Welcome to PowerPoint with Jack Graham. Depression has been called the common cold. Of Emotional illness. It affects 20 million adults right now in America, not to speak of the teenagers and, yes, even children. and be depressed.
And Even spiritual leaders. And Christians, no one is exempt. from this. Depression is breakdown. It is Burnout.
It is a tiredness. that you can't even hardly Describe. We all need God's help every day and in episodes of life in which we are taken to the map. One of those crisis moments or a challenge in your life. That can take you out.
That there is hope. and there is healing. And your life can recover. You can live again. You may be feeling like a walking dead man, a dead woman right now.
That's one of the descriptions of depression. You just It's not living, it's sort of like dying, a slow death. There is hope. And there is healing. On today's PowerPoint, Dr.
Graham brings a message about how you are not alone even when you feel your lowest.
Now, here's Dr. Graham with his message, Help. I'm depressed. In two thousand and a half years ago, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. I'd never been sick in my life to speak of.
And now there's a cancer diagnosis and I actually was prepared for The ensuing surgery and the follow-up. I was spiritually prepared. I was ready to go, get this over with, get this done. Typical. of Jack Graham.
Let's go, go, go. And So I had the surgery. Didn't tell anyone, including the entire church, just kind of went in. I even went in under a different name. Because I didn't want anybody to know I was in the hospital, the press, or anything like that.
Went in, had the surgery. A successful surgery. Though there was some question as to whether or not they got all the cancer. That rocked my world. And now I realized I was in for a bigger battle than I thought, not just a physical battle.
but a spiritual and an emotional battle. And something happened to me. In the ensuing days and weeks, that has never happened before, and I pray never happens again. But I was taken down. By anxiety and depression.
Sleepless nights. Fears and worries that I'd never known before. A sense of mortality. And then comes the emptiness and the weariness. And the loss of appetite and No longer enjoying the things that you...
previously enjoyed and even loved, activities and all the rest. And in many ways, suffering alone, my family. Standing right with me, Deb, right with me all the way. Very few people knew what I was going through, took some time off. The church allowed me.
But even after the time off, I was still not ready to go. But it was time to go, so it was go time, so that's what we do. We go. But I was dealing with something that was life-altering in many ways. And the one question I kept asking my wife.
And some sleepless nights. and some of my friends who knew what I was going through. I kept asking. Am I going to be okay? Am I going to get through this?
Am I stuck like this? This feeling of helplessness and hopelessness and emptiness? I got some help. I'll tell you more about that. Later.
But I tell you that story at the outset. to remind all of us. That we all need God's help every day and in episodes of life in which we are taken to the mat. One of those crisis moments or a challenge in your life. But But can take you out.
That there is hope. And there is healing. And your life can recover. You can live again. You may be feeling like a walking dead man, a dead woman right now.
That's one of the descriptions of depression. It's not living, it's sort of like dying. A slow death. But you're going to be okay. And I'm going to declare that over you today.
Now, we live in depressing times. Just watch the news. Would you agree?
So depressing. What's going on in the world? What's going on in our country? It's downright depressing. But not just what's going on in the world, and the fact is that.
We're told in the scripture That in the last days, people Perilous times will come. troubling times will come. dangerous times will come.
So we shouldn't be surprised. At the depressing news. and the depressing state of affairs that is in our world today. But what about your own world? Not something coming from the outside, but something that's coming on the inside.
As a result of circumstances in your life or crisis in your life. A child rebels. A marriage splits up. A beloved spouse. You lose your job.
Are you facing the loss of health? You're perhaps dealing with chronic pain. in your life. And you've asked yourself. Am I going to be okay?
Am I going to get through this? Depression has been called the common cold. Of Emotional illness. It affects 20 million adults right now in America, not to speak of the teenagers and, yes, even children. can be depressed.
And Even spiritual leaders. And Christians, no one is exempt. from this. Depression is breakdown. It is Burnout.
It is a tiredness. that you can't even hardly described. Moses had it. To the degree that In Numbers chapter 11, he was so oppressed and overwhelmed by his responsibilities that. He prayed to die.
