Anxiety, Depression, and Praise

^1 Lord, how many are my foes!
    How many rise up against me!
^2 Many are saying of me,
    “God will not deliver him.”

³ But you, Lord, are a shield around me,
    my glory, the One who lifts my head high.
^4 I call out to the Lord,
    and he answers me from his holy mountain.

^8 From the Lord comes deliverance.
    May your blessing be on your people.

Psalm 3:3-8

Most mornings before I get out of bed, I lie there and praise God by acknowledging His many names. Omnipotent, Omniscient, and Omnipresent are a few of my favorites. Psalm three offers five more: My Shield, My Glory, the Lifter of my head, Sustainer, and Deliverer. When I spend the first few moments of my day in praise, something happens. I can’t even describe how it lifts me; however, I can tell you how life changes when I allow the busyness of my schedule to interrupt my praising.

During those seasons when I’ve succumbed to the pressures of the calendar, I find myself feeling depressed. I begin to doubt everything. I wonder why I write, and I second-guess my purpose. Without my morning dose of praise feelings of worthlessness creep in, and I question whether anything I do makes a difference. Overwhelmed, I don’t want to get out of bed, and after a few days, everything around me causes anxiety.

One might blame over-scheduling for my feelings of failure; however, when I get honest with myself, I know I’ve survived much busier times without the dismal oppression. I’ve made myself tired and created a mental note to be more protective of my calendar, but I’ve lived in weeks of over-commitment and avoided the dark cloud.

The pencil marks on my calendar are seldom the problem. My bleak feelings come when I get out of bed in the morning without at least a five or ten minute conversation with my Father that centers on His goodness. My mental health requires at least one prayer a day with no requests, no petitions, just praise.

David gives us the example. In the majority of His songs, even when the great king cries to the Lord for protection, David focuses on who God is. In Psalm three David vents in verses one and two and makes his request in verse seven. He spends more than half this Psalm acknowledging the greatness of God.

Perhaps these kinds of prayers are most effective because they put life back into perspective. In addition to being a fragrant offering to God, the praise reminds the created that the Almighty Creator and Sovereign Provider has a perfect plan. Making lists of the attributes of the Father combats our human forgetfulness.

I believe this kind of praise also unleashes the Holy Spirit in our lives. He carries our groans to the Father and speaks words of peace and assurance to our soul.

So, the next time you feel overwhelmed by life, just praise. Allow your Deliverer and the Lifter of you head to work as you let go of control and remind yourself, “God’s got this.”

As always, thanks for stopping by!

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Enjoy Dive In to a Life of Freedom: Finding Healing in the Story of Naaman
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