Christian Depression

Just the idea of Christian depression seemed so contradictory, at first...
Christian depression just doesn't seem to fit in very well with this verse: "I have written to you...young men, because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, and you have overcome the wicked one." I John 2:14
Young people have seemingly unlimited energy and optimism, how could Christian depression ever be a problem? With all that strength and word of God, who could be depressed?
Who would ever imagine, that in the midst of such strength and zealous activity, stress and depression often lurk in the murky fringes of church life. Not only that, it is not at all uncommon for youth leaders to suffer from the common depression symptoms.

Things left to themselves tend to decay
When the depression symptoms continue for more than a few weeks, you need to take action. Ignoring the problem will not help. A common misunderstanding is that Christians are inferior or unfaithful followers if they feel depressed.
The black hole of condemnation is very deep and dark. It can take years to work out the underlying causes. Christian depression is more common than most people realize. Scripture verses may be used, correctly or incorrectly, to give "guidance", this is not the intention of this essay.
The subject of Christian depression and stress is a very personal one for the author, having been both a victim of it and a cause of it as well. It is our hope to shed some light on this important topic that seems to be largely ignored, but affects many believers.

Black and white thinking
Black and white thinking, in this case, is the practice of placing people into neat little groups, or categories. For example: believers and unbelievers; the bride of Christ and the harlot; Christians and "the world"; us and them; the first-fruits and the second-fruits; zealous and lukewarm; modest and worldly; saved and unsaved; and so on. An enormous amount of stress comes from this manner of viewing people and the world.
This type of thinking is common among fundamentalist groups, not to mention cults. The polarizing effect divides families and friends. Those who are doing the categorizing are, of course, the right ones. Everyone else is to be pitied or despised, or converted. Those who grow up under such teachings and fail to live up to the expectations are prime candidates for Christian depression.
A great deal of Christian depression stems from this way of thinking. Suppose you are musical or artistic, what are you ever going to do with all that natural ability if your church teaches that such activities are sinful, or soulish? Soulish means that it is an expression of your human soul, which is even more dangerous to holiness than being carnal.
Sure, such an artistic person may play church music, or do "Christian" artwork, but soon that becomes so limiting and quenching. Of course, you could always listen to music and play it in secret, but that brings on the condemnation. For those who are not artistic, this is not a serious problem, and very often such people are the leaders. They don't feel the inner stress, and therefore are often harsh in their criticism, leading to even more Christian depression.
This can be particularly damaging to children. They are developing their own distinct personalities and need space to grow. An especially crass example of forcing church doctrine on "different" children is the old practice of beating the left hand of left-handed children by nuns in schools. It's hard to imagine, but this was common until quite recently. The stress imposed on these children is incredible. At times, the entire learning process just ceased.
Jesus came to take away your sins, not your mind!
A great deal of courage is required to live according to your conscience, especially if it is contrary to your church's doctrine. To do less is cowardice and will keep you in the wringer of a guilty conscience, with the result in feelings that can lead to Christian depression.
A prominent church leader was lauded at his 50th birthday celebration for his ability to be spiritual on a trip across Canada. It seems he managed to keep from looking at the scenery and marveling at God's creation for several days' trip. He was so holy that he read scriptures and discussed doctrine the entire time!
On the other hand, another passenger in the car was constantly amazed at the beautiful rivers, rolling hills, huge sky and wild animals he saw on the same trip. Needless to say, nobody mentioned this at his birthday! He thought it was absurd to deny oneself in such an artificial and useless manner as the other passenger. It took some courage to speak up in the face of such older, esteemed brothers.
There are many such things taking place everyday in churches everywhere, but not much is mentioned about it. For example: being willingly ignorant of elections, the news, current events, and community events and so on. About the only time such zealous believers get involved is when they can benefit from it. To speak out takes courage, to silently go along, against your better judgment can easily contribute to Christian depression and stress.
If you talk about current events, it had better follow "party lines." If you are involved in community events, you might be contaminated by all those unbelievers. You are "unequally yoked."
This type of thinking is especially dangerous for children and young people. They are usually in public school and are exposed to everything imaginable. Unless they are taught how to interact in a healthy way with those who disagree or are different, they can easily fall prey to Christian depression.
This book was written just for parents who have stressful situations at home. It is the product of many years experience, including Christian depression. It is called: "Stress Secrets."

Children and the "End Times"
Many children have suffered unnecessarily from the unwitting ignorance of their parents or church leaders. Children take everything literally and parents need to be extra careful when discussing such topics as the end times with children.
As children and young people hear the message about Armageddon and the Great Tribulation and the Wrath of God, etc., they are imagining everything literally. This can lead them several conclusions. Christian depression often has its roots in childhood.
" We are the only ones who know this and are special, God's favorite people.
" Everyone else is going to burn up in the wrath of God.
" If I do everything "right" I will be saved.
" If I don't do everything "right", I will be burned with the ungodly. Or maybe I'll go through the "Great Tribulation" and become a sort of second class heavenly citizen.
These beliefs can vary from group to group, but the potential damaging effects are still the same. Stress, depression, and false guilt can plague a person for many years.
Suppose your neighbor is Christian from another denomination and now his entire family, including your son's friend, will perish in fire. How does that impact the mind of a child?
How can the other 99.9999 along in the faith, I'm going to hell, what's the use of trying to be good?" The ditches of life abound with such cast off lives.
Christian depression carries a stigma of weakness and unfaithfulness. As you can see, it very often is the result of poor judgment on the part of the parents or the teachers.
Talk about fire and dire warnings, just look at this!
"It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were thrown into the sea, than that he should offend one of these little ones." Luke 17:2
On the other hand, "I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth." 3 John 1:4
There are, of course, other reasons for depression
Christians, and anyone else, for that matter, can suffer from depression for reasons entirely unrelated to a misunderstood faith. Here is an excellent resource to learn more about the physical causes of depression.

Randy Hough
Useful, real-life insight to help with the stress on today's family

Father of eight lively children, formerly a youth
pastor in Christian church,well travelled in
Europe and South America. Has a passion for
helping families deal with the stress of modern
life.