Our Happiness Is Our Responsibility
ICS Daily Devotions
Most of us have found ourselves in the blues, feeling down, and having to fight discouragement or depression at some point in our lives. The trigger can be anything from life’s circumstances and sicknesses to people’s remarks or actions. These feelings are normal because we are human, and are created to have emotions. Reasons for depression can be clinical, biological, or spiritual.
1 Samuel 30:3-4 (NKJV) So David and his men came to the city, and there it was, burned with fire; and their wives, their sons, and their daughters had been taken captive. Then David and the people who were with him lifted up their voices and wept, until they had no more power to weep.
David is known for being the fearless warrior who killed the lion and the bear as a shepherd boy, and the mighty conqueror of Goliath. Nonetheless, through this passage of Scripture, we discover how distressed David felt when he came back from battle to find that the homes of him and his men had been destroyed and their spouses and children taken captive. Together, they lifted up their voices and wept. People in leadership positions or public figures often find it difficult to reveal their vulnerable sides, but the truth is they will feel weak and discouraged too, and it is normal for us to release our emotions through weeping and wailing because that is part of our emotional makeup. In fact, it is a good relief valve that God has designed for us as humans.
1 Samuel 30:6 (NKJV) Now David was greatly distressed, for the people spoke of stoning him, because the soul of all the people was grieved, every man for his sons and his daughters. But David strengthened himself in the Lord his God.
When David’s men blamed him for what happened and wanted to stone him, David strengthened himself in the Lord. In her book “Up: Writing A New Chapter of Joy and Laughter”, Beth Jones wrote: “The truth is that if we are going to be happy and joyful, we are going to have to start by encouraging ourselves in the Lord. To overcome feelings of depression and discouragement, we have to accept the fact that we are responsible for our happiness.…. It’s up to us! We must take responsibility for seeking the Lord and choosing His will.”
While it would be good to have someone to journey with us through life’s losses, because God uses people to encourage us, it is important that we find comfort and solace in the presence of God, because God wants us to be dependent upon Him.
Even though we may feel down, we need not stay down. By repositioning our lives based on the Bible, we can begin to move up because God is the lifter of our heads. He has taken us out of the miry clay and placed us on the rock of Jesus Christ.
Sermon Series: UP! CG Campaign
