Tis the season to be depressed…
I hope you're having a blessed and enjoyable Christmas season. If so, then these thoughts are to remind that many aren't. And if the season is bringing some tough moments for you, these words are for your encouragement.
Although this season is full of joy and happiness, gifts, events, music, and overall positive activity and feelings, for many it can be quite the opposite. I'm divorced and a single father in the 40% of the time that my boys live with me. They're with their mom for the first half of their Christmas break and although I miss them every moment they're not with me, I find myself missing them even more in this season. This week, after a book signing 40 miles from my hometown, I wrapped up in the evening and began the drive home. I drove by the nearby park with a huge light display and families gathered together with kids running around playing, then headed up the river, knowing that I was going home to an empty house. It was just going to be me. And my eyes got a little wet, missing my boys. And for a few minutes, I began to sink into a mode of feeling sorry for myself. Then I snapped out of it by reminding myself that my situation in life is a product of my choices; some good, some bad. And I began to take responsibility for my split family, and therefore responsibility for the pain I was feeling. And I disciplined myself in that moment to begin to count my blessings; to calculate the do-haves, not the don't-haves. And I reminded myself that I have 3 amazing and handsome sons, some incredibly valuable friendships, a profession that I love, I just bought a new home, I have a reliable and comfortable vehicle to drive, I have plenty of food to eat, my house is warm, there are gifts under my Christmas tree, and that list could continue. And by the time I got home, I walked into my house saying "Thank you God for blessing me." But I started to realize, I could have easily headed down depression lane, if I hadn't captured those negative thoughts and shifted gears. And I began to reflect on how many are hurting in this season for various different reasons.
A widow who recently lost her husband, may be spending her first Christmas without him. That pain is deep. A family who has no resources for gifts or Christmas dinner may be hurting through that reality. It feels lonely and empty. Maybe a child has lost a parent in one way or another, and their heart hurts. Or maybe simply animosity sparked up amongst family members, leaving wounds. I don't share this to shed a negative light on Christmas, I share this hoping you'll be mindful of what might be happening under your neighbors roof, or amongst your own family. Are you aware of how easy it might be to be someone's hero? Are you willing to be a hero? It might take you out of your comfort zone, but it might change a person's Christmas, and even change their life. Many times, it won't even require resources, but rather simply a caring attitude and a few moments of your time. It might even be as simple as the words you speak. Words can either be the straw the breaks the camels back, or the thread that mends a broken heart. Will you speak the words that mend? Will you take the time to care?
And if you're hurting this holiday season, don't ride the depression train. Start right now and begin to count your blessings. Don't make the list of what's wrong with your life, make the list of what's right. And even if it feels like nothing is right, let me encourage you that no matter where you are, who you are, or what you've done, the God who created you loves you. This is echoed in the Bible in what Paul writes in his letter to the Romans:
"Can anything ever separate us from Christ's love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or hungry, or destitute, or in danger, or threatened with death? No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us.
And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow-not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below-indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord." -Romans 8:35-39-
Friend, this can be a season of depression. But it doesn't have to be. If you see potential depression around you, be willing to be someone's hero. And if you feel depression lurking in you, stop now and begin to count your blessings. Make a list of all that you have to be thankful for. Choose joy over depression.
