As long as you can bless the life of another, your life is not being spent in vain. The best way to lift yourself up out of depression is to do good for others.
Navigating Depression: Hope for Heavy Hearts booklet - free offer link below:
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and today, I’m sharing hope.
And don’t we have a thousand reasons to be filled with hope? That is, the rock-solid assurance that in the end, God going to work it all out. That good will prevail in the end. Only people who love the Lord Jesus can be filled with that kind of hope. For example, the last time we met, I shared how [not long ago] I injured my arm, and I lost the ability to feed myself. And at first, it was so depressing. I mean, feeding myself with my bent spoon has been one of the things I could do; I’ve loved having meals with Ken without having to ask him to feed me. But now, that’s changed. And at first, like I said, I felt depressed; but then, I remembered how I’ve battled depression in the past by finding a way to serve others. And so I asked God to help me serve him in the loss of this important ability. And I came up with the idea to bless people’s hands when they feed me. I take just 10 seconds before we eat, and I bless the hands of the person who’s about to lift the peas and carrots to my mouth. I did it last night when a friend lent me her hands at dinner so that Ken could enjoy his meal. I said, “Lord, this friend is giving her time to help me with my meal. So, please, shower your favor on her; fulfill the desires of her heart; answer her prayers; pour out your joy on her for helping me. Let her sense your delight in assisting me; and receive this blessing that I give her in the name of Jesus, Amen.”
Now friend, that’s a wonderful way to serve God – find a way to bless others. Find a way to serve them. And for me, when I bless the hands of the person that feeds me, rather than complain about what I can no longer do for myself – to me, it’s a giant step, moving forward up and out of depression. When you serve others in the midst of your own discouragement, it glorifies God so much! And because I bless my helper’s hands out of my own need and my own difficulty, I know, I just know that God’s favor, mercy, and joy is going to rest on the one assisting me. So, even though I’ve lost something very precious to me, I am filled with so much joy. And it happens when you take the focus off yourself and put it on others. It’s a sure way to dissipate depression!
And I believe that when you are most unhappy, there is something you can do. As long as you bless the life of another, your life is not being spent in vain. The best way to do yourself good, when you’re feeling discouraged [like, you know, when you’re trying to get up and out of a dark mood]; the best thing you can do is to do good to other people. John Wesley once said, "Lose absolutely no occasion in serving God. And since he is invisible to our eyes, be encouraged, knowing that he receives your service as if done to himself in person, standing visibly before you." Oh, friend, if you are struggling with discouragement, then find a way to bless others with an eye to God’s glory. For he cannot but lift your discouragement when you serve him by taking care of the needs of others.
I have got other ideas that will help lift you up out of depression, and so, if your heart is weighted down, let me send you my new booklet, “Navigating Depression.” Go directly to joniradio.org and ask for your free booklet on depression. Because when you are feeling blue, there is a way you can serve the Lord and be a blessing [a big blessing] to others. Find out how at joniradio.org. Oh, and one more thing, I want to send you a copy of our Joni & Friends newsletter, so just go to joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends