Freedom From Depression and Anxiety: Traveling the Road WITH You - Days 1-5

Day One: The Source of Our Depths vs. The Depth of Our SOURCE

There are multiple reasons we become anxious and/or depressed. Some of it may stem from experiences in childhood; it can come from environment; some of us have a personality bent toward a certain way of looking at the world that veers to the worrisome or negative. Depression can be a response to feelings of guilt and shame. There are many, many reasons we feel the way that we do. The question is…what are we going to do when that happens? Or if it’s happening all the TIME?

One of the first things that is important to realize is that others DO understand the way you feel. It’s true that NO ONE has had the exact same experiences as you, but it’s also true that if you’ve battled depression or anxiety, you understand what it feels like. One of our enemy’s favorite tactics is to isolate each individual by getting them to believe they are THE ONLY ONE who has ever felt this way and that NO ONE understands. Well, no one may understand EXACTLY, but that’s because they CAN’T—no one has walked in anyone else’s shoes. But…they CAN understand experientially the feelings of hopelessness, despair, and anguish that come along with it. We just reason that it’s not possible—because then we can wallow in our pain (don’t mean to sound harsh—just being real, because I’ve done my share of wallowing)—and the enemy can keep us isolated from connection and healthy relationships.

And of course, God DOES understand. But many times, we think even HE doesn’t get it. This is another lie to keep us from getting free—because it keeps us from connecting with GOD!

Secondly, those of us who feel depressed—or spend a lot of time in worry—reason, after a while, that we BELONG where we’re at. Think about this for a moment—how many of us, if we noticed ourselves walking on the edge of a pit, would willingly CHOOSE to step off the edge and fall into it? But that’s what we often do, as we’ve allowed the enemy to warp our thinking over time. Since we haven’t been ABLE to get free, we must DESERVE to be in this pit. That too is a hell-born lie. We DON’T belong in a pit! And we CAN experience freedom. We have to stop listening to the enemy’s “solutions;” they just keep us bound and feeling pathetic.

This brings me to my final point for the day. A perpetuator of chronic, ongoing and persistent, anxiety and depression is the belief that we need to do life on our own strength. I know it’s cliché in the Christian world to hear things like “You can’t do it on your own strength” or “God is our strength.” But it’s really true. When we try, we fail—and then we become MORE anxious and MORE depressed—because we weren’t able to be strong ENOUGH. And thus the willful rolling back into that pit we keep finding ourselves in. We will NEVER be stronger than the Lord, and He NEVER intended us to be. If He is to be the strength in our lives, we have to give Him our whole hearts—WHOLEHEARTEDLY. Psalm 73:26 says, “My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.” Our PORTION is not to be in a pit. GOD is actually our portion—to have HIM at the core of everything we do in life, as our deepest, most intricately woven source of strength.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll talk about how to get there. But if there’s one thing I’d like you to take away from today’s post, it’s this—your Father God is after your heart—and He knows it completely. Take comfort in that today, no matter what you are going through. If you can believe that, you can move forward, even if it’s by a mere fraction of a millimeter. Even if it’s just turning your face upward for a moment to consider the possibility—it’s all significant to Him. He sees your heart, and He loves you.

Day Two: Sheltered and Covered

Whether it’s anxiety, depression, or both that you’re dealing with in your life—as I believe they tend to go hand in hand—God wants to rescue you. You may read that and think ‘I wish that were possible’ or ‘Not even HE can rescue me.’ Please be willing to let Him try. J

Today, I’m going to ask you to read the first half of Psalm 91. There’s a lot in there, so we’ll take it piece by piece. Get out a journal or some paper. I want you to process through some questions with me. There are no right or wrong answers. It’s okay to think big—God is pretty okay with BIG.

Psalm 91

¹ Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.^[a]
2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”

Question 1: What do you think it means to rest in God’s shelter?

Question 2: How is that different from simply doing the same things you’ve always done? (Have you actually BEEN resting all this time? What would it look like to do so?)

