Need to talk? Power to Change offers a free mentoring program where you can talk privately with a trained mentor.

This is supposed to be a season of joy and happiness, but many people don’t feel it. Many people suffer from bouts of depression or the blues at different times during the year. During the holiday season people encounter memories of loved ones they have lost through death or divorce or friends who have moved away. People experience stress and difficult family reunions over the holidays. Depression is a growing problem. In fact, psychologists have said that we live in an “age of depression”.

There are many causes for this mood disorder. Reasons for depression range from grief, divorce, major changes, lack of sunlight or physical exercise, a general disappointment with life or friends, low self-worth, relationship, spiritual or anger problems, false beliefs about life and God, trauma from the past, deficiency of neurological chemicals and more.

What are some of the symptoms of depression? Check to see if you have been experiencing any of these symptoms:

1. Loss of appetite. Weight gain or loss.
2. Depressed affect. Children & Adolescents: cranky, irritable, angry/explosive outbursts.
3. Diminished interest in or enjoyment of activities.
4. Psychomotor agitation or retardation.
5. Sleeplessness or hypersomnia.
6. Lack of energy.
7. Poor concentration and indecisiveness.
8. Social withdrawal.
9. Suicidal thoughts and/or gestures.
10. Feelings of hopelessness, worthlessness, excessive or inappropriate guilt.
11. Low self-esteem.
12. Unresolved grief issues.
13. Hallucinations or delusions.

If you have 3 or more of the above symptoms which have lasted for over 2 weeks, you should seek medical help or professional counseling. You can find a counselor or go to the nearest mental health center.If you are suicidal please contact 911 (in the USA or Canada) or go to a hospital emergency room.

How do you move beyond depression?

Usually people who are feeling depressed are not doing what would help them feel better.

• Talking about your feelings with someone is very beneficial. Exploring with someone, especially a counselor, what is underlying your feelings can help you begin to problem-solve.
• Seeing your doctor for a physical exam and telling him/her about your depression can lead to further treatment for physiological causes. You may need to consider taking an anti-depressant.
• Regular exercise and proper diet, spending time with family and friends and reaching out to others is very helpful. Seeking a relationship with God and praying to Him brings hope and encouragement when you are feeling down-hearted.

If you or someone you know are trying these activities and still stuck in depression, it is wise to seek out professional Christian counseling.

Is there a spiritual dimension to depression?

Is there a spiritual dimension to depression that gets overlooked when we rush into taking medication? In other words, in our effort to “hurry up and feel good” do we possibly miss out on important lessons that God might be wanting to teach us? There most certainly is always a spiritual dimension to depression. In the book of Psalms in the Bible, David, one of the Kings of Israel wrote:

Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise him, my Savior and my God.

Most people who walk in my office feeling depressed are spiritually hungry. Many have a general sense of distance from or disappointment with God. They struggle with periods of doubt about God’s love for them and begin to question whether He will help them through their problems. Some people express anger towards God wondering, “how a good God can allow suffering?”. Or they question whether God exists. This spiritual vacuum can actually be the basis for some of the hopelessness and despair they feel.

Depression is a complex disorder.

Since human beings are very complex it is necessary to address all the underlying causes of depression such as: low self-esteem, losses, physical pain, relationship or financial issues, guilt, shame, trauma, dysfunctional family issues, along with the spiritual and physiological reasons.

Medication can give people more motivation and energy to get through a depressive period in their life but it will not be a cure-all for depression. One must take steps to fight depression on all fronts: spiritually, mentally, physically, emotionally and relationally.

The great news for this holiday season and throughout the year is that God does exist and whether you realize it right now or not, he loves you very much.  You are not in this alone. If you are looking for someone you can place your trust in, a foundation to build upon, you can find that safe place whether you’re in a relationship right now or not.  Place your trust in God and his promises.  Anchor your life to the hope that he brings.

He is the well deep enough to draw from when you need peace, hope and wisdom, insight and love, endurance and faith. He gave His Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for all our sins.  Everyone feels unworthy sometimes, but God thinks you’re worth it—even worth the death of His Son.

