Flame Think, Inc.

This article is courtesy of Reverend Philip Byler, founder and director of CTTM Ministries International out of Epworth, GA.

Sir Winston Churchill called it the “Black Dog.” That was his name for the recurring depression he dealt with. The nickname seems to imply two things—familiarity with the problem and a determination to master it. Though the dog sinks his fangs into one’s person now and again, it is only a dog. At times, it can be “sweet talked.” At other times, it needs to be chained.

Churchill was not alone in his struggle. Others were plagued with a common aliment—Martin Luther, Leo Tolstoy, Franz Schumann, even Charles Haddon Spurgeon, to name a few. Each of these great men suffered from recurring bouts with depression.

 

(Dragon image as found at www.draconika.com)

I suppose each of us has moments when we have to fight off dark clouds and believe for brighter days. I know I do. For me, it’s not the black dog, its more of a dragon. He comes at the most inopportune times, blowing smoke and smelling of brimstone. He comes, sometimes for hours, sometimes for days. And when he comes, I have to fight.

  Sometimes, I feel like St. George. Sometimes, I feel more like Don Quixote. Sometimes the dragon is very real. But sometimes the dragon is only an illusion, a windmill that looks very much like a dragon because I am disheartened.

(Don Quixote image as found at www.randydarnell.com)

I don’t know what you face as we pass through the winter of 2009-2010 and into the spring. I do know that many people are faced with joblessness or economic down-sizing. Threats of violence, terrorism, and pandemic disease are everywhere. These are combined with a host of legislative initiatives that few, if any of us understand or want. The prospects for the future look pretty grim—or do they?

If we only look to the outside of our life circumstance, we might well be bitten by the “black dog.” No one can really blame you if you harbor a lingering sense of depression especially if you are one of those whose employment has been terminated, or you’ve lost the greater portion of your 410 (k). But there is a brighter side, even though it may not be easy to see.

To see it you must look to the inside. You must look to your walk in the Spirit. Your relationship with the Lord has not changed, just because the economy is in the tank. The pillars of your faith have not been shaken loose from their foundation. Fight on, valiant warrior.

But, you say you’re depressed. Your life is in chaos. Your world has been turned upside down. So has mine. And we each have a right to enjoy the depression we so aptly feel. Just use the depression in your favor, not against yourself.

Depression has a way of functioning like a “goad.” It can incite a certain temperament buried deep in your soul. It can also ignite a latent ability in you that can pierce the heart of the dragon and bring him to his knees.

It always helps to remember 2 Cor. 10:4 ...the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds.. or in this case—dragons. And verse 5 ...casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, those are the windmills that really look like dragons.

Drag out the weapons of your warfare: prayer, faith, wisdom, and confession. Pray! Talk to God about the depression you feel. Satan will do everything he can to make you think God doesn’t want to hear. But God does hear. And He honestly listens to what you say.

Use your faith—your real faith. Faith can be feigned. It can be artificial. Expressions of faith can be manufactured without truly being real at all. Faith is being utterly convinced in your own heart, followed by acting on that belief. It is a reality before it is a manifestation of that reality. For most of us, “seeing is believing” even when we think otherwise. Faith is more “believing is seeing.” Such belief gives one the boldness to speak and act.

We have read and heard this over and over again. But it bears repeating, especially when times are tough and finances are tight. God is still God. He is and will remain faithful. We have to trust His grace and believe in His provision. We really have no reasonable choice to do otherwise. But, we also have to be prudent in our living.

Wisdom is good judgment, and common sense goes a long way toward stretching budgets and facing crises. That’s what prudence is—good judgment and common sense. It’s wisdom, and wisdom does not resist faith or derail it. Wisdom, or prudence relies on faith.

Being strong in faith is as much about patience as it is about proclamation. Of course, most teaching about faith says to speak your faith. Speak in faith believing, and you should. But waiting for the manifestation of a faith confession can be a very trying time. Desire can give way to need and need to discouragement.

Sometimes belief can be tested to the breaking point. That’s when standing strong in faith is vital to the success of your Christian walk. Christians often give up far too soon. They fail to realize just what God has to do in order to answer their prayers and grant their requests.

Sometimes, a lot of dominos have to fall before the one that matters finally does. But that’s the one we look for look for. Until that one falls, the answer is just beyond reach. It is that one that makes the domino effect so hard to accept. We just don’t know when or where that last domino will fall into place.

(Domino image as found at www.chuckwarnockblogfiles.wordpress.com)

I can’t tell you when things will change. Neither can I predict when prophetic words of prosperity will align with the circumstances of life. But I am confident of this—breakthrough will come. It has to. Either you believe that or you don’t. And that is the essence of standing strong in your faith. That’s also how you fight the dragon—you don’t give up.