Antidepressants For The Soul, First Dose

“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.”
Psalm 147:3 (NIV)

How do you recover from a broken heart?  Few things in life are more painful.  Whether it was from a failed relationship, death, divorce, disease, or disaster, most of what causes our hearts to break share one thing in common – irreversible loss.  The Psalmist experienced a broken heart from a national calamity that exiled him to a place far from home.  Longing for what he once enjoyed, he cried, “My heart is breaking as I remember how it used to be….” (Psalm 42:4a, NLT).

Are you heartbroken from some irreversible change?  Memories of how your life used to be leave you depressed with how it is today. A pastor I know suffered a horrific accident that rocked his world and would change his life in an instant.  Nothing would be the same.  Years of therapy, loss of ministry, and income left him depressed and confused.  He became disillusioned with God.  As he began to process his pain, he called it the new normal!  The one constant in life is change.  Nothing remains the same, and uninvited, irreversible change can be heartbreaking. But there is hope. The Psalmist says, “He (God) heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” (Psalm 147:3, NIV). The Creator who made our hearts is a heart specialist! He knows the pain we feel and offers emotional healing. But how? How does God heal the brokenhearted? Another psalm sheds some light on how God binds up our wounds from a broken heart.  

In Psalm 42, we find hope for emotional healing.  It’s one of those unique interactive Psalms where the reader is invited to process their own pain along with the Psalmist.  Three times in chapters 42 and 43, he writes, “Why am I discouraged?  Why is my heart so sad?  I will put my trust in God!  I will praise Him again – my Savior and my God!” and then he adds this in verse 6, “Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember You….”  Wow! Talk about antidepressants for the soul!  When your heart is broken, do what this Psalmist did.

1.    Admit it.

Denying your pain or hiding behind a fake “ministry smile” is disingenuous and doesn’t work.  It only represses the pain, creating more problems later.  Don’t repress the pain you feel; express it to God.  Revealing your feelings is the first step to healing. The Psalmist wasn’t afraid to say, “I am discouraged. My heart is sad.” (Psalm 42:5, NLT). These are natural responses to irreversible loss.  We all feel them when our hearts are broken. No one is so spiritual that they are immune to that kind of pain.

2.    Affirm your faith.

Once he expressed his pain openly and honestly, he was able to affirm his faith in God.  He said, “I will put my trust in God!  I will praise Him again – my Savior and my God!” (Vs. 6). Even when the loss is irreversible, it’s still only temporary!  Even when everything feels all wrong, one day everything will be ALL right. After much suffering, the apostle Paul wrote, “That is why we are not discouraged. Though outwardly we are wearing out, inwardly we are renewed day by day. Our suffering is light and temporary and is producing for us an eternal glory that is greater than anything we can imagine. We don't look for things that can be seen but for things that can't be seen. Things that can be seen are only temporary. But things that can't be seen last forever.” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18, GW). Everything in this life is temporary.  It will all pass away. But God is preparing an eternal glory for us that is greater than anything we could imagine. Heaven is real!

Come back tomorrow for another dose of antidepressants for the soul found in Psalm 42.

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To read this devotional online or catch up on past ones, visit https://kerryshook.org/blog.

Another important part of your daily devotional is spending time with God in prayer. The Woodlands Church Prayer Board lists prayer requests submitted by our members and provides a way to send them some encouragement by using a button on the page to let them know that you prayed for them. Whether you use the Prayer Board or pray from your heart, the goal is to build the habit of incorporating prayer into your quiet time.

Need prayer yourself? Let us know by submitting a prayer request on the Woodlands Church Prayer Board.