Praying through Depression
This post by Joe Tyrpak comes from Gospel Meditations for Prayer (Day 8).
“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?” (Psalm 42:5)
Discouragement—even depression—is a normal experience for God’s people, and prayer is the normal road on which God’s people travel through it. Psalm 42 and Psalm 43 were written by the sons of Korah, the temple gatekeepers in Israel. Korah’s children had been graciously saved from the fierce wrath of God that was poured out on their father, all his friends, and many of their family (Numbers 26:9–11). These men went through life—like everyone should—thinking, “I deserve to be dead.”
The men who wrote these psalms (notice they’re written from an individual’s perspective), though privileged recipients of God’s grace, were depressed. Why? Because they were being deported: They were traveling through Hermon, crying under enemy jeers, remembering Israel’s “glory days,” yearning for the time when they’d return to the temple (Psalm 42:2–6; Psalm 43:2–4). They wrote these psalms during the exile, the lowest point in Israel’s history. They teach us how to pray when we’re despondent.
Pray through the valley of depression.
The words of Psalms 42–43 were prayed in the wake of Israel’s failure, in full view of God’s just judgment, and with complete recognition (from Jeremiah’s preaching) that Israel’s immediate future would remain dismal for decades. Yet, Israel could sing these psalms of hope as they marched in chains to Babylon. You, too, can prayerfully sing through the darkest times of your life.
If Israel could sing songs of hope as they marched into exile, you, too, can prayerfully sing through the darkest times of your life.
These stanzas, like the whole psalter, were written for God’s people of every era to sing (Ephesians 5:19). Isn’t it encouraging to know that you can pray in the valley? When you feel spiritually dry, deserted, and bewildered, don’t lose heart.
If God’s people could sing after the temple had been looted and destroyed and after Jerusalem had been torched, then nothing can happen to you that will be beyond the reach of the words, “Hope in God.” Look up. Remind yourself: “My God lives; the Lord is my Savior, my life, my rock, my refuge, and my exceeding joy” (Psalm 42:2, 5, 8, 9; Psalm 43:2, 4). Hope in God.
Listen to Jesus pray through the darkest valley.
There’s even more encouragement in recognizing that Jesus prayed through the valley better than you ever will.
As you pray Psalm 42:1–2 (“As a deer pants for the water brook, so pants my soul for God”), recall the desperate cry of Jesus from the cross—“I thirst” (John 19:28)—and remember that Jesus, your Lord, knows what it’s like to experience dryness in the soul.
As you pray Psalm 42:3 (“My tears have been my food as people continually say, ‘Where is your God?’”), recall that men passed by the Man of Sorrows mocking, “He trusts in God; let God deliver him if He really delights in Him!” (Matthew 27:43). Jesus, your Lord, knows taunting.
As you pray Psalm 42:4 (“These things I remember as I pour out my soul”), hear Jesus recounting the glory He enjoyed with His Father before the world existed (John 17:5). Jesus, your Lord, knows what it is to endure thoughts of “the way things used to be.”
As you pray Psalm 42:5 (“Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?”), recall that Jesus’ soul was “exceeding sorrowful even to the point of death” (Mark 14:34). Jesus, your Lord, knows what it’s like to have a downcast spirit.
As you pray Psalm 42:9 and Psalm 43:2 (“Why have you forgotten me?…Why have you rejected me?”), consider the worst cry in history, as the Son of God bore our revolting sins: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46). Jesus, your Lord, knows what it’s like, not just to feel like God has turned His back on Him, but for God to actually do it. You’ll never experience that, since He did.
The God in Whom you’re hoping is not distant from your times of dryness and desertion. He faced deeper darkness than you ever will, and He came through. So, as you pray, keep hoping in God even if your life seems depressingly dark.
Lord, I deserve to be dead, but You saved me from Your wrath. You are my Salvation. I long to worship in Your very presence, for You are my exceeding Joy. Lord Jesus, until I see Your face, keep my ears attuned to Your song in the valley. You are my Rock. Amen.
Explore the whole book!
Our need for God’s grace is an ever-present reality, and so then is our need for prayer! Out of their experiences of Bible study, and sin, and confession, and anxiety, and dependence, the authors of Gospel Meditations for Prayer present 31 expositions of Scripture to inform and inspire Christians about the privilege of communing with God through the Lord Jesus Christ.
