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DAY 5
Begin to simplify your life!

Learn from me... my burden is light.’ Matthew 11:29-30 NIV'

A RECENT REPORT SAYS, ‘we can have it all.’ By working longer, playing harder and multitasking, it’s possible to squeeze 31 hours into 24. But it’ll cost you! The average office worker is bombarded daily with 220 messages via email, memo, phone and other interruptions. One in three managers gets sick because of information overload. If technology is saving us all this time and energy, how come we’re so frazzled? When the checkout line doesn’t move fast enough or we can’t find a parking space, we have a meltdown. Oxford Street and the Stock Exchange won’t tell you this but success brings more opportunities for the enemy to run you into the ground. That’s no way to live and it certainly isn’t what God intended for you. Jesus said, ‘Are you tired? Worn out?... Come to me... recover your life. I’ll show you how... work with me – watch how I do it... learn to live freely and lightly.’ (Matthew 11:29-30 TM). Sounds good, doesn’t it, but it calls for detoxing your thinking and reprogramming it. One author writes: ‘The Lord cannot relieve the pressure, while you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time doing the wrong thing with the wrong people. If you climb the corporate ladder and neglect your family, His hands are tied because your priorities are out of order. When you’re in God’s will you can work hard, but travel light! He’ll carry your burdens and take the weight. Simplifying your life may mean working fewer hours, scheduling downtime and investing more into your loved ones. Our gifts, assignments, personalities and situations are all different, but these principles hold true for everyone.’ So, begin to simplify your life!


Prayer Point - Depression isn’t failure
Jesus, thank You that You experienced every emotion we experience. You showed us that to be human is to taste joy and sorrow, laughter and tears. Forgive me when I beat myself up for feeling low. Forgive me when I tell myself that I’d be a better person if I could just stop feeling depressed. Help me to treat myself with grace and kindness, just like You do.

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DAY 6
'Don’t Lose Your Peace of Mind

You will keep [them] in perfect peace’ Isaiah 26:3 NIV'

WE LOSE OUR PEACE of mind for four reasons: 1) We try to change the people in our lives. As you grow wiser you begin to realise that you can’t change other people, only God can! And He does, when you back off, and love them as they are. This doesn’t mean agreeing with everything they do. It means committing to love them regardless, claiming God’s promises on their behalf and allowing Him to deal with them His way, in His time and for His glory. The reason you’re stressed out may be because you keep trying to do something about something you can’t do anything about! 2) We try to make things happen when it’s not the right time. ‘There is a time for everything’ (Ecclesiastes 3:1 NIV). If you’ve raised children you know that one of their chief characteristics is impatience; they can’t wait for anything. God wants us to outgrow our childishness so He makes us wait, trust, and mature! 3) We get upset because we’re not progressing fast enough. You can slow down your spiritual growth through neglect, but ultimately, ‘We all... are being transformed... [by] the Spirit’ (2 Corinthians 3:18 NIV). So learn to enjoy your life while God works on your problems, for you’ll always have problems! 4) We push ourselves harder and harder. We do what we think God wants without consulting Him as to what He actually wants, when He wants it, or how He wants it done. As a result we wear ourselves out. What’s the solution? ‘You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in You.’ (Isaiah 26:3 NIV).

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DAY 7
A Memo From God
'How precious... To realise that you are thinking about me constantly!’ Psalm 139:17 TLB'

I KNEW YOU before time began. I even know how many hairs are on your head! Like parent, like child; you’re created in My image. Not only have I got plans for you, I’ve also given you the talents needed to fulfil them. And what I give, nobody else can take away. But don’t neglect them; remember to exercise them and stir them up daily. Rest assured that I’ve started a good work in you and I’m going to finish it. I always complete what I begin. My Word concerning you is forever settled in heaven. My commitment to you is unending. In this life, you’ll have challenges, but cheer up; I’ve robbed satan of his power to hurt you, and the world of its power to destroy you! When you’re in trouble, remember I’m a very present help. Give Me your burdens and I’ll sustain you. When you’re stressed out or weighed down by the pressures of life, lean on Me. I’ll be your Rock, your Fortress, your Deliverer and your Strength. Even though you fall from time to time, you won’t be destroyed, because I’m holding you. But a word of caution: don’t take advice from those who are spiritually blind, and don’t hang out with sceptics. Delight yourself in My Word, and like a big oak tree growing by a river, you’ll be fruitful and prosper in all that you do. P.S. I’d love to hear back from you. See you at My place on Sunday!


Sunday!’ Prayer Point - Depression and anxiety
Lord Jesus, You calmed the storm and brought peace. Come by Your Spirit and calm the storm in my heart, bringing Your perfect peace. The abuse I’ve experienced has left me feeling traumatised, but You are more powerful than that trauma. I ask You to break its power in me today. Lift it off, so that my body, mind and heart can be completely healed from the effects of abuse.

