“WHY ME?”- Praying out of frustrating and depressing circumstances

 (courtesy Africhrist Podcast October 2021episode partial transcript and scriptures listen at www.africhristpodcast.com )

 

In this podcast we present you Bible stories of natural events that would otherwise be precursors to depression and frustration.  These stories will show these great prophets of God going through the “Why me “ emotions. You will see how they overcame and it will give you the groundwork for prayer. You will Pray With Impact!

 

Let’s be clear first of all that there’s clinical depression  that may require medical intervention with or without medication. The wisdom of Medicine is a gift from God and Jesus did acknowledge that its the sick who need a physician.  It’s like car maintenance, we all need it one time or another. 

 

However there’s also a depression that is treatable by counseling such as spiritual counseling. Now of course God is sovereign and he can use whichever method he chooses. As a healthcare provider myself, I do understand the chemical nature of some instances of depression. In this podcast we are dealing with the spiritual side of this issue and we urge you to seek appropriate help for your situation, in The Name of Jesus

We are going to approach this podcast in two causative phases:

 

Phase 1- Rejection and Dejection

A)    Lonesomeness and isolation  

B)    Feeling surrounded or boxed in

 

Phase 2 - Power actions

A)    Taking Stock and Responsibility

B)    Make the Move

 

Phase 1- Rejection and Dejection

 

 Frustration and depression caused by Isolation and Feeling alone

 

A)    Lonesomeness and isolation

We start with Elijah, the prophet of fire

 

Our aim here is not to show you the miracle of his actions but rather, his human state of mind and actions  in regards to our podcast theme. 

 

After a victorious “prophet of fire challenge” with Baal’s 450 prophets. After praying for rain and it rained, suddenly THE SPIRIT OF FEAR through intimidation by Jezebel, King Ahab’s wife lead him to feeling alone, scared and depressed. Note here that this spirit was triggered by his own words and perpetuated by Jezebel’s intimidation.

 

Soon the hero of 2 days ago became the coward of today. He actually gave that spirit the key of entry door through his confession immediately after his victory he said  “I alone am left…”. Watch your confessions and words you use. We will see this in the scriptures as we go.

 

Elijah’s victory

 

I will give you the scripture references and the essence of the story through selected scriptures but you can relate the same to other scriptures. Let us see the progression from victory to retreat. Incidentally the root of his retreat was planted earlier by his own confession even before his “fire victory”. Triggered by King Ahab’s sacarstic comment. Satan will use people or circumstances around you to be triggers for your demise or issues. Watch your words because they are what he will use against your faith to frustrate or depress you.

 

I Kings 18:18-26, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 38 NKJV

 

King Ahab who had been searching for the prophet, found him and said to Elijah “So you’re the trouble maker”  to which Elijah answered:

“And he answered, “I have not troubled Israel, but you and your father’s house have, in that you have forsaken the commandments of the Lord and have followed the Baals. Now therefore, send and gather all Israel to me on Mount Carmel, the four hundred and fifty prophets of Baal, and the four hundred prophets of Asherah, who eat at Jezebel’s table.”

 

 So Ahab sent for all the children of Israel, and gathered the prophets together on Mount Carmel. And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people answered him not a word. 

 

Then Elijah said to the people, “I alone am left a prophet of the Lord; but Baal’s prophets are four hundred and fifty men. Therefore let them give us two bulls; and let them choose one bull for themselves, cut it in pieces, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it; and I will prepare the other bull, and lay it on the wood, but put no fire under it. Then you call on the name of your gods, and I will call on the name of the Lord; and the God who answers by fire, He is God.”

 

 So all the people answered and said, “It is well spoken.” Now Elijah said to the prophets of Baal, “Choose one bull for yourselves and prepare it first, for you are many; and call on the name of your god, but put no fire under it.” So they took the bull which was given them, and they prepared it, and called on the name of Baal from morning even till noon, saying, “O Baal, hear us!” But there was no voice; no one answered. Then they leaped about the altar which they had made. 

