Christians Aren't Immune to Depression

by Victoria York on Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Recognize that seeking professional help and trusting God can go hand-in-hand.

In the Winter of 2006-2007 during an especially sorrowful and stressful period, I plummeted into a mental state unlike anything I've experienced before or since. This was not simply a case of the blues. I lost all interest in the activities that constituted life: engaging with people, writing, enjoying recreation, being productive in my career, and daily rituals like grocery shopping. The moment I woke, I longed for bedtime -- for escape -- and yet I couldn't sleep.
Nausea, confusion, and exhaustion plagued me. Smiling was impossible in the face of intolerable sadness. Pulling myself out of bed each morning was torment. The thought of continuing in such blackness for one more hour, let alone one more week, was unbearable as I struggled to "keep it together." I dreaded social situations. The sound of conversation and laughter among my coworkers became foreign to me, until I couldn't recall what either one felt like. I knew I'd laughed and conversed thousands of times, but now it seemed ludicrous and utterly impossible.
Worst of all, although God hadn't left me, the awareness of His presence that I'd always enjoyed had vanished. One evening, I mentioned my struggle to someone who was spiritually sound and whose opinion I valued. "I can't feel God," I said. "This sadness is devouring me, and I can't find Him, no matter what I do."
My friend answered, "There's got to be some kind of sin in your life if you feel separated from God. Examine your life and try to figure out where you've gone wrong."
My friend meant well, but he had inadvertently kicked me when I was at my lowest. His words didn't make sense. Even though I couldn't feel God, I knew I hadn't turned my back on Him. And somehow I knew He hadn't deserted me. My friend simply didn't realize that believers aren't immune to the horrors of clinical depression. Like many Christians, he mistakenly assumed that being a Christ-follower insulates a person against depression. This notion is so prevalent that many Christians feel too guilty and embarrassed to discuss their struggles. They forget that not even the spiritual giants of Scripture were immune to this type of suffering. Think of Elijah, who went from great victory into deep depression, or David, who expressed his pain in Psalm 6:6: "I am weary from my groaning; with my tears I dampen my pillow and drench my bed every night."
One Friday afternoon, my despair became so suffocating that I asked a girlfriend (whose husband had suffered mental illness) what was required to check oneself into a hospital, just in case. All hope, joy, pleasure, and light had ceased to exist for me. I begged God to give me a moment's assurance, some sign, but the nothingness continued. It was sheer grace that allowed me to hang on until Monday, when I finally called my doctor and dragged myself to his office. I remember feeling bewildered as I watched the woman across from me in the waiting area peruse a magazine and smile pleasantly at a nurse. How could she be so carefree? How was she untouched by the desolation that had swallowed me?
The next hour changed my life. After I described my symptoms to my doctor, he asked about my circumstances and then ran some tests. His conclusion: My depression was the result of years' worth of nearly continual stress, compounded by recent occurrences. Quite simply, I had drained my body of serotonin, the "feel-good" hormone. He prescribed a medication that would give me a bit of relief and allow me the time to "refill my tank." Within four months, I was off the medication. Finally, I was laughing and living again.
Can depression be a sign of disobedience? Yes, it certainly can. But it can also be caused by medical or chemical issues, mental or physical exhaustion, and so on. Can God heal us in an instant? Yes, He can and often does. But if you're in the "waiting stage," don't assume God is displeased with you. Talk with God about how you feel and listen to His voice of truth. Feeling separated from His presence does not equal being separated from His presence. Feelings can be very unreliable. Do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself while trusting that you completely belong to the Father. Recognize that seeking professional help and trusting God can go hand-in-hand.
Above all, remember that if you are a believer, your standing with God has not changed. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. For "not even death or life, angels or rulers, things present or things to come, hostile powers, height or depth, or any other created thing will have the power to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord!" (Rom. 8:38-39).
This article is courtesy of Mature Living magazine.

Bringing New Life and Hope to Inner Mongolia

Bringing New Life and Hope to Inner Mongolia  

In the grasslands of China’s Inner Mongolia Province, many isolated settlements have never been reached with the gospel. Christian Aid Mission recently began assisting a Chinese ministry that trains university students for outreach in some of these areas. The students go on “mission trips” to villages during their school breaks. Christian medical professionals sometimes accompany the students on these trips, providing free health care to impoverished families who lack access to even basic services. In the photo, student assistants are checking the vision of an elderly villager.

Creating a Better Future for Guatemala’s Youth

Creating a Better Future for Guatemala’s Youth

The children’s center in Guajitos is an oasis for kids who grow up in a world dominated by gang warfare. Living Stones Ministry seeks to get children off the streets and teach them Christian values.

