Proverbs 12

“Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.” (Proverbs 12:25, NKJV)

Anxiety and depression have been around for a long time, but lately they seem to be even more common. People have panic attacks; they cannot control their anxious thoughts; they fall into a pit of depression and despair.

Charles Spurgeon struggled with depression. He wrote:

“I know, perhaps as well as anyone, what depression means, and what it is to feel myself sinking lower and lower. Yet at the worst, when I reach the lowest depths, I have an inward peace which no pain or depression can in the least disturb. Trusting in Jesus Christ my Savior, there is still a blessed quietness in the deep caverns of my soul.”

When I have been depressed or feel discouraged, I have often come to this verse in Proverbs. Our own restless thoughts and fears weigh down the heart. The mind fixed upon itself slips into a pit of despair. The solution is to focus outside ourselves. Pastor Spurgeon trusted in Christ the Savior as the anchor of his soul. He could not always control his bouts of depression, but deep down inside he had peace that the Lord loved him and would bring him through it.

Likewise, when we feel anxiety or depression coming on, we should quickly reach for the Word of God. I have found that meditating on the Psalms and then praying through them is extremely helpful in reorienting my thoughts and pulling me out of the pit. It is the good word of God that gladdens the heart and restores our peace and sanity in the Lord.