You can receive Christ right now by faith through prayer. Praying is simply talking to God. God knows your heart and is not so concerned with your words as He is with the attitude of your heart. Here’s a suggested prayer:

Lord Jesus, I want to know you personally. Thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. I open the door of my life to you and ask you to come in as my Savior and Lord. Take control of my life. Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me eternal life. Make me the kind of person you want me to be.

Does this prayer express the desires of your heart? You can pray it right now, and Jesus will come into your life, and forgive you of your sins forever, just as he promised.

“We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the wonders he has done.” Psalms 78:1-4

Do you have the impression that the next generation is not interested in hearing about the things of the Lord? We sometimes feel the divide is so great that we simply stay in our familiar circles far removed from theirs. Sometimes our own judgments even keep us from seeing past the earrings and tattoos. Yet there is a deep growing hunger in our youth for spiritual understanding and they are seeking answers that we, who have walked with the Lord and have experienced His faithfulness, have to offer.

Would it surprise you if you drove past your church this week and found over 500 young people lined up to ask a Christian mentor questions about life and faith?

That is exactly what is happening here at TruthMedia. It’s amazing! God is at work! A ministry from the US – DMLive – has partnered with us to help teens. Our mentor center receives thousands of emails every month from teens wanting to talk with someone about the challenges of their lives. Watch DMLive’s Dawson McAllister talk about his experience with The Mentor Center and mentoring teens.

Would you consider being a mentor to teens? We offer training and resources to help you. If you receive an inquiry you don’t feel equipped to respond to you can return it to the pool and receive another so you only deal with ones you are comfortable with. You can sign up for just one a month, one a week or one a day, whatever works into your schedule.

Look around you today and watch for the teens in your circle of influence. Pray for them as you pass them on the street. Share your own story with a grandchild. Ask God for creative ways to tell the next generation of His faithfulness to you. And please investigate the possibility of becoming a teen mentor. These kids are sitting down at their computers and seeking answers that their hearts yearn for.

Your faith in Jesus and your stories of His faithfulness to you are just the things that will inspire this next generation to look to God as well. Won’t you consider being a teen mentor today?

Father God,
Thank you that Your Spirit never ceases to draw hearts to You. Help me today to see the teens in my circle with new eyes. Help me to see the hungry hearts behind the fashion statements and to pray for those I encounter each day. Open opportunities for me to share Your faithfulness in fresh ways. If You desire for me to be a teen mentor online please don’t let the thought leave me and help me to respond. Lord, I want to share Your praiseworthy deeds with the next generation in whatever way You open for me today. In the strong name of Jesus I pray, amen.

Please check out the Mentor Application today.

Questions: How do you view the next generation? Are you willing to let God use you today to reach out to a teen in your world or online?

Related
Become a mentor and change a life

Related
Change lives! Become an online mentor

If you’re lacking peace, contact an online mentor to today to talk about it.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

I love this scripture. This is a promise that I have held onto so many times in my life. I believe that this scripture so clearly describes the character of Jesus and His desire for our lives.

When we think about relaxing, we often think about a massage, a nice bubble bath, or a day at the spa. How many of us can say that when we think about relaxation, we think about Jesus? How many of us truly come to Him when we are burdened and allow Him to give us rest?

I have to admit that allowing myself to rest in Him is not as easy. I often find myself treating Jesus as my best friend. I tell Him everything and ask for His wisdom and counsel. But, once I have told Him everything, I continue to worry about or try to control the situation. You see, in order for Jesus to give us rest, we have to take His yoke upon us and learn from Him. We have to stop trying to control everything that happens in our lives, and give all of the control over to Him.

There are so many things in our world today that can make us weary. Many of us worry, some deal with issues of obsession and control, others have exhausting relationship issues. We allow our circumstances to burden us and we become tired and stressed.

This is not the life that Jesus has for us. He does not want us to be weary and longs to give us rest. His gentleness and humbleness can be refreshing and renewing. Just the thought of sitting with Jesus and allowing Him to take on my burdens brings peace to my soul.

When we come to Jesus broken and upset, He longs to show us how small our lives really are when compared to eternity and the life we will have with Him when we leave this world.