Yo tengo gozo, gozo, gozo, gozo, en mi corazón,
¿Donde?
en mi corazón
¿Donde?
en mi corazón
Yo tengo gozo, gozo, gozo, gozo, en mi corazón
porque Cristo me salvo.

The room rings with laughter as the group of 40 high-spirited Guatemalan boys and girls, barely able to catch their breath, launch into singing the next stanza of “I’ve Got Joy in My Heart.” With each round they pick up the tempo, making a series of rapid hand motions that conclude with vigorous clapping.
Seven-year-old Jorge, standing in the front row, is ready to do it all over again. In fact, he loves every activity—the singing, Bible lessons, and kicking a soccer ball with his friends afterwards. He’s a regular here, having come to the children’s programs two or three times a week since 2012.
Jorge’s mother, Yaneri, started bringing him to the Living Stones Ministry (LSM) outreach in hopes he would make friends and enjoy a few nutritious meals there each week. With her small income, she could barely pay to keep a roof over their heads. Jorge’s father was not a part of their lives, and the little boy seemed lonesome and reclusive. She feared he would end up joining a gang when he got older.
Those worries are legitimate. While Jorge and his friends sing songs about joy in their hearts, it’s hard to imagine the danger that lurks outside the front door.
The barrio where they live is located in Guajitos, a district of Guatemala City that is notorious for gang-related violence. Teenagers are perpetrators of many of the crimes, but children as young as eight or nine are “recruited” to engage in illegal activities.
Keeping youngsters off the streets helps, but Yaneri realizes the temptations are inescapable. That’s why she is grateful for a ministry like LSM that offers a safe environment for her son and teaches foundational Christian values.
Already she has seen changes in Jorge’s behavior. LSM has become a second home for him. He is more outgoing, and he enjoys reading Bible stories and learning about God’s love for children.
Last winter Jorge heard about the miracles of Jesus in one of the Bible classes. The teacher asked the students if they would like to have a miracle happen in their lives.
Jorge stood up. “I already received a miracle,” he replied. “Now I know I have a father, a Father in heaven Who loves me and cares about me.”

The battle for souls

Jorge and his friends enjoy fun activities at the center.

Saving Guatemala’s children has been the aim of Living Stones Ministry’s founder, Humberto Chavez,* since he started the ministry nearly 20 years ago in the Guajitos slum. He has a sympathetic heart for poor or abandoned kids, having been forced to survive on the streets when he was just seven years old.
The streets are a far meaner place for today’s children. Gang violence has reached epic proportions in the capital city and across the country. Delinquent youths, usually initiated into the maras in their early teens, take part in acts of extortion, robbery, drug trafficking, and crimes against rival gang members.
Last year, just two blocks from the headquarters of LSM, five members of a gang of extortionists and hired assassins were captured in a raid conducted by the National Civil Police. The detainees were teenagers between the ages of 14 and 19. The gang’s leader was 14 years old.
LSM is not immune to the violence either. Chavez said the headquarters building has been broken into and robbed seven times. Gang members are believed to be the culprits. In the last incident the ministry’s cooking utensils and public address system equipment were taken.
Most disconcerting, however, is the manner in which the gangs generate income by levying “taxes” against local businesses, bus and taxi drivers, residents, and even churches. The practice is common, and there is a high price to pay for those who refuse to give into their demands.
According to the Guatemala Human Rights Commission, 166 bus drivers and their assistants were killed in one year alone in 2009. The majority were killed by gang members for not paying extortion costs.
LSM’s ministry leader said gang members often resort to harassing and frightening youngsters, using them to collect the extortion money.
“They may target a child who is walking to school and threaten to harm the family if the boy or girl doesn’t do what they ask. Of course the children don’t want anything bad to happen to their parents or siblings, so they do it,” explained Chavez. “Or the gangs may offer a child from a poor family cash to carry out their instructions. That’s how they operate.”

A clothing distribution

Socioeconomic problems in the country have helped create an environment which has done little to dissuade youth from gang culture. The same limitations that crippled their parents—lack of education and limited job opportunities—plague their generation too. Neglected and abused children wander the streets and become easy prey for gangs who offer them shelter and satisfy a need for acceptance.
The scourge impacts every level of society, but it is the nation’s youth who are caught in the crossfire as both instigators and victims of gang violence. Thus far neither the police nor politicians have been able to get a handle on the crisis.