He said, Lord, I want to live. He was ready to give up his life to check it in. Same thing happened to Jonah after his experience in the great. Fish in the belly of that fish, and then the revival that came subsequent to that. And he was angry, he was angry that God would show mercy on these miserable Ninevites.
He was an angry, pouting prophet. And a result of his self-pity and his anger, he fell into a depression. And in Jonah chapter 4, verse 3, He prayed, Lord, let me die. I don't want to live anymore. Just take me out.
And of course, David, the man after God's own heart. One of the greatest men who ever lived. A mighty and powerful warrior for God, and yet, and yet. David. Who gave us so many of the Psalms under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit?
Often, Expressed his hurt, his pain, his depression, his anxieties in the scripture. That is why so many of us who have been through an episode or perhaps even chronically experienced depression in your life that you live in the Psalms. Because the Psalms are so comforting and challenging at the same time. And you hear the heart of someone who is broken and that God is near to the brokenhearted. Here's a classic example of depression in the life of David.
And God preserved this for us: Psalm 13. How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? Ever felt like that? That God was nowhere to be found.
That's the depression lying to you. That's yourself lying to yourself. But yet, oh Lord, how long? How long must I take counsel in my soul and I have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?
Consider and answer me, O Lord my God, light up my eyes. You can often see in a depressed person's countenance. Just the sadness. and the emptiness. The lights are no longer on.
Light up my eyes. Lest I sleep the sleep of death. Lest my enemy say I have prevailed over him. Lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. That's another word that describes.
This condition just shaken to the soul, shaken to the core. But he turns the corner in verse five. And he says, but I have trusted in your steadfast love. My heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because he has dealt bountifully.
with me. You want to turn that corner? Like David. Overcome and overwhelmed by this depression, this despondency in his life, and yet he learned. to trust in God again.
Wouldn't you say the Apostle Paul? was the greatest Christian who ever lived. I would. And yet the Apostle Paul himself, in writing about Uh one of these episodes in his own life, 2 Corinthians. For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia.
Asia, Paul was sharing his heart. He was being transparent with others, just as I am being transparent with you today. He said, for we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength. Beyond our strength.
Someone told me When I was going through this in the opening. hours and days of this thing.
Someone said, Pastor, it's going to take you about a year to get through this. I said, No, no, no, not me. I'm Jack Graham. If it's going to take somebody else a year, it's going to take me, oh, maybe half a year. But not a year.
It was about a year. Getting through this. Because Depression not only affects your mind the way you think and Ultimately, that's what creates the depression, but Your entire body, not just your brain. but your body as well. And so as a result, notice what happened to Paul.
He said, For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. We despaired of life. That's depression. He said, indeed. We felt that we had received the sentence of death.
You feel like a dead man? A dead man. Dead woman. Walking. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message, Help.
I'm depressed. Transform your spiritual life through the power of daily prayer. This September, Jack Graham invites you to deepen your relationship with God through a month-long prayer journey that will strengthen your faith and draw you closer to your Creator. To get started, take a look at the Text Challenge to 59-789 and deepen your connection with God as Dr. Graham leads you through this transformative 30-day prayer journey.
Your spiritual breakthrough could be just one text away. Again, that's challenge to 59789. Our world desperately needs Jesus. Every single day, countless people slip into eternity without ever hearing that Christ offers victory over death and the gift of eternal life. That's why your partnership to share the gospel is so vital.
We want to remind you about the $200,000 matching grant that will double your gift of support today to bring the gospel where people need it most. We'll say thanks for your gift of $10 or more with two copies of Dr. Graham's book, Triumph.
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Now let's get back to today's message. Help! I'm depressed. Some of the signs, the classic symptoms. of depression.
Yeah. Listen to me. Hopelessness, sadness, helplessness, despair, despondency. Numbness. Just a loss of feeling.
A loss of appetite. I knew when I couldn't eat that I was really in trouble. And a loss of sleep, insomnia. I'd never had an issue with insomnia or sleeplessness in my entire life. I was one of those persons who could take a half a baby aspirin or not and sleep about seven or eight straight hours.