 

Then Elijah said to all the people, “Come near to me.” So all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that was broken down. And Elijah took twelve stones, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord had come, saying, “Israel shall be your name.” And he put the wood in order, cut the bull in pieces, and laid it on the wood, and said, “Fill four waterpots with water, and pour it on the burnt sacrifice and on the wood.” Then he said, “Do it a second time,” and they did it a second time; and he said, “Do it a third time,” and they did it a third time. And it came to pass, at the time of the offering of the evening sacrifice, that Elijah the prophet came near and said, “Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that You are God in Israel and I am Your servant, and that I have done all these things at Your word. Then the fire of the Lord fell and consumed the burnt sacrifice, and the wood and the stones and the dust, and it licked up the water that was in the trench.”

 

Elijah overcome by the spirit of fear

Sometimes the power of fear may be so overwhelming the person becomes incapacitated into frustration and depression. 

 

1 Kings 19:1-4, 7, 10-11 NLT

 

“When Ahab got home, he told Jezebel everything Elijah had done, including the way he had killed all the prophets of Baal. So Jezebel sent this message to Elijah: “May the gods strike me and even kill me if by this time tomorrow I have not killed you just as you killed them.” Elijah was afraid and fled for his life. He went to Beersheba, a town in Judah, and he left his servant there. Then he went on alone into the wilderness, traveling all day. He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. “I have had enough, Lord,” he said. “Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died.” Then the angel of the Lord came again and touched him and said, “Get up and eat some more, or the journey ahead will be too much for you.” Elijah replied, “I have zealously served the Lord God Almighty. But the people of Israel have broken their covenant with you, torn down your altars, and killed every one of your prophets. I am the only one left, and now they are trying to kill me, too.” “Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.”

 

So where was God? How come he was not in any of those cataclysmic occurrences? We tend to look for God in what we think is necessarily miraculous. But God may in places and circumstances or may use people we least expect to help us overcome. In Elijah’s case he came in a small still voice from inside a cave and reassured him that he is not the only one remaining because God had had 7000 more.

 

Three times Elijah repeated the depressing words of “I am the only one remaining and they are about to kill me…” with which the devil through Jezebel, tried to instill fear and depression into him. I call those “ Satan’s triggers or  handle or #hashtags”.

 

But in1 Kings 19:10-11, 18 NLT continuing to to remind him, the Lord says“…… Yet I will preserve 7,000 others in Israel who have never bowed down to Baal or kissed him!”

The second part of phase 2 is the feeling of being surrounded by the ground around you caving in from every area of your life. Everything and everyone seems to frustrate you. The job, friends , family, drivers on the road…everything

 

Feeling surrounded

B)    Feeling surrounded or boxed in

 

King Jehoshaphat

2 Chronicles 20 is a good story to read in overcoming this feeling of being boxed in. 

 

Like king Jehoshaphat admit you can’t do it alone without God. This king had the power to let live or take life. He had an army and led a nation. But he the enemy army was bigger and more powerful. He went before God and said “ I don’t know what to do/“ Once he said that , God used a non conventional method to win the battle for him. I encourage you to read this amazing victory led by a choir of praisers rather than an army.

 

Another story of “surrounded” is that of Elisha and his scared young servant. Again surround by a mighty army, God shows us that he has an invisible army surrounding those that believe and trust him. This reminds us of the story of Jesus in Matthew 26:53 when he said he could ask God to send him more than twelve armies of angels, as Peter tried to fight with his own sword.

 

Elisha’s servant

 

2 Kings 6:14-22 NLT

 