Grounded in love

Living Stones Ministry refuses to run and hide. Its main building is located in the midst of Guajitos’ most dangerous barrios, where children are aggressively recruited by gangs at the local schools.
“Our ministry is doing everything we can to steer youngsters away from this path,” said Chavez. “We talk to each child about the goodness of God and how our Heavenly Father can give them a better life than they will ever find in the gangs. We want to plant the Word of God in their hearts while they are young.”
With support from Christian Aid Mission, LSM currently operates eight children’s outreach centers in Guatemala and ministers to more than 800 youngsters ages 4 to 14. Two of the centers are based in Guajitos, collectively serving about 150 children.
Christian Aid has also provided funds for the ministry to distribute food, clothing, and school supplies to the children of families who are most in need.
One of the goals of LSM is to offer recreational activities that will get kids off the streets. This reduces opportunities for gang members to target them for recruitment or extortionist acts. Safely in the confines of the centers, children take part in games and Bible studies and enjoy a meal or snacks. Sometimes they watch educational films warning about the dangers of drugs, gangs, or other societal issues.
In the afterschool program offered at the two city locations, children like Jorge can receive help with their homework or play until their parents get off work. The urban centers are open on Tuesday and Friday afternoons and during weekends.
The six rural centers are open three days a week and serve the villages of Santa Teresa, San Pablo La Laguna, Solola at Pichiya, Xejuyu, Aldea Llano Jalapa, and Tierra Blanca.
LSM is also reaching the parents of the children with the good news of Jesus Christ. On Sundays, children and their parents attend worship services together.

The ministry operates eight outreach centers that provide Bible teaching, games, after school tutoring, and a meal or snack for children.

Last year the ministry reported some 70 children and adults received Christ as their personal Savior.
Jorge’s family experienced another miracle within the past few months. God had already used the ministry of LSM to touch the lives of the boy and his mother, but the earthly father Jorge hardly knew had a change of heart too. Now his parents have reconciled.
While years of hurt and separation will take time to heal, Jorge no longer feels abandoned by his dad. Even at a young age, he knows that Jesus is the only One who can truly transform hearts.
Chavez hopes Jorge will continue to grow in his faith and will be able to resist the pressure to join a street gang. That’s his prayer for all of the youngsters who must confront a dark and dangerous world when they leave the ministry centers.
“We want to be God’s hands to protect them. We want to be God’s heart to love them,” he said. “We want to be God’s feet to carry them to a better future, and we want to be God’s eyes to show them the right path.”
*name changed

Use the form below to contribute online. Or call 434-977-5650 to contribute by phone. If you prefer to mail your gift, please mail to Christian Aid Mission, P.O. Box 9037, Charlottesville, VA 22906. Please use Gift Code: 176LSM. Thank you!

Planting churches and crops

Planting churches and crops  

A church-planting ministry in Thailand has a vision to establish fellowships in every one of the country’s 76 provinces. They also seek to revive hundreds of small, struggling rural congregations by offering missionary training classes so they can evangelize their local area. Through agribusiness projects, the ministry is able to establish trusting relationships with villagers and help them develop sustainable livelihoods. Crop cultivation and the raising of livestock are opening many doors for community outreach—with the ultimate goal to produce a harvest of souls for God’s eternal kingdom.

Four Steps to Reversing Ministry Burnout

By Rick Warren

I wrote last week about four big mistakes that lead to ministry burnout. One thing I love about the Bible is that it doesn’t just give us the causes of our problems in life. It gives us cures. When Elijah faced burnout in his ministry, God helped him do four things that are just as applicable to our lives today as they were in Elijah’s era.
If you are discouraged and on the verge of burnout, you’re depressed, or you’ve got the “blah’s”, and you want to be like Elijah and just run away from the responsibilities in your life, then you need to do these four things.

Step #1: Rest your body.

Relax. Take care of your physical needs. That’s the first thing you do when you’re getting emotionally burned out. When Elijah was at the point of burnout, the Bible says, “Then Elijah lay down under the tree and he fell asleep. All at once after a while the angel touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat’ and he looked around and by his head there was a cake of bread baked and hot coals and a jar of water and he ate it and drank it and he lay down again. Then the angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, ‘Get up and eat for the journey is too much for you.’ So he got up and ate and drank again. And strengthened by that food he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mount of God.” (1 Kings 19:5-8)
It’s interesting to me that when Elijah started having a pity party and started contemplating suicide and started saying, “God, I just want to die!” that God did not scold Elijah. He did not add to his guilt. God’s remedy, step one, was to have Elijah to eat, then sleep, then eat and sleep some more. Sometimes the most spiritual thing you can do is go to bed. It’s amazing how a good night’s rest will do wonders for your attitude. Weariness and fatigue promotes depression and getting in shape is an excellent preventative to emotional burnout. You will be a lot stronger spiritually if you’re physically strong. Relax. Rest your body.

