Bible
As we read the 77th Psalm, it becomes clear
that the psalmist is battling with depression.
He says in verse one, “I cried”;
in verse two he says he is troubled; in verse three he complains; in verse four
he cannot sleep; and in verse seven he feels forsaken. Now we know that the psalmist is depressed,
but why? What caused his depression?
In his
book, Learned Optimism,
Professor Martin Seligman says that “depression does not rise from misplaced
chemicals or lingering childhood trauma, but from negative thinking.” Summarizing the words of Joseph Wolpe and Tim
Beck, Seligman explained how cognitive therapy began to be considered as
treatment for depression.
“Depression
is nothing more than its symptoms,” writes Seligman. “It is caused by conscious negative
thoughts. There is no deep underlying
disorder to be rooted out: not unresolved childhood conflicts, not our
unconscious anger, and not even our brain chemistry. Emotions come directly from what we think: if
you think you are in danger, you feel anxiety; if you think you are being
trespassed against, you feel anger; if you think loss, you feel sadness. The key to defeating depression is your
thought life.”
Now, this
fits right in with God’s Word. Proverbs
23:7a says, “For as he thinketh in his
heart, so is he.”
If you
will notice, in Psalm 77 the psalmist has victory over his depression by
changing his thought life. Verse 10
says, “I will remember”; verse 11, “I will remember”; verse 12, “I will meditate.”
What to do:
✞ Study verses that teach about the mind and how to think - Isaiah 26:3, Philippians 4:8, Proverbs 23:7, and others.