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DAY 8
Wings Of Worship'
Make two cherubim out of hammered gold at the ends of the cover’ Exodus 25:18 NIV


GOD INTENDS for the hammer blows of life to bend our wings upward into a position of constant praise. He wants to bring us to the place where our f ixed attitude to each challenge is, ‘In everything give thanks’ (1 Thessalonians 5:18 NKJ). When Paul wrote, ‘For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain’ (Philippians 1:21 NIV), he was under house arrest waiting to be sentenced to death. He was saying, ‘Every time you hit me, all it does is move me closer to God.’ His visit to heaven happened while he was being stoned at Lystra. Anybody want to go there? If you’re looking for an easy 3-step formula for experiencing God’s power, forget it! Wings of worship can be created one way – by being beaten into proper position and image. The hammer blows of life will always bend us Godward, if our responses are right. Though battered, bloody and locked in jail, when Paul and Silas brought together their beaten wings of praise, God suddenly came down and altered everything – doors opened, chains broke, circumstances changed overnight. Feel as if you’re ‘in jail’ today? Have circumstances locked you up and thrown away the key? You can soar above anything on the wings of prayer. You can worship your way through them to a new day! Praise is not denial, nor is it refusing responsibility. No, it’s harnessing the power of a higher law: one that either lifts you above your situation or sustains you through it. Either way, praise is the key!

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DAY 9
How To Be HAPPY

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over’ Luke 6:38 NIV

DID YOU HEARabout the preacher who was told by one of his members, ‘Pastor, you’re becoming one of today’s greatest expositors’? Driving home he told his wife about it, and asked, ‘I wonder just how many great expositors there are in the world today?’ Unable to resist, she replied, ‘One less than you think, dear!’ The truth is, wrapped up in ourselves, we make a pretty small package, don’t we? Too many of us live in little worlds bordered on the north, south, east, and west by ‘us’. If you want to be miserable without even trying, do these twelve things; they’re guaranteed to work. 1) Always think and talk about yourself 2) Always use the personal pronoun ‘I’ 3) Always mirror yourself in the opinions of others 4) Always listen to everything people say about you 5) Always demand consideration and respect 6) Always insist that people agree with you 7) Always sulk if they don’t show appreciation 8) Always be suspicious 9) Always be sensitive to slights 10) Always be jealous 11) Trust nobody but yourself 12) Never forget the good deeds you do, or the criticism you receive. On the other hand, if you want to be happy, begin to give to others, and God will multiply it back to you, over and over again. Try it!


Prayer Point - Depression and tiredness

Lord God, Your Word says that You are gracious and compassionate. You hate the evil which blights our world, and You hate the evil things which were done to me. Though You saw what happened, You never condoned it and it broke Your heart. When sorrow sweeps over me, help me to know that You feel it too. When I weep, help me to know that You weep with me.

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DAY 10
Believe god for your healing

‘…I am the Lord, who heals you.’ Exodus 15:26 NIV


IN THE BIBLE, one of the names God chooses to be called by is ‘Jehovah Rapha,’ which means ‘I am the Lord who heals.’ Now, if God calls Himself the healer, then you have the right to believe what He says and expect that, given an opportunity, He will perform His role competently. After all, His credibility depends on living up to His name. The Psalmist said, ‘…Your promises are backed by all the honour of your name’ (Psalms 138:2 NLT). Has God changed? No; He says, ‘…I am the Lord AllPowerful, and I never change’ (Malachi 3:6 CEV). And Jesus, who is God, is ‘…the same yesterday and today and forever’ (Hebrews 13:8 NIV). What He was, He still is. What He did, He still does. So, when you or a loved one is sick, do these two things: 1) Pray, in faith believing. A ‘good faith’ deal requires that both parties trust each other’s word. Their trust is a rational decision of their will, not their emotions. Faith is your will deciding that God will keep the promise He has made to you. It’s refusing to be ambivalent by saying, ‘If only I felt more positive.’ No business could survive such ambiguity. Jesus spelled it out clearly: ‘…All things for which you pray and ask, believe that you have received them, and they will be granted you’ (Mark 11:24 NAS). 2) Look for faith-partners who will pray with you. ‘…Pray for each other so that you may be healed…’ (James 5:16 NLT). ‘…If two of you agree…concerning anything you ask, my Father in heaven will do it for you’ (Matthew 18:19 NLT)

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DAY 11
Starting Over
I will... exchange their sorrow for rejoicing’ Jeremiah 31:13 NLT

TOM WAS VERY DEPRESSED following his wife Elle’s death. For an hour he poured out his heart to a counsellor. Now, catharsis is good; it can show you what needs to be dealt with. But talk alone doesn’t change anything. So his counsellor asked, ‘If the situation was reversed and you’d died first, what would you want Elle to do?’ Immediately he replied, ‘Go on and enjoy life.’ The minute he verbalised it a light within him came on and he said, ‘I’ve been feeling sorry for myself too long. We both hated it when people did that. I’m going to live, find purpose, and get back to church.’ He did, and the next time Tom and his counsellor spoke he had begun to rebuild his life. The pain was still there, but he’d started to transcend it by taking action. Freud taught that the subconscious mind could be freed from painful memories by psychoanalysis. But his premise was faulty because memories, good and bad, remain part of you. Plus, his theory can lead you to believe that your problems can be talked to death without ever having to do anything about them. Some people get through their grief faster than others; sadly, some never do. But you don’t have to be one of them! God said, ‘I will turn their mourning into joy. I will comfort them and exchange their sorrow for rejoicing.’ God can reframe your past and give it meaning. He can help you to look back with gratitude, then forward with confidence. How? By transforming painful memories into powerful motivators and sources of future wisdom. Ask Him; He will show you how.