³ Surely he will save you
    from the fowler’s snare
    and from the deadly pestilence.

Question 3: What has been one of the main fowler’s “snares” in your life? What is something he uses against you that you seem to always fall for that is a sure way to get you depressed or overly anxious (i.e., a “deadly pestilence”) (this could be a thought pattern—and likely IS)?

⁴ He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

Picture this—God COVERING you—and how SAFE that would feel. This is a declaration. I challenge you to make it personal, even if you don’t FEEL it right now—or you think it could be YEARS down the road—or you don’t see (in your own logic) a way for it to EVER happen: Read it out loud, and change “you” to “me” or “I and “your” to “my” as you read it.

Question 4: Look up the word “shield” and the word “rampart.” What meanings do they have that could be applied to God?

God’s loving desire IS for you to be under His covering—to be comforted in all your ways—to be able to truly REST in Him. I’d like to share a poem that I wrote several years ago. As you read it, picture God like a loving mother, tucking you in, making sure all is safe around you—His presence strong in the room so that there is absolutely no fear that is able to get in, no thought that can keep your mind awake. You are completely peaceful. Begin to picture yourself experiencing this kind of comfort.

What Could be More Comforting?

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

In His cloak of loving protection

may you soak in His affection

His peace will blanket you as you sleep

His child, in His arms He'll keep

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

For in his hands, He holds your heart,

His tears falling on the broken parts

He shares in all the pain you feel

Through darkest night, He'll be there still

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

Jesus died for such a time as this,

that all your sorrows may be His

So tenderly, He meets you there

In loving knowledge, to cover each care

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

A bright day shines ahead for you,

a time your precious Lord foreknew,

a place where sadness turns to joy

Trust in God Who Sees, El Roi

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

For God will shadow you, His own

His wings do not grow tired or worn

In love, He holds you to His breast

His love surrounds you - in Him rest

What could be more comforting

than to be under His covering?

Day Three: Using Our Identity Weapon

Today we will read verses 5-6 of Psalm 91. Write your question answers in your journal or on paper.

⁵ You will not fear the terror of night,
    nor the arrow that flies by day,

Question 1: What seems to “creep up” on you in your life or terrifies you the most? (For example: For me, life responsibilities—even simple ones—seem to creep up on me all the time, threatening to overwhelm me at any moment and cause me to want to retreat; sometimes I get terrified—kind of comes as a “panic moment” where my heart leaps in my chest—of not being able to do the things I need to do. I know I CAN’T afford to freeze up and shut down, but it feels like I’m going to sometimes, and that’s a scary feeling.)

Question 2: In your life, what “arrows” does the enemy use to try and wear down your resistance? (For me, it’s often little irritations that serve to get me agitated; that agitation is followed by feeling that things are “out of balance,” and then the enemy will try and reinforce THAT with the message that I’m a failure…basically, at LIFE.)

⁶ nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness,
    nor the plague that destroys at midday.

Question 3: Is there a “pestilence” that seeks to destroy you when all is quiet—for many, it IS at night—where your mind just gets going and a barrage of worrisome or fearful thoughts assault you? What do you DO when that happens?

That last question is a really important one. We KNOW there are messages coming at us, and we KNOW they don’t come from God—so what SHOULD we do with them? Honestly, we need to INTENTIONALLY and ACTIVELY throw them back to the pit of hell. But do we, most often? The reason we don’t is that we agree with at least some of what we’re hearing—we’ve heard these lies so long, they seem true!

And our defenses have been so weakened that we don’t have the urge, energy, or spirit needed to fight. But what we must realize is that it IS a battle, and our LIVES are on the line. And…we’ve been given the tools to fight! Once we can truly SEE what the enemy is doing—what he is robbing us of—something rises up in us. Our identity in Christ surfaces, and we see the injustice of all Satan has tried to use against us. We become vigilant, and we begin to FIGHT.

