Cases of depression are at an all-time high, and for far too many people, the Christmas season exacerbates the problem. Shopping creates emotional stress as credit cards are maxed out in order to keep those little kiddies happy. Many feel overwhelmed by the endless television promotions of holiday celebrations, knowing they don’t measure up. I get it.  Their tables would make Martha Stewart envious.  Seriously.  I mean, who has a table big enough to hold 16 Lenox China place settings? Still, adults aren’t the only ones suffering.

Schools today are spending much of their resources, hiring mental health counselors to help students cope, and pharmaceutical companies are making billions on drugs intended to reduce anxiety and depression. At a doctor’s visit this past week, I was asked a routine question: “Are you depressed?”  I knew she didn’t mean the usual feelings of working through the stress of Christmas travels or being sad because I didn’t lose the weight I vowed to lose for the last several New Years’ Eve resolutions.  She was talking about the overriding feeling of being down with no hope.  Just a few years ago, that question was not asked in a doctor’s office.

Yesterday, I visited with a local woman who shared the story of her relative who spent years suffering from drug-induced depression, and after multiple stays in the penitentiary, decided to come clean and turn back to Jesus. For over two years, he has held a job, been promoted to management, and now speaks to students, warning them never to start drugs.  His heart-felt prayer at Thanksgiving, I was told, caused every adult to tear up.

A few days ago, I met a woman who is seeking answers for her granddaughter who feels hopeless and claims she is picked on in school.  Her medication doesn’t seem to help.

Granted, there are people who need medicine.  But there are some who do not.  They just need Jesus.  Of course, our laws prohibit us from sharing this answer with our students or our employees or our soldiers or our patients.  We who can offer Hope, are told we cannot.  And yes, for some, the answer is medicine-plus-Jesus, but we don’t even give him a chance to make a difference.

It makes no sense.  If you had a migraine and I had a pill that would cure your headache, should I not be able to tell you about it?  If your marriage were on the rocks and I had a way to solve your problem, should our legislative body deny me the right to explain such Hope to you?  If your company was about to go belly-up and I had an answer to keep you in the black, should anyone keep me from speaking up?

Finding 2023 statistics on how many people suffer from depression led to ads on specific drugs to reduce depression, but Rexulti did promote its company by saying this: “Major depressive disorder is a serious medical illness affecting an estimated 21 million American adults…A large study showed that 2 out of 3 people taking an antidepressant still experienced symptoms of depression.”

Someone posted this:     “When Elijah said ‘Lord, I want to die,’ God gave him the strength to live.  Depression is real. But so is God.  Anxiety is real. But so is hope.”

The worst thing we Christians can do is to judge those who suffer with mental health struggles. But we should be allowed to intersect faith and mental health by supporting and loving those who seek answers. By offering them the Hope that Jesus offers.