BREAKING BONDAGES: WHY CHRISTIANS SUFFER DEPRESSION | Lamentations 3:1–9, 21–24 | Message 4
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1 I am the man who has seen affliction
by the rod of the Lord’s wrath.
2 He has driven me away and made me walk
in darkness rather than light;
3 indeed, he has turned his hand against me
again and again, all day long.4 He has made my skin and my flesh grow old
and has broken my bones.
5 He has besieged me and surrounded me
with bitterness and hardship.
6 He has made me dwell in darkness
like those long dead.7 He has walled me in so I cannot escape;
he has weighed me down with chains.
8 Even when I call out or cry for help,
he shuts out my prayer.
9 He has barred my way with blocks of stone;
he has made my paths crooked.21 Yet this I call to mind
and therefore I have hope:22 Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed,
for his compassions never fail.
23 They are new every morning;
great is your faithfulness.
24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion;
therefore I will wait for him.”Lamentations 3:1–9, 21–24
When the Prophet Wept
Get the picture: Jeremiah isn’t just crying—he’s sobbing.
Jerusalem lies in ruins, just as he had warned. The people of God, enslaved by their love for sin, have brought divine judgment upon themselves. Now the prophet sits outside the north wall of the city, heartbroken, helpless, and hopeless.
Dr. Henry Halley points out something remarkable: the exact place where Jeremiah sat and wept—the grotto just beyond Jerusalem’s wall—is directly beneath the knoll later called Golgotha—the very hill where Jesus would die.
Think of that: The weeping prophet sat where the weeping Savior would hang.
The pain of the Old Testament prophet foreshadowed the redemption of the New.
The book of Lamentations contains five poetic laments—four are acrostic, each verse beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. Jeremiah’s sorrow was not senseless—it was structured grief, disciplined lament, the poetry of a man crushed by despair but still anchored in faith.
Even the Greatest Have Wept
Depression has touched the finest servants of God.
Moses cried, “I am not able to bear all these people alone… please kill me here and now.” (Numbers 11:14–15)
Elijah fled into the wilderness and prayed, “It is enough! Now, Lord, take my life.” (1 Kings 19:4)
Jonah complained, “It is better for me to die than to live!” (Jonah 4:3)
Jeremiah lamented, “Woe is me, my mother, that you have borne me, a man of strife.” (Jeremiah 15:10)
Even the strongest stumble under sorrow.
Charles Spurgeon, the prince of preachers, wrote:
“Before any great achievement, some measure of depression is very usual. My success appalled me… This depression comes over me whenever the Lord is preparing a large blessing for my ministry.”
Martin Luther—the Reformer who shook nations—suffered dark waves of despair. One morning, his wife appeared at breakfast wearing a black armband.
“Who died?” Luther asked.
“Well,” she replied, “with the way you’ve been acting, I thought God did.”
Even the greatest saints have known the shadow. But believers, uniquely, know the way out.
Eight Steps to Overcoming Depression
1. Receive Jesus Christ as your Savior.
“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” — Colossians 1:27
No peace is possible apart from His presence.
2. Renew your mind daily.
“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” — Romans 12:2
Perspective determines peace. Like the man who angrily demanded a gas station attendant rewash his windshield—when the real problem was his own dirty glasses—our attitude shapes our world. His wife cleaned his lenses, and suddenly the view was spotless. Our outlook, not our circumstances, determines our joy.
3. Accept God’s forgiveness—and forgive others.
“If you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.” — Matthew 6:14
Bitterness imprisons the soul that harbors it. Forgiveness releases healing.
4. Recognize that God is shaping you.
Growth involves pain—spiritual, emotional, even physical.
“Though I walk through the valley… You are with me.” — Psalm 23:4
5. Remember that valleys, trials, and testing are part of the faith walk.
Jeremiah watched a potter reshape a flawed vessel.
“As the clay is in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand.” — Jeremiah 18:6
God never discards the broken. He remakes them.
6. Give thanks in every circumstance.
“In everything give thanks.” — 1 Thessalonians 5:18
Gratitude realigns the heart with God’s sovereignty.
7. Rest in God’s provision.
“My God shall supply all your need.” — Philippians 4:19
As Sarah Jewett once said, “’ Tain’t worthwhile to wear a day all out before it comes.”
8. Replace worry with worship.
Three times, Jesus commanded: “Do not worry.” (Matthew 6:25, 31, 34)
Charles Spurgeon used to say, “Bible verses make good pillows.” Lay your head on God’s promises and rest.
Hope for the Downcast
Jeremiah wept, Moses collapsed, Elijah fled, Jonah despaired, Luther doubted, Spurgeon wrestled—but all found renewal in God. Depression is not the end—it can be the beginning of deeper faith.
“This I recall to my mind, therefore I have hope: The Lord’s mercies are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness.” — Lamentations 3:21–23
When your heart is heavy, remember: you are not alone—and you are not beyond the reach of His mercy.
