You Can Have Joy!
You will show me the path of life;
In Your presence is fullness of joy;
At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
– Psalm 16:11.
Depression can be very devastating. My mother had a struggle with depression most of her adult life. While I was a teenager she was in and out of hospitals. She had so many shock treatments that I lost track of the times.
The tendency to have depression seems to be inherited. My sister was hospitalized for depression, as was my uncle and his two daughters. My grandmother also had a problem with depression, and I have had my own struggles at times.
My greatest relief from depression has come from the Lord. Through prayer I have found peace beyond understanding. Through the reading of God’s Word and memorizing God’s Word I have found strength to keep moving forward when it didn’t seem possible. In His presence I have found joy.
At His right hand I have found relief from torment that would have otherwise destroyed my life.
Is your life empty of happiness? Try this prescription: Seek the Lord with all your heart, mind, and soul. As you pursue God you will find that out of that pursuit will come a “fullness of joy.”
(This devotional has been updated and was originally written and sent on 01.18.1999.)