Step #2: Release your frustrations.

Pray about it. Tell it to God. Get it off your chest. Complain to the Lord. Confess it to God. Spill your guts. Share with God what you don’t like.
God said to Elijah in v. 9, “What’s bugging you?  What are you bothered about?” Elijah let him have it, “Then he went into a cave and spent the night and the word of the Lord came to him, ‘What are you doing here Elijah?’ Elijah replied, ‘I’ve been very zealous for the Lord … “  and he tells God how he feels.
God let him complain until he was out of words. God did not interrupt him. God did not criticize him. God is not shocked when you complain, when you say, “God, I think my job stinks!” or “God, I don’t like the fact that I’ve had poor health.” God is listening. God was letting him get it off his chest. There’s a spiritual catharsis, a cleansing. And it always helps to have a Christian friend to talk to.

Step #3: Refocus on God.

Take your eyes off the problem and get a fresh awareness of what God wants to do in your life. God took Elijah outside. “Come outside the cave, Elijah. I’ve got something I want you to see.” And God put on a production. It was unbelievable. Verse 11 says, “God said, ‘Go out and stand in the mountain in the presence of the Lord for I’m about to pass by.’ Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord. But the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.” God put on one fantastic light show. There’s thunder and lightening, earthquakes, and rocks are splitting apart. It’s unbelievable, but God spoke to him in a whisper.
Isn’t that typical? God rarely speaks to us in the dramatic ways as when all of a sudden you feel the Lord’s presence and get a word from God. No, most of the time God speaks to us is in the quietness, sitting still, praying, reading the Bible, sitting out by a quiet lake and just being quiet before the Lord. It is then that He’ll plant an idea, an inspiration. God reminded Elijah that he was right there, that He hadn’t gone away, that He was there beside him, and He said, “Just be quiet. Realize I’m here with you.”

Step #4: Recommit your life to God.

Recommit your life to God’s purpose. Let God give you a new direction, a new purpose, a new job, a new career if need be, a new ministry. The Bible says in verse 15, “Then the Lord said to Elijah, ‘Go back the way you came.'” He said, “Get back to work Elijah, go to this city and anoint this man to be the king.” He gave him a project, a job.
The quickest way to defeat your depression is to get involved in the needs of other people. Start a ministry. Find a place to give yourself away. As you give yourself away, God gives to you and you become a channel. The happiest people in the world are those who help other people. God gave Elijah a new job to do which would help other people.
Some of you are struggling with depression. You look like you’ve got iron poor blood. Maybe you didn’t feel like getting up and out of bed this morning. Maybe some of you are having a hard time making decisions. You just don’t know what to do. That’s a symptom of burnout when you can’t make decisions anymore — you’re not decisive. Maybe you feel like everybody’s against you and you’re gloomy and it seems like the world is falling apart. Maybe you’re trapped — trapped in a job you don’t like or trapped in a relationship you can’t stand and you don’t know what to do. You’re constantly tired. You have no energy. Maybe you feel like running away like Elijah did.
I have good news for you. Jesus Christ says there is hope. There is a way out. You don’t have to stay depressed. God can help you through it if you’ll take these steps. You’re not alone. God cares about you and so do the people in your church. You can change with God’s help.
photo credit: javi.velazquez

From Home Burnings and Violence in Syria, Good News Arrives in Turkey

From Home Burnings and Violence in Syria, Good News Arrives in Turkey

December 18, 2014

Perhaps, especially for children, a refugee camp is like a prison.