I did not get this for the LONGEST time—and some days, I don’t walk in it. But the truth is, it was for FREEDOM that Christ set me free. He KNOWS what the enemy will try to do with that! And so the weapons He’s given me are MIGHTY. The same is true of you. But the devil wants you to forget that you HAVE these weapons—or to get you to see them as simply relics, dusty antiques on a shelf, reminiscent of a time long past but not useful for your present circumstances.

Your most effective weapon is KNOWING WHO YOU ARE.

God says THIS is who you are. 

• a child of God.

But to all who have received him--those who believe in his name--he has given the right to become God's children … (John 1:12).

• a friend of Jesus.

I no longer call you slaves, because the slave does not understand what his master is doing. But I have called you friends, because I have revealed to you everything I heard from my Father (John 15:15).

• not under condemnation.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).

• a fellow heir with Christ.

And if children, then heirs (namely, heirs of God and also fellow heirs with Christ)--if indeed we suffer with him so we may also be glorified with him (Romans 8:17).

• a temple of the Holy Spirit.

Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit lives in you (1 Corinthians 6:19)?

• the righteousness of God in Christ.

God made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we would become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).

• set free in Christ.

For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery (Galatians 5:1).

• chosen, holy, and blameless before God.

For he chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished in his sight in love (Ephesians 1:4).

• God’s workmanship, created to produce good works.

For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them (Ephesians 2:10).

• one who possesses boldness and confident access to God through faith in Christ.

… In whom we have boldness and confident access to God because of Christ's faithfulness (Ephesians 3:12).

• a partaker of the peace of God.

And the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:7).

• Christ is my life, and I will be revealed with Him in glory.

When Christ (who is your life) appears, then you too will be revealed in glory with him (Colossians 3:4).

• chosen of God, and dearly loved.

Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience … (Colossians 3:12).

It may feel odd at first, but when thoughts come that don’t line up with these scriptures, I encourage you to—OUT LOUD—begin declaring the truth of GOD’S words over yourself. For example, if you are feeling like a failure, you may start declaring, “I am God’s workmanship, and I was created to do good works.” Then ask Him to give you the strength—and the FREEDOM to carry out those things He’s got planned for you to do.

Remember that this is a PROCESS. Our minds have been “on the throne” for so long in some areas, we’ve forgotten how to give way to the Spirit—or maybe we’ve never learned how. I believe He wants to teach us—and I know because it’s become more and more true in my own life.

Day 4: Making the Lord our Shelter: Weed Control

Read Psalm 91: verses 7-8.

⁷ A thousand may fall at your side,
    ten thousand at your right hand,
    but it will not come near you.
⁸ You will only observe with your eyes
    and see the punishment of the wicked.

When the Lord is truly our shelter, it doesn’t matter what the enemy tries to bring against us—it’ll be like we’re watching it on a big screen—we know that we are safe, under God’s covering. But what about when the battlefield is your own mind?

Well, if you keep the same strategy you’ve always used, nothing will change. You will go on feeling defeated—anxious, pathetic, full of sorrow, in pain, confused, overwhelmed—or whatever adjectives you may choose that speak to your experience. Maybe even despising your life. Making the Lord our SHELTER begins with believing that He HAS the answers—and that He WANTS to share them with us.

What I want to say here is something simple yet VITAL. You know how grass can feel under your feet when it’s freshly mowed? It makes for a nice outdoor “picnic” or playtime. You can set out the lawn chairs and enjoy the sunshine—or a fire pit at night. But…if you leave those lawn chairs sitting and never mow the grass again, over time, the grass—and weeds— will grow up AROUND the chairs so that eventually you won’t be able to see them. The chairs represent YOU—where you’ve been “sitting.” The lesson is this: if you stay in one place long enough, whatever is around you begins to encroach—and can eventually take over.

