7 Ways the Church Can Help Members Who Are Battling Depression

I am so grateful God uses counselors and support groups to help the depressed. For example, my counselor in South Florida was used by God to bring healing to me in my darkest days.

The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense. Proverbs 27:9

Betty Wells was the psychiatrist God used to bring me out of the darkness of my depression. She was my friend and my counselor. I still have a painting of Noah's Ark that Betty gave me during my recovery. She told me it was to remind me that God would give me a fresh start and that my best days were still ahead of me.

Where did I find Betty? Through my church! She was the counselor the church recommended.

I am also grateful that in every church we have served, we have offered counseling, support groups, and one-on-one therapy by qualified professionals who also love Jesus.

When you are depressed, even small tasks can seem overwhelming. Some days, just getting out of bed and dressed seemed like a mountain I could not climb. During my worst days of depression, if I was dressed by the time the kids came home from school, it was a good day.

Dan became Mister Mom during that season. Our good friends Jay and Michelle showed up to lighten the load. Michelle would come to my house every Monday with a bucket full of cleaning supplies, a mop, and a broom. She would clean my house and talk with me for two hours. Her husband Jay came with her and sat with Dan on our back porch to see how he was doing and to ask what we needed.

Love shows up!

Find a tangible way to help your depressed friend, family member, or neighbor, and do it! Don't just call and ask what they need; they rarely tell you. Instead, show up and do it!

Share each other's burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ. If you think you are too important to help someone, you are only fooling yourself. You are not that important. Galatians 6:2-3

When someone is depressed, regular tasks can become undoable burdens. So, show up with your sleeves rolled up and help lighten their load.

This one is huge! I cannot tell you how many well-meaning people have tried to fix my depression. Afterward, I felt worse than before they tried to fix me.

Depressed people do not need someone to fix them. They need someone to listen, love, and lighten their load – but they do not need to be your project.

He lifted me out of the pit of despair, out of the mud and the mire. He set my feet on solid ground and steadied me as I walked along. Psalm 40:2

If we could fix those who are depressed, we would. But only God can lift them out of that pit. So, we need to give up trying to fix them and choose instead to love them back to health.

This key is a big truth. Loving depressed people can wear you out. They can try your patience and make you want to give up and run away. Don't quit. Lean in instead.

Trust in God. Lean on your God! Psalm 50:10 (MES)

God has the patience you need to deal with those who are depressed. God has the insight you need. God has the wisdom you need. And God will love them through you if you lean into him.

There is no quick fix for depression. But the church can help the depressed by following these seven truths from Scripture.

Mary Southerland is also the Co-founder of Girlfriends in God, a conference and devotion ministry for women. Mary’s books include, Hope in the Midst of Depression, Sandpaper People, Escaping the Stress Trap, Experiencing God’s Power in Your Ministry, 10-Day Trust Adventure, You Make Me So Angry, How to Study the Bible, Fit for Life, Joy for the Journey, and Life Is So Daily. Mary relishes her ministry as a wife, a mother to their two children, Jered and Danna, and Mimi to her six grandchildren – Jaydan, Lelia, Justus, Hudson, Mo, and Nori.