“So one night the king of Aram sent a great army with many chariots and horses to surround the city. When the servant of the man of God got up early the next morning and went outside, there were troops, horses, and chariots everywhere. “Oh, sir, what will we do now?” the young man cried to Elisha. “Don’t be afraid!” Elisha told him. “For there are more on our side than on theirs!” Then Elisha prayed, “O Lord, open his eyes and let him see!” The Lord opened the young man’s eyes, and when he looked up, he saw that the hillside around Elisha was filled with horses and chariots of fire. As the Aramean army advanced toward him, Elisha prayed, “O Lord, please make them blind.” So the Lord struck them with blindness as Elisha had asked. Then Elisha went out and told them, “You have come the wrong way! This isn’t the right city! Follow me, and I will take you to the man you are looking for.” And he led them to the city of Samaria. As soon as they had entered Samaria, Elisha prayed, “O Lord, now open their eyes and let them see.” So the Lord opened their eyes, and they discovered that they were in the middle of Samaria. When the king of Israel saw them, he shouted to Elisha, “My father, should I kill them? Should I kill them?” “Of course not!” Elisha replied. “Do we kill prisoners of war? Give them food and drink and send them home again to their master.”

 

This fulfills the scriptures in Proverbs 25:21 that says that “when your enemy is hungry feed him when he is thirsty , give him a drink” and Luke 6:27 when Jesus said for us to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us.

 

 

Phase 2 - Power actions, the Action phase 

 

A)    Taking Stock and Responsibility

 

Admit your error especially when it’s a mess you created. Let us examine the popular parable of the prodigal son that Jesus told. In it though, we will see two not so visible but powerful illustrative characters beyond the three that are generally referred to. Please contemplate the two characters below from a spiritual perspective.

 

1.      The mother. 

2.      The farmer 

 

In the case of the mother, there’s noticeable silence and no mention of the mother. Many times mothers and grandmothers are in the background as the praying warriors. They constantly call up their children and grand children in prayer. Assumption here is that the mother of the prodigal son may have also been the same way. Jesus chose not to mention her but it leaves us to think about praying mothers.

 

The other character here is the farmer. He was kind enough to give this young man employment. There are many people whom God uses in the same way to help and assist wayward strangers. Also note that the young man “persuaded” him. Is this the same way he persuaded his father to give him his portion?

 

Prodigal Son

 

Luke 15:11-21 NLT

 

“To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: “A man had two sons. The younger son told his father, ‘I want my share of your estate now before you die.’ So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. “A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything.

 

“When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, ‘At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! 

 

I will go home to my father and say, “Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant.”’ “So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. His son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.’”

 

B)    Make the Move

 

David at ziklag inquired of the Lord

 

Another story of taking responsibility for ones action is told of king David.In this story David allied himself with the wrong king and went to assist him in war and in the processes laid himself and those he led, bare to attack from a band of raiders who took everything including children and women of Ziklag.

 

David saw his mistake and summoned his men to prayer. After a day of prayer he asked the Lord what to do. When we are frustrated or depressed by our our misdeeds, the best thing to do is not the quick knee jerk reaction. Instead, take time to seek God first for clear direction. As in this story, God used a lost Egyptian boy on the desert to direct David to the band that ravaged his town and everything was recovered without loss.

 

1 Samuel 30:8-10 NLT

 

“Then David asked the Lord, “Should I chase after this band of raiders? Will I catch them?” And the Lord told him, “Yes, go after them. You will surely recover everything that was taken from you!” So David and his 600 men set out, and they came to the brook Besor. But 200 of the men were too exhausted to cross the brook, so David continued the pursuit with 400 men.”

 

 

Get up and Get Moving

 

In another get up and move story, God told Moses to “get up and get moving, get the people Accross…” then as he did what God told him to do the miracle of parting the waters and destroying the enemy took place. God wants us to act on our prayers. We like to say “Pray and let God” but in order to pray with impact we have understand that prayer is not the end but the beginning of work, so get up and do something!

 

Listening to the Spirit of God for direction will turn seemingly impossible situations, the cause of our frustrations and depressions to be overcome. That is because God’s power behind us is always greater than the task ahead. The Cloud moved behind the Israelites and it became a fire.