Now, just the fact that we're getting older, those days are probably over for most of us. If you're a young person and you're still one of those persons, you can lay down and sleep about eight or nine hours. You need to get on your knees and thank God for that. And can I get an amen? Right, yeah.
So That's part of it, but this was something different. This was sleeplessness, insomnia, the anxiety, the depression that was creating something way different in my life. Interest in normal activities. You don't want to do anything. Things you liked.
To do, things he loves to do, even being with family and being with friends. And depression? can steal your desire to even Live. It can be deadly. Debilitating.
Dangerous. There's one other man in the scripture in particular that I want us to focus on because. He is a classic example of what we're talking about. Depression. His name is Elijah.
Remember him? A mighty man of God. In fact, he was called the man. He was a powerful prophet, a godly leader. And he was serving God in a very dangerous time, a very difficult time in the life.
of the people of Israel because a wicked king was on the throne. His name was Ahab and he had a very wicked queen, even more wicked than the man was the woman beside him and her name was Jezebel.
Now I doubt anybody here has named your children Jezebel lately. The only cat ever had in my life, I was a small child. And that cat kept scratching me. And I gave that cat a biblical name. Jezebel.
That was the last cat I had. You don't want a Jezebel in your life.
So Elijah stood up. In the midst of immorality and idolatry in the land. It's so depressing, isn't it, to see so much sin rampant in our world today. It's depressing. He stands up against it.
Courageous leader. He calls for national repentance. And revival. He called out the prophets of Baal, the idol worshipers. challenge them to a God contest on Mount Carmel.
And Elijah prayed. He let the Baalites, he let the idolaters go first and they're crying out to God and cutting themselves and Elijah is trash talking them. And they get louder and louder, it's not happening, and then. Elijah prays. And when Elijah prays, Fire fell from heaven and revival.
Came to the people of God. He's on a mountaintop, literally and spiritually. And yet in just one day, Everything changes. And Elijah is plunged. into a pit.
1 Kings 19. is where we find this story. The first four verses. Ahab. Told Jezebel.
All that Elijah had done. And how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. It was a bloodbath. And then Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah saying, So may the gods, little G, do to me. And more also, if I do not make your life as one of them by this time tomorrow.
In other words, there's a contract on your life, Elijah. You're going to be dead by tomorrow.
So what did the bold, courageous, believing prophet do? Did he stand up? to this wicked woman and her Weak husband? No. It says in verse 3, he was afraid.
And he arose and ran for his life and came to Beersheba. It's about 18 miles out into the desert, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went another day's journey into the wilderness. And it was a wilderness physically, but it was another kind of wilderness in his own life. And he came and he sat down under a broom tree, that is a juniper tree.
And he asked that he might die. saying, it's enough now, O Lord. Finished. Oh Lord, take away my life. For I am no better than my fathers.
He prays to die. He said, I'm no better. Then my father, someone said, I don't know. Why he thought Who told him that he was better than his father's? It must have been his mother.
I don't know But he is depressed. That's a classic. Example of depression. Anxiety in the Bible. The struggle is real, folks.
It's real for millions of people. It's real for people online watching right now.
Some of you who couldn't get out of bed today to get to church.
So you're. You're hanging on, you're hoping on, you're watching this service. I pray God gives you a word today.
Some of you got yourself here. You don't even know how, but you're hanging by a thread. You just pushed yourself, and you're here. You know someone in your family, maybe a husband, a wife. A father, a mother, a child.
That's depressed, and you don't know what to do. You don't know what this is. And one of the things that can happen One of the things that can happen is that we as Christians We just kind of write it off as someone being emotionally weak or unstable. I know, as a young Christian, when I heard about people being depressed. Uh I never said this that I'm aware of, I remember.
But I'm I'm most likely thinking to myself, what's wrong with you? Snap out of it. Come on, come on. Get going. Don't worry, be happy.
But I've since learned, and this is wisdom that comes from God. And experience in life. I've since learned that if people could snap out of it, don't you know if they could, they would? Nobody wants to live like that. Nobody wants to be miserable.