Prayer Point - Healthy lifestyle

Father God, I thank You for the good things in my life: for a home, for family and friends, for food and clothing, and for the freedom to do the things I love. As I walk this road through depression, help me to keep remembering to enjoy the good things. Help me to build healthy rhythms of eating, sleeping, working, relaxing, spending time with people and spending time with You.

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DAY 12
Have You Found Your Reason for Living?

‘But if it dies…’ John 12:24 NIV

ONE DAY a depressed woman jumped off a bridge into a river. Without thinking, a man standing nearby jumped in to save her. But ‘our hero’ suddenly remembered that he couldn’t swim, so he started thrashing around and screaming for help! Hearing his cries, the depressed woman swam to his rescue, hauled him out, administered mouth-to-mouth resuscitation and saved his life. What happened? She found a need greater than her own, and in so doing she found a reason to live. Jesus said, ‘Unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies [to self-interest], it produces much grain.’ Christ had just finished saying, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothes’ (Luke 12:22-23 NIV). Career success and material things cannot be your reason for living! You need a larger purpose, and God will give you one if you ask Him. Some of us are born knowing what God has called us to do in life; others discover it along the way. Some of us actually find it in our closing years. Indeed, some of us are awakened to it by tragedy and loss. What matters is that we find God’s purpose and pour ourselves into it. Helen Keller wrote, ‘When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which God has opened for us.’ So, have you found your reason for living?

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DAY 13
Trap – Chasing happiness

Happy are those who delight in doing what He commands’ Psalm 112:1 NCV

ONE DAY two cats were talking when one of them asked the other why he always chased his tail. ‘Because my mum says happiness lies in your tail, so I’m trying to catch it.’ His friend replied, ‘But if you just kept walking, wouldn’t it follow you?’ Do you know what? When you pursue happiness it eludes you; when you walk with God it follows you. The Bible says, ‘Happy are those who delight in doing what He commands’ (Psalm 112:1 NCV). When we focus on doing God’s will, there’s no room for unhappiness. But true happiness also involves: 1) Monitoring your self-talk! Listen: ‘The tongue has the power of life and death’ (Proverbs 18:21 NIV). Your words have power, they really do! They create the environment you live in. So, instead of saying what you see, try seeing what God’s Word says, for He has good things in store for you (Jeremiah 29:11) 2) Being appreciative! It’s virtually impossible to be grateful and fearful at the same time. Gratitude is not just the answer to fear, it’s also one of the purest forms of love; the selfless kind that gives, seeks nothing in return, yet always finishes up with more than enough! 3) Exercising your options! Thinking you’ve no options can leave you feeling trapped, angry and depressed. But with God you always have options, for: ‘with God all things are possible’ (Matthew 19:26 NIV). Based on that, you can restart and re-chart your life. Happy people, truly happy ones, know that!


Prayer Point - Guidance
Lord, You are the source of all wisdom. Thank you that You know what’s best for me, even when I have no idea what to do. I pray for Your guidance today; as I face the reality of depression in my life, please show me what I need to put in place, and where I need to go for help. Lead me to the support that is exactly right for me.

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DAY 14
Knowing who you are

‘I have called you by name; you are mine’ Isaiah 43:1 NLT

YOU NEED TO KNOW your identity in order to determine what you’ll do. It won’t work the other way around, because if what you do is taken away or you fail doing it, you’ll feel like a nobody. ‘So where does my identity come from?’ you ask. Not from your driver’s licence, which is fortunate for most of us! Nor from your passport; that just shows where you’ve been. And it doesn’t come from your school reports – which is good, because many of us still battle with the negative messages we got back then! No, it comes from God; He gives it before He sends you on an assignment. Before Abram became great, God changed his name to Abraham, which means, ‘the Father of Many Nations’ (Genesis 17:5 NIV). Gideon was the least in his family. But when God commissioned him to build an army to defeat Midian, He changed Gideon’s identity and gave him a new self-image: ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior!’ (Judges 6:12 NIV). What credentials! Think about all the famous people you know – athletes, artists and speakers – when they can no longer do what they do, they get depressed, even suicidal. How about you – does your identity depend solely on what you do? If so, it’s time to seek God’s face and find out who you really are. God says, ‘I have called you by name; you are Mine!’ That means when you can no longer do what you do, you’ll still be who you are in God’s eyes. What could be better?