The best way to get rid of depression!

 

 

Please click this link for the video version of today's blog :

Silence

1.   Put on your “brakes” and stop for a moment of silence

      2.   Wait for God. Breathe deep for God's peace and feel His presence. Exhale your worries.

     Praise and Thanksgiving

1.   Think through your day, all the times that made you smile. 

2.   Thank God for all those moments, and for all those people

3.          **Sing a song to praise the Lord

      Please click this link to worship with us - 

      

       Be with You: City Harvest Church, Singapore

        https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Epkh71WTUFs&list=RDEpkh71WTUFs&start_radio=1

      10,000 Reasons

     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3K3roEF36k

      

     Confession and Repentance (Subjective Shifting Devotion Method) 

      https://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/08/count-down-5-subject-shifting-devotion.html

1.  Pray for the Holy Spirit to shine on you that you are able to discover your sins and be willing to repent:

     “Dear Holy Spirit, shine your light into the places of darkness in my life. Show me my sins, everything that blocks me from encountering God and having Jesus as my Lord. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.”

2.  Through the Holy Spirit, examine yourself for a short silence and then pray:

     "Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for dying on the cross for our sins and being victorious over death and sin. I confess my sins to you(pause, to tell Jesus what the Holy Spirit has shown you). Forgive my sins by your blood and help me follow you. Holy Spirit, fill me that I may be able to receive your gifts to love God and His people. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen."

3.  John Stott's daily prayer of Christlikeness (Christopher J.H. Wright, Cultivating the fruit of the Spirit. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2017, 13)

**Please click this link to read how God used John Stott to change my life:https://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/07/

           "Heavenly Father, I pray that this day I may live in your presence and please you more and more.

             Lord Jesus, I pray that this day I may take up my cross and follow you.

             Holy Spirit, I pray that this day you will fill me with yourself and cause your fruit to ripen in my life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control."

Today's Time with Abba: Psalm 135:8-14, 1 Kings 19:1-21; Acts 12:1-23; Proverbs 17:14-15

Please click this link for today's Time with Abba one year Bible: http://twa.pastoralcareschool.org/

To know, learn and practice the method of Time with Abba, please click this link:http://twa.pastoralcareschool.org/

Key passage:  

       Now Ahab told Jezebel everything Elijah had done and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. 2 So Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah to say, “May the gods deal with me, be it ever so severely, if by this time tomorrow I do not make your life like that of one of them.”

3 Elijah was afraid and ran for his life. When he came to Beershebain Judah, he left his servant there, 4 while he himself went a day’s journey into the wilderness. He came to a broom bush, sat down under it and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life; I am no better than my ancestors.” 5 Then he lay down under the bush and fell asleep.

All at once an angel touched him and said, “Get up and eat.” 6 He looked around, and there by his head was some bread baked over hot coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drank and then lay down again.

7 The angel of the Lord came back a second time and touched him and said, “Get up and eat, for the journey is too much for you.” 8 So he got up and ate and drank. Strengthened by that food, he traveled forty days and forty nights until he reached Horeb, the mountain of God. 9 There he went into a cave and spent the night.

                                                               1 Kings 19:1-8

Let's have a time to be still and give the Holy Spirit space to speak through today's TWA passages we have just read. Offer this time to Jesus as you listen to Him.

The topic I received today from Jesus is: The best way to get rid of depression!

    The anointed and powerful Elijah the Prophet was in deep depression after his great victory to killed 850 wicked Baal and Asherah prophets! How can that be?

      What I think is that if even Elijah could be in deep depression and want to kill himself, we all could have the possibility to fall into that darkness!

      The most important point is that, how could Elijah get rid of his depression and later become the prophet to represent all prophets? Do you remember in Jesus transfiguration, Moses and Elijah appeared to chat with Jesus? Wow! Moses represents the Law and Elijah represents the Prophets of the Old Testament!

      If you read today's passage closely you can find out the big shift of Elijah was when he cried out to God and poured his heart to Him! Wow! Then after that, everything was God's own work!

     God sent an angel to feed him with hot baked bread! Yummy!

     You know, the sign of people in depression is not able to sleep and eat. And, God sent an angel to help him to drink, eat and sleep!

     Another sign of depression especially for Christians is they do not want to have time with the Lord, no daily devotion, no church, no God for a long time!

      Then, the angel encouraged Elijah to walk for 40 days and nights to meet God and prepared him to listen and obey to God again! It is just like the Lord used me to invited two leaders sometime ago who were in depression to come to our 6am Time with Abba and 7am Praise and Prayer for 40 days. They did and their depression was gone! Wow!

      After Elijah's 40 days, God spoke to him, warned him of his self-centredness, anointed him, prophesied to him and gave him a helper, his successor Elisha! Wow!

     

      Then, please read below of how God changed Elijah from a one-man-band leader to a leaders not only with Elisha as his disciple but many disciples. And, God counted as Elijah's anointing of Hazael and Jehu but in fact it was Elisha anointed Hazael and Elisha's disciple anointed Jehu. Do you see that? Even Elijah was in heaven, but God counted Elijah's disciple and disciple's disciple as  his spiritual fruits!

