations, and obedient actions.

-- Skip Heitzig is the senior pastor of Calvary of Albuquerque.
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