Discouragement, Depression, and Despair – Psalm 60
What can you do when you lose all hope?
Many of the Psalms were written about times in David’s life when he seemed to be in despair. They are very melancholic. If you will look this word up in a good thesaurus, you will be amazed at the many synonyms, and all of them are depressing.
Consider David’s words in Psalm 60. “O God, thou hast cast us off, thou hast scattered us, thou hast been displeased; O turn thyself to us again. . . . Thou hast shewed thy people hard things: thou hast made us to drink the wine of astonishment [confusion]” (vv. 1, 3).
These verses are discouraging and depressing. Then verses 9 and 10 give a good reason for despair. “Who will bring me into the strong city? who will lead me into Edom? Wilt not thou, O God, which hadst cast us off?” David realized that God was the One who allowed all of the depressing experiences he was having. God could have prevented them, but He did not—so there did not appear to be any hope.
David was very honest about his feelings that God had allowed tragedies to overwhelm him. You may have felt like this. It is very easy to focus on circumstances, instead of trusting God to resolve problems for His glory. If you find yourself thinking, “But God, I have done my best to do everything You wanted me to do,” be careful. Avoid relying on circumstances. Instead, trust God to be with you and to care for you!
Many of the Psalms begin very melancholic, but they always end with a note of joyful victory. This one ends with the words, “Through God we shall do valiantly: for he it is that shall tread down our enemies” (v. 12). The Lord promised that He will never allow you to be tempted beyond what you can bear. Allow God to use occasions of discouragement, depression, and despair to strengthen your faith and love for Him!