 

      7 Elisha went to Damascus, and Ben-Hadad king of Aram was ill. When the king was told, “The man of God has come all the way up here,” 8 he said to Hazael, “Take a gift with you and go to meet the man of God. Consult the Lord through him; ask him, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”

9 Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him as a gift forty camel-loads of all the finest wares of Damascus. He went in and stood before him, and said, “Your son Ben-Hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”

10 Elisha answered, “Go and say to him, ‘You will certainly recover.’ Nevertheless,[a]the Lord has revealed to me that he will in fact die.” 11 He stared at him with a fixed gaze until Hazael was embarrassed. Then the man of God began to weep.

12 “Why is my lord weeping?” asked Hazael.

“Because I know the harm you will do to the Israelites,” he answered. “You will set fire to their fortified places, kill their young men with the sword, dash their little children to the ground, and rip open their pregnant women.”

13 Hazael said, “How could your servant, a mere dog, accomplish such a feat?”

“The Lord has shown me that you will become king of Aram,” answered Elisha.

14 Then Hazael left Elisha and returned to his master. When Ben-Hadad asked, “What did Elisha say to you?” Hazael replied, “He told me that you would certainly recover.” 15 But the next day he took a thick cloth, soaked it in water and spread it over the king’s face, so that he died. Then Hazael succeeded him as king.

                                                      2 Kings 8:7-15

The prophet Elisha summoned a man from the company of the prophets and said to him, “Tuck your cloak into your belt, take this flask of olive oil with you and go to Ramoth Gilead. 2 When you get there, look for Jehu son of Jehoshaphat, the son of Nimshi. Go to him, get him away from his companions and take him into an inner room. 3 Then take the flask and pour the oil on his head and declare, ‘This is what the Lord says: I anoint you king over Israel.’ Then open the door and run; don’t delay!”

4 So the young prophet went to Ramoth Gilead. 5 When he arrived, he found the army officers sitting together. “I have a message for you, commander,” he said.

“For which of us?” asked Jehu.

“For you, commander,” he replied.

6 Jehu got up and went into the house. Then the prophet poured the oil on Jehu’s head and declared, “This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: ‘I anoint you king over the Lord’s people Israel. 7 You are to destroy the house of Ahab your master, and I will avenge the blood of my servants the prophets and the blood of all the Lord’s servants shed by Jezebel. 8 The whole house of Ahab will perish. I will cut off from Ahab every last male in Israel—slave or free.[d] 9 I will make the house of Ahab like the house of Jeroboam son of Nebat and like the house of Baasha son of Ahijah.10 As for Jezebel, dogs will devour her on the plot of ground at Jezreel, and no one will bury her.’” Then he opened the door and ran.

11 When Jehu went out to his fellow officers, one of them asked him, “Is everything all right? Why did this maniac come to you?”

“You know the man and the sort of things he says,” Jehu replied.

12 “That’s not true!” they said. “Tell us.”

Jehu said, “Here is what he told me: ‘This is what the Lord says: I anoint you king over Israel.’”

13 They quickly took their cloaks and spread them under him on the bare steps. Then they blew the trumpet and shouted, “Jehu is king!”

                                                      2 Kings 9:1-13

 

       Also, please read today's Acts 12:1-23 to understand how power prayers can be!

      The best way to get rid of depression is to get close to God and cry out to God! He will surely listen to your prayers and come to take you out of depression.

     Dear Lord Jesus,  

     Help us to understand that the best way to get rid of depression is to get close to you. In Jesus Name we pray, Amen.

Reflect on these questions:    

1. What inspiration have you received from today's catch and what have you heard from Jesus now?

     2.  What is your next step to be more closer to Jesus, to be holy - that is to do what Jesus wants you to do and not to do what Jesus wants you not to do?

    

     Family Corner:

     Find an opportunity to share with your family the importance of today's message. 

       

       Please click this link to Old Testament Psalm 135 blog: 

       https://discipler123.blogspot.com/2021/06/day-135-2021-how-do-you-know-you-are.html

       

     

       Please click this link to today's Old Testament 1 Kings 18:1-46 blog and video:

https://timewithabbaprayinglisteningenglish.blogspot.com/2025/06/what-do-you-do-after-spiritual-victory.html

       

       Please click this link to today's Old Testament Proverbs 17 blog:  

       https://discipler123.blogspot.com/2021/07/day-167-2021-cheerful-heart-in-midst-of.html

   For the Chinese version of this daily blog and video, please click this link (中文版請按此連結):

    https://timewithabbaprayinglisteningchinese.blogspot.com

     

     

       My first blog "Devotion on Fire"  was written in English only  (July 17, 2009年7月17日至November 22, 2012年11月22日). Each day one chapter of Bible, from New Testament and then Old Testament. Completed in four months and three years:

http://bishopsilas.blogspot.com/2009/07/blessings-from-rev-dr-john-stott.html

My second blog "Discipler 123"  was written in both Chinese and English (March 6,2011to December 31, 2016 ):

https://discipler123.blogspot.com/2011/02/day-1-choose-light-away-from-darkness.html

and "Time with Abba" blog and video (January 1, 2017 to December 31, 2024): 

https://discipler123.blogspot.com/2017/01/1-2017.html

 

 

Connecting Workshop 2025(Session 2)

Bishop Silas Ng on Three Streams

 https://youtu.be/xiSOSFF9Iw0?si=puDWFD9Cx01ADm-o