 

Exodus 14:15-22 NLT

 

“Then the Lord said to Moses, “Why are you crying out to me? Tell the people to get moving! Pick up your staff and raise your hand over the sea. Divide the water so the Israelites can walk through the middle of the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians, and they will charge in after the Israelites. My great glory will be displayed through Pharaoh and his troops, his chariots, and his charioteers. When my glory is displayed through them, all Egypt will see my glory and know that I am the Lord!” Then the angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to the rear of the camp. The pillar of cloud also moved from the front and stood behind them. The cloud settled between the Egyptian and Israelite camps. As darkness fell, the cloud turned to fire, lighting up the night. But the Egyptians and Israelites did not approach each other all night. Then Moses raised his hand over the sea, and the Lord opened up a path through the water with a strong east wind. The wind blew all that night, turning the seabed into dry land. So the people of Israel walked through the middle of the sea on dry ground, with walls of water on each side!”

 

 

Finally Don’t lose hope because it will get harder if you do

 

Jeremiah was sulking and losing self esteem, a common trick of satan and his agents. They beat you down psychologically to feel like you are less than who you are, God’s own image. It’s like during slavery when black people were listed as 2/3 human. 

 

Jeremiah 12:1-6 NLT

 

“Lord, you always give me justice when I bring a case before you. So let me bring you this complaint: Why are the wicked so prosperous? Why are evil people so happy? You have planted them, and they have taken root and prospered. Your name is on their lips, but you are far from their hearts. But as for me, Lord, you know my heart. You see me and test my thoughts. Drag these people away like sheep to be butchered! Set them aside to be slaughtered! How long must this land mourn? Even the grass in the fields has withered. The wild animals and birds have disappeared because of the evil in the land. For the people have said, “The Lord doesn’t see what’s ahead for us!” “If racing against mere men makes you tired, how will you race against horses? If you stumble and fall on open ground, what will you do in the thickets near the Jordan? Even your brothers, members of your own family, have turned against you. They plot and raise complaints against you. Do not trust them, no matter how pleasantly they speak.”

 

God has a plan for your turn around

 

God reassures us through the infallible promises of his Word.

 

Isaiah 45:2-6 NLT

 

“This is what the Lord says: “I will go before you, Cyrus, and level the mountains. I will smash down gates of bronze and cut through bars of iron. And I will give you treasures hidden in the darkness— secret riches. I will do this so you may know that I am the Lord, the God of Israel, the one who calls you by name. “And why have I called you for this work? Why did I call you by name when you did not know me? It is for the sake of Jacob my servant, Israel my chosen one. I am the Lord; there is no other God. I have equipped you for battle, though you don’t even know me, so all the world from east to west will know there is no other God. I am the Lord, and there is no other.”

 

 

God promises that you will see the cause of your situation and circumstance through the rear  view mirror disappearing right before you in The Name of His Son Jesus Christ. AMEN

 

Psalms 37:1-11 NLT

 

 “Don’t worry about the wicked or envy those who do wrong. For like grass, they soon fade away. Like spring flowers, they soon wither. Trust in the Lord and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desires. Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust him, and he will help you. He will make your innocence radiate like the dawn, and the justice of your cause will shine like the noonday sun. Be still in the presence of the Lord, and wait patiently for him to act. Don’t worry about evil people who prosper or fret about their wicked schemes. Stop being angry! Turn from your rage! Do not lose your temper— it only leads to harm. For the wicked will be destroyed, but those who trust in the Lord will possess the land. Soon the wicked will disappear. Though you look for them, they will be gone. The lowly will possess the land and will live in peace and prosperity.”

 

 

Jesus’ Final word on worry, a precursor to depression and frustration

 

Matthew 6:25-26, 28-34 NLT

 

““That is why I tell you not to worry about everyday life—whether you have enough food and drink, or enough clothes to wear. Isn’t life more than food, and your body more than clothing? Look at the birds. They don’t plant or harvest or store food in barns, for your heavenly Father feeds them. And aren’t you far more valuable to him than they are? “And why worry about your clothing? Look at the lilies of the field and how they grow. They don’t work or make their clothing, yet Solomon in all his glory was not dressed as beautifully as they are. And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith? “So don’t worry about these things, saying, ‘What will we eat? What will we drink? What will we wear?’These things dominate the thoughts of unbelievers, but your heavenly Father already knows all your needs. Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. “So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”