However, while we are here, we can find joy in knowing that our Savior has promised rest from the world in Him. He is waiting for us to come and rest in His arms. He is longing for us to sit at His feet and find peace that surpasses our understanding.

Are you living the life that you have been called to live? Do you allow Jesus to bring rest and peace to your life? Or do you spend every moment of your life searching for a way to find rest and relaxation?

Ask God to remind you that His yoke is easy and His burden is light. When you begin to feel tired and stressed, stop and come to Him. When you come, don’t just come, but come and unload. He promises that He can take it and is more than willing to give you the rest and relaxation you need and deserve!

Questions: What do you do when you find yourself weary, anxious, or lacking peace?

Related:
Want To Become A Mentor?

Would you like to make a difference in peoples lives? Would you consider becoming an online mentor?

Related:
What is required to be an online mentor?

Mentors and friends are those who pour into your life making your life richer because of their influence. Making friends is a skill that can be developed as you learn to put others first and foremost in your life. You will develop deeper friendships as you learn what matters to people and make an investment into their life by being their friend.  Take this study to learn more about mentors and friends.

“It’s better to be criticized by a wise man than praised by a fool” Ecclesiastes 7:5

Mentors can bring out the best in you and help you achieve God’s unique mission for your life. They help you keep growing—in your roles, your goals, and your soul.

To be mentored, you must learn to listen and receive feedback. I’ve had eight different mentors in my life. I also have a whole list of advisors—they’re like my brain trust. I bounce ideas off them and get their feedback.

The Bible teaches the importance of accepting feedback: “It’s better to be criticized by a wise man than praised by a fool” (Ecclesiastes 7:5).

Feedback is absolutely essential in order to fulfill God’s mission for your life. If you don’t get feedback, you’re going to get off course. Did you know that in all the Apollo flights to the moon the shuttles had to do course corrections literally every second? The earth was turning, the moon was turning, and in order to get the rocket to the spot on the moon where it was supposed to be at a specific time, the astronauts had to continually correct their course.

And that means they had to get feedback.

If you’re not open to feedback, you’re not going to learn, you’re not going to grow, and you’re not going to develop. Go out and find someone you trust, someone with skills and experiences you can learn from and ask that person to be your mentor.

Question: Do you have a mentor? Why or why not?

About the Author: Rick Warren

A young woman recently shared her thoughts with us, “I’ve been thinking about suicide recently because of certain things going on in my life…but I read on many websites that if you commit suicide you burn in hell for eternity…is that true?”   In these times of darkness, people think of eternity. A search on Google lands them on PowertoChange.com.  We are able to connect them with our mentors, who give encouragement and the message of hope.  At Power to Change, we have the unique privilege of connecting people who want to talk with Christian volunteers who are ready to make a difference in someone’s life.  What an incredible and overwhelming opportunity this is!

Recently, we made a discovery: people love videos. They watch, comment on and share videos with their friends. To respond to this, we created the iTV Network (Internet Television Network) on PowertoChange.com. iTV communicates the gospel to this visual and relational generation.

Here’s how the iTV Network works:
> Jane is struggling with thoughts of suicide.
> She sees a compelling video clip from iTV that was shared through Facebook.
> After watching the video, Jane connects with a Christian mentor through The Mentor Center <http://truthmedia.com/thementorcenter/> who encourages her and shares the Gospel with her.
> The mentor sends Jane links to life stories, chats, online lessons and other articles as she continues her spiritual journey. Her mentor walks with her every step of the way, always an email away.

See more on iTV by watching this video <http://powertochange.com/itv/spirituality/why-itv/>

Since the launch of iTV, an average of 82% of visitors who viewed a video went on to visit key ministry pages including mentoring and Gospel presentations. From there, a mentor begins a spiritual conversation.  iTV is a phenomenon. People are coming to Jesus, it really works!

Will you partner with us as we use every tool we have to share Jesus with the world? Your gift will help us connect mentors to people struggling through life. Lives are being saved for now and eternity.   We are in a time of financial need.   Please help us by giving a monthly gift or a special one time gift to enable us to keep moving forward with this very effective ministry.

Donate today: http://secure.powertochange.org/p-410-truth-media-internet-group.aspx.

Serving together,

Karen Schenk
Director, TruthMedia