17 Bible Verses About Battling Depression

Depression is extremely tough and one of the hardest things I have had to battle. Hands down, I would not have been able to do it without God. He just made things easier to handle. I prayed. A LOT. I wanted to share some bible verses that can be of some comfort if like me, God is a big part of you fighting this illness.

Zechariah 9:12 "Return to the stronghold, You prisoners of hope. Even today I declare That I will restore double to you." All this pain we are enduring currently, and this internal turmoil, will be worth it. We just need to keep our hope, because God will make things better for us.

Micah 5:5 "And this One shall be peace." We will have peace, even if it seems so far away now, peace is reachable. God is peace and will give peace to us.

Psalm 34:18 "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit." God is with us when we are broken hearted and weak. He hasn't forgotten us. He loves us and sent his only son to die for us. He will not forget you.

1 Peter 5:6-7 "Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time,  casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you." God cares about you, so when you feel overwhelmed just give it all to Him. He wants you to and He will listen to your cries. He will help save you.

Psalm 31: 22 "For I said in my haste, “I am cut off from before Your eyes”; Nevertheless You heard the voice of my supplications When I cried out to You." Again, like it is said many times in the bible: he hears you when you are desperate and need Him. He's with you, you aren't ever alone.

Psalm 37:23-24 "The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way. Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down; For the Lord upholds him with His hand." God is with you when you are trying your best to do the right things and be a good person. He's proud of you for your efforts, and even if you make a mistake he's not going to throw you away. God is with you and is proud of you, so keep trying.

John 16:33 "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world." Again, God says that with Him you will have peace. Don't get down about having hard times, but try to be positive and be happy while knowing that it is worth it. The world is a place where you will have hard times, but know God and know that He is with you every step of the way.

Nehemiah 8:10 "Then he said to them, “Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing is prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength." Stay strong! I know that when you are depressed, you may not feel like eating or like you need to make sure that you are eating. It's important that you take care of your body that God has given to you.

Hosea 6:1 "Come, and let us return to the Lord; For He has torn, but He will heal us; He has stricken, but He will bind us up." God knows what is best for us, and He will make things right for us.

2 Timothy 1:7 "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind." I love this verse. God doesn't want us to be afraid. He doesn't want us to be fearful of tomorrow. We shouldn't hate ourselves either. If God who made us and loves us, why shouldn't we love ourselves?

Philippians 4:13, 19 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.... And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." God strengthens us. With Him we can do anything. And God will take care of us too. When it says 'all your need', it includes our mental wellbeing. God will find a way for us to be better, whether that be with doctors or by training ourselves.

Isaiah 43:2 "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you." When we are going through trials, God will be with us. When we feel like we are overwhelmed, He won't give us more than we can handle. When we feel like we are drowning in our negativity and horrible thoughts racking in our brains, He will find a way. God will protect us through the troubles of life. He has always been there and always will be.

Psalm 46:1 "God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble." God will be there when we need safety from the storms in our mind and outside. He gives us strength and helps us through all our troubles.

Psalm 119:50 "This is my comfort in my affliction, For Your word has given me life." God is here to be your comfort. You are His, and He wants to protect us. Like I've said, the Bible is a comfort, just like God is a comfort. Pray to Him and tell Him all that is on your heart and in your mind. He is there for us when we feel like no one else is. He is with you now and forever and before you even took your first breathe or your heart began to beat inside your tiny chest in your mother's womb.

Matthew 11:28 "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." I love this church hymn that is based off this Bible verse. God is saying he will give us rest, and like said many times before He will protect us and be our refuge.

Psalm 23:4 "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me." God can most certainly be of great comfort. If our Almighty God is with you, what do you have to fear?

Psalm 40:1-3 "I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. He also brought me up out of a horrible pit,Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. He has put a new song in my mouth— Praise to our God;Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the Lord." God saves us and shows us life. Just trust in God and that He will work things out for you and find a way. God will help you get out of the bad place you are in now, just have faith in Him.

Hate Sin & Love Sinners

     A problem I have seen first hand in my generation is some people who call themselves Christian telling people that aren't following God that they are going to hell. James 1:26 - If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridles not his tongue, but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is vain. They may indeed be in a lost state, but are those words loving? No! And love is supposed to be the center of Christianity. This goes for any sin: adultery, drug abuse, drunkenness, fornication, homosexuality, gossip, murder, and lying. God sees all sin as equal. As humans, we like to categorize or scale things; we see a difference between gossip and murder, when God may not.

     My Christian brothers and sisters, please think about your words and how it affects someone before you say them! Does saying, "You are going to hell for this" glorify God and bring others to church? No! Proverbs 15:1 - A soft answer turns away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger. -- 1 Thessalonians 2:12 - That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory. Remember that it is not our place to say "you're going to hell" or "you're not going to hell". We are not all knowing, we are not the judge, and we sure are NOT God. James 4:12 - There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor? We are not perfect, therefore, have no right to tell someone that they are going to hell. When we say something like that - it IS hateful. Even if you mean well - there is no possible positive way that can be taken. Now it isn't wrong to say and judge that sin is wrong and bad, but we shouldn't pick out a person that we know struggles with that sin and judge them by saying they are going to hell. All of us are capable of repenting and once again being accepted by God just as we are all capable of giving in to temptation and losing our salvation. The only way we can bring others to Christ is with LOVE. If I had made a mistake and had someone come up to me and tell me I'm going to hell - I would NOT want to go to whatever church they went to, and it would make me so upset to have someone tell me that basically I'll burn in hell for eternity for a mistake I made. We do not know the hearts of people. Maybe they are trying to fix their life, maybe not, maybe they don't know what to do - but that doesn't mean it is okay to say they are going to hell. 1 Corinthians 2:11 - For what man knows the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God.

     Some people these days confuse hating sin and hating the sinner. There is a BIG difference. We should make an effort to see everyone as equals. We should know that we are all in the same fight, maybe fighting different sins, but still fighting in the same world. We also need to know that good people make mistakes sometimes, and we should try to continue loving everyone like Jesus did. Jesus died for sinners. He died for people he had never really met. John 3:16  “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. We should all strive for such compassion and love, even though we can't meet the depth of love that Jesus has for us. John 13:34-35 - A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. We should strive for a love that we see everyone as worthy enough to be brought to God because EVERYONE is worthy enough to try. Jesus/God proved this when Jesus died on the cross for us.  2 Thessalonians 1:11 - Wherefore also we pray always for you, that our God would count you worthy of this calling, and fulfill all the good pleasure of his goodness, and the work of faith with power...

     When we may say something like "you are going to hell" we are sinning! Proverbs 10:19 - In the multitude of words there wants not sin: but he that refrains his lips is wise. -- James 3:10 - Out of the same mouth proceeds blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be. We should make sure our words are something God will be proud of. Even staying quiet and not saying anything makes God proud, in situations like these. Lastly is one more verse that we should remember before we speak. 1 Corinthians 16:14 - Let all your things be done with charity. By loving others and saying only loving words, we are showing our soul to God.

Love, Emily.