Now we can make it worse. by our attitudes and our actions, but But the fact is that this is something that is not only Spiritual And it may not have anything to do with your spiritual life, but it has to do with your psychological life. Remember, we're body, we're soul, we're spirit. And we have emotions, and Christians have emotions too. And Many have suffered.
Even in the church, even chronic. Depression. One of the greatest preachers of all time.
Some believe the greatest preacher since the Apostle Paul was Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the great preacher of London, England, in the 19th century. He battled depression, episodes of it, his entire life and ministry. He probably died. As a result of the impact of depression upon his life at the young age of 56. Martin Luther, another, the reformer, he dealt with it.
great political leaders, Abraham Lincoln. Winston Churchill, he called depression the black dog. Maybe he should have named it the black cat. I don't know, but. It was dark.
And Elijah, the man of God. It's down for the count. He's dying on the inside. and wants to leave. You're listening to PowerPoint with Jack Graham and the message: help, I'm depressed.
We're excited to announce that we've been offered a $200,000 matching grant that will double your gift today to help proclaim the life-giving hope of Jesus to people all across the globe. Because your gift is so important. We want to send you a thank you for your generosity by sending you two copies of Dr. Graham's book. triumph.
To encourage your faith and equip you to share the hope of Jesus with someone who needs it. Please give generously knowing that your gift will be doubled and make sure to request your copies when you give. Text the word overcome to 59789. Again, the word is overcome. To 59-789.
Transform your spiritual life through the power of daily prayer. This September, Jack Graham invites you to deepen your relationship with God through a month-long prayer journey that will strengthen your faith and draw you closer to your Creator. To get started? Text challenge to 59-789 and deepen your connection with God as Dr. Graham leads you through this transformative 30-day prayer journey.
Your spiritual breakthrough could be just one text away. Again, that's challenge to 59789. Pastor, what is your PowerPoint for today? Depression can take away weeks, months, even years of a person's life. Perhaps you're listening to me right now and you're in the middle of a deep, dark depression.
Or maybe you know someone who is. You most likely know someone who is depressed because Depression has been called the common cold of emotional illness. It's all around us.
So it's important to recognize if you're feeling depressed. or if you're in darkness and despair, that you're not alone. As we see in the scripture, it happens to the best of people. It's a very real occurrence that must be dealt with and not allowed to take root in our lives. In my message today, I mention a kind of mathematical equation that produces depression.
Insult Plus anger. time self-pity. equals depression.
Well, you thought you never needed algebra, but that's a formula that's true. That's insult plus anger times self-pity. It's a surefire equation for Yeah.
Well, what do we need to do to undo depression? Here's what I find. Rest. Plus, encouragement, times serving others, can help turn around this powerful grip of depression. We need physical rest as well as spiritual and emotional rest.
Jesus said, Come unto me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, that is, you're burdened and broken down, and find rest. We need to find encouragement through God's Word. As God speaks to us in the still small voice of His Spirit through His Word. And you know, knowing that others before us have gone through what we're going through and have been redeemed and renewed through faith, It helps, doesn't it? And what we need to do is to take the focus off ourselves and to look to others.
to get our eyes off our problems and to get our eyes on Jesus. We need to serve others in the love of Christ, and do whatever we can to get out of ourselves in this selfish mode and begin giving away our lives to others. This is the antidote prescribed by God to get us back into life. is sharing Christ and serving others. My friend, we are physical, emotional, and spiritual beings.
Our God has given us the ability to fully experience life. both the highs and the lows.
So I want to encourage you today. Take heart. Believe and trust in Christ. you will come through this darkness. And if you're at a low point right now, You're not alone.
The Lord Jesus is with you, and He in His time will lift you up. in due season. And that is today's PowerPoint. Remember, when you give a gift of $10 or more to PowerPoint, we'll send you two copies of Dr. Graham's book, Triumph, as our thanks.
Text the word overcome to 59-789. And join us again next time when Dr. Graham brings a message on how God's promises can carry you through depression. That's next time on PowerPoint with Jack Graham. PowerPoint with Jack Graham is sponsored by PowerPoint Ministries.