Let me explain. If we KEEP doing the same things we’ve always done—going through the same cycles of thoughts and behaviors without taking care of our environment (and by this I mean the “spiritual environment” around us), we will be like the lawn chairs I was describing—lost in an ever-growing “jungle” of grass and weeds. Grass can be wonderful when cared for, but even those things that are wonderful are lost in the throes of depression and anxiety. And that’s when the weeds begin to come. I would call the “weeds” the things the enemy uses to KEEP us in that place of struggle—maybe it feels like you’re always overwhelmed and anxiously spinning your wheels, unable to “keep up” the way others do. Or maybe you deal with persistent hopelessness and despair. Whatever “level” your grass is at—there are weeds Satan will send to reinforce that mental imprisonment. And, like the lawn chairs, you’ll eventually be lost in the tangle of it all.

I don’t want to leave you with THAT thought. There IS hope. God wants to rescue you and show you a new way to live. Let that be your prayer today. And today, when those thoughts come—determine to do something DIFFERENT. Perhaps “different” for you would be writing down your thoughts, or going outside for a brief walk, or choosing something healthy over the cookies you were about to grab. But one thing that needs to change is our belief that it CAN change—and that God wants to help us get our “grass” under control so that life is an enjoyable thing—the blessing He intended it to be. It may sound impossible right now. But I assure you, it’s not. God has our shelter available. THAT is the only place we will find true refuge, the one place we can stay where weeds will not shoot up around us and we don’t need to be fearful of what lies ahead.

Day Five: Letting Go and Getting to Know

We’re getting close to the end of Psalm 91. It’s such an amazing piece of victorious scripture—if we can only get ahold of its truths and begin to believe them for ourselves. Let’s read verses 9-13.

⁹ If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,”
    and you make the Most High your dwelling,
¹⁰ no harm will overtake you,
    no disaster will come near your tent.
¹¹ For he will command his angels concerning you
    to guard you in all your ways;
¹² they will lift you up in their hands,
    so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.
¹³ You will tread on the lion and the cobra;
    you will trample the great lion and the serpent.

‘These are great promises,’ you may say, ‘but HOW do I make the Most High my dwelling?’ It didn’t happen overnight for me. In fact, I’m still LEARNING to make Him my dwelling. He is a place of peace that assures me He is on my side, on top of everything I could POSSIBLY be worried or depressed about, and that He loves me—He’s faithful—and I can trust Him. Many of us know those things are true…but we haven’t believed them in our hearts—in the CORE of who we are.

For me, it’s been through years of situations in which I had literally NO CHOICE but to put my trust in Him that I’ve begun to internalize the truth of who He is. It was kind of like one day I looked at the circumstances in my life and said “why am I struggling? God is faithful. He’s NEVER let me down, even when I’ve FELT like He has.”

And God also gave me a revelation of something I needed to do from my heart. Often, we can understand those things better if we get a visual. He showed me a vision in my mind of someone I love falling into a dark abyss. I was holding on tight, wanting to save that person. And the Lord spoke gently to me and said I needed to let go. In the vision, I did—but I didn’t feel like that person was “lost” forever—I felt UNCOMFORTABLE in some ways—yes. But ultimately He began to show me more and more that I was not the one in control. I couldn’t fix anything in regard to the situation that had been plaguing me. I needed to give that all to Him.

This vision has applied to many OTHER things in my life as well. I’ve hung on so tightly that it has taken all my mental energy—and sucked away the physical energy as well. Each time I’ve tried to grab back the control—to begin worrying and rehearsing things again in my brain—God has reminded me that He’s “got this.” If you ask Him to show you HIS plans regarding the things you are anxious over—and you quiet yourself enough to listen—I believe you will hear Him; and He’ll show you more over time. You may not have all the answers at once. But even just telling Him that you know you need Him and that you want to draw closer—that’s a start! He is not condemning you, and so DON’T condemn yourself. That has taken me many years to learn. He just wants relationship with me—and IN that relationship is fullness of life! I don’t have to “measure up” to some self-perceived standard; I just need to get to know Him. As YOU do this, you truly will begin to TRAMPLE on the enemy and thwart his plans.