Among the anguished throngs that have fled Islamic State (ISIS) jihadists trying to take over the strategic city of Kobani in northern Syria, one refugee has good news.
As reported here on Oct. 16, when ISIS fighters invaded Kobani three months ago, a man in his 50s was forced to choose between fleeing the area to save his family’s life or waiting for his oldest son to return home. His son was out taking care of their sheep. In tears, the father left his son and took the rest of his family across the border to Turkey.
The director of a ministry providing aid in the refugee camp told Christian Aid Mission that on a recent visit to distribute aid, the smiling father hugged him.
“He told the story that I was waiting impatiently to hear, but I dared not to ask,” the director said. “He said, ‘After you had gone, in eight days my son came! When he saw the smoke of our village at our house that ISIS burned, he did not go to our house, but he ran away. He lost the sheep, but came by himself.’”
The ministry director in Turkey thanked supporters of Chistian Aid Mission for praying for the father, adding that he was happy to hear the refugee tell him, “God saved our son.”
The director prayed with the father and gave him a copy of the New Testament. Many people from various religious backgrounds at the camp were witness to the exchange, and after receiving aid and taking it to their tents, they returned and asked the director’s team to pray for them.
“They took their little children in their arms and came back to us,” he said. “They asked us to pray. ‘Our children are sick’. ‘Our old parents are sick’. ‘We want to go back to our country; pray that the ISIS terror will end’. ‘We want our children to eat well.’”
The team prayed with them over these concerns but told them the power for help did not come from themselves.
“We told them, ‘Jesus Christ has all the power. Pray to Him. He will help. Here, we brought you His Word,’” he said. “Actually, when I was distributing the aid, I was wondering about how I could distribute the New Testaments. But God had already prepared all the things spontaneously that needed to happen for the people to be open to receiving the New Testaments.”
ISIS has reportedly executed hundreds of Kobani residents as “infidels,” and the U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees estimates 400,000 mostly Kurdish people have fled to Turkey from the city and surrounding villages. As Kurdish forces continue to hold off ISIS fighters in Kobani, at refugee camps across the border illnesses are spreading. Most of the children and many of the elderly are sick. Baby food is lacking, and many children are without socks and shoes.
“At one time these people had houses, gardens,” the director said. “But now, unfortunately, they have nothing. For a kilo of mandarins, people are crushing each other and trying to get it.”
As the ministry team delivered aid, the director wondered what it must be like for children to be enclosed in a tent camp.
“You see the children who are standing by the wire fencing. They used to play in front of their houses easily, but people took from their hands their toys, their warm house, their food, their school, their hospital,” he said. “They are living as prisoners in fenced-in enclosures.”
Before the attempted takeover of Kobani in ISIS’s attempt to establish a Sunni Islamic caliphate in a region across Iraq and Syria, Kobani itself had been one of the centers of refuge for the estimated 6.5 million Syrians internally displaced by war. Of the more than 3 million Syrians who have fled to other countries, more than 1.6 million are estimated to have fled to Turkey.

A refugee child has only parsley to put into his bread.

“Children need boots for the cold months,” the director said. “We need many tents, electric heaters, quilts, beds and food. It is winter here, so they need so many fruits. While children in the free world were eating chocolate cakes, the refugees were putting only parsley into bread and eating that.”
Children are playing with rocks in the winter cold, and the ministry team supported by Christian Aid Mission would like to buy toys for them. Giving shoes to children, he said, makes you a hero, and they run to their parents to tell them so.
“The children who understood that we are helping them through your support, they ran to us and showed their love to us,” he said. “These children will never forget these painful days. At the same time, they will never forget that some Christians came and gave them boots, candies, and blankets. I am thankful to you. Thanks to you from those children for making them happy.”
The kids also have prayer requests. They asked the ministry team to pray for God to give them dolls and balls to play with, as well as coats.
The ministry provided tents to four families who were sleeping in the open air, and dozens of families still needed shelter. Some refugees have invited the ministry team to their tents to pray for people unable to walk because of their advanced years or sores on their legs.
“Every tent that we visited, we gave a little financial support to the oldest person of the tent secretly. In this culture, to support them openly would make them feel shame,” he said. “We told them, ‘God loves you so much, and these troubles are going to end. If you would like, you can read these love letters from Jesus from the New Testament.' Many young people took New Testaments to read.”

To help indigenous missionaries to meet needs, you may contribute online using the form below, or call 434-977-5650. If you prefer to mail your gift, please mail to Christian Aid Mission, P.O. Box 9037, Charlottesville, VA 22906. Please use Gift Code: 416MPON. Thank you!

Fire and Ice

 

Fire and Ice  

Temperatures are dropping to near freezing at night on the high plains of southeastern Turkey, where an estimated 400,000 Syrian refugees have settled after fleeing the Islamic State’s bid to seize the border city of Kobani and surrounding villages. Many refugees lost relatives to execution as ISIS joined anti-government forces in Syria’s civil war and sought to expand its strict Islamist “caliphate” across Iraq and Syria. Refugees lacking food and clothing saw workers with a ministry assisted by Christian Aid Mission as heroes as the team strove to demonstrate their genuine care for them. “We tried to show them that we really care about them, and we prayed for them,” the ministry director said. “We were not just coming to give them New Testaments and leave – we really share in their pain.” The heaters that the ministry distributed were joyfully received, he added, but many more are needed along with baby food, shoes, blankets and coats, among other items.