Hope for the Holidays
Fifteen Verses for the Holidays Blues! How to beat that holiday depression.
The holidays are a wonderful time to spread joy but for some people the holidays are anything but joyful. They may have fallen on hard times or maybe depression is a constant struggle. It can be a lonely time.
Many of these people may be on meds and be seeing a therapist and that is okay. But God wants to be there for us in our struggles. He has just the words to help bring comfort and peace.
Now I am not discounting meds and therapy. I do both and so I can understand the need and these things are tools God gave us to use as well
This is the first year in a long time that I have gotten excited about Christmas and my year has not been easy.
But, no matter what, I can cling to these verses of promise - of hope.
Isaiah 4:10 NIV
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
He is with us and promises to hold us up. Isn’t it great He has our back?!
Romans 15:13, NIV
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
We can trust that He can bring us joy, peace and hope through His power.
Proverbs 12:25, NIV
Anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up.
The next time you are worried about something, give yourself a kind word.
Psalm 34:18-19, NIV
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
God cares deeply about what is grieving you.
Psalm 31:22-24, NIV
In my alarm, I said, “I am cut off from your sight!” Yet you heard my cry for mercy when I called to you for help.
We might be afraid we are cut off from God, but that just isn’t true. He hears our cries.
Psalm 37:23-24, NIV
The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him; though he may stumble, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.
He guides our steps and won’t let us fall even if we trip. He steadies us.
Psalm 126:5, NIV
Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.
We may start out as being upset, but our cries turn into joy.
Psalm 42:11
O Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in you.
Our hope is in God.
Deuteronomy 31:8, GNTD
The Lᴏʀᴅ himself will lead you and be with you. He will not fail you or abandon you, so do not lose courage or be afraid.
He will lead us. Don’t be afraid because he will not leave us or let us down.
ISAIAH 49:13
Sing for joy, O heavens, and exult, O earth; break forth, O mountains, into singing! For the Lord has comforted his people, and will have compassion on his suffering ones.
God loves and cares for us. He comforts us when we need it.
PSALM 42:11
Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
We can praise him because he brings us hope.
PSALM 17:22
A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones.
Joy brings about a restoration while hopelessness and despair brings pain and suffering.
GENESIS 8:22
While the earth continues to exist, planting time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, and day and night will not cease.
The world continues on in spite of how we feel or what is going on with us at that time. It won’t stop because of our despair.
PSALM 34:17-20
When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.
God helps those in the throes of depression. He will not allow them to be broken.
PSALM 40:1-3
“I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear the LORD and put their trust in Him.”
God rescued us from the pit of despair and gave us a place to stand. He enabled us to praise him.
When you feel depressed, or in the throes of despair, call out to him and he will put you in a safe spot. Sing praises to him even if you don’t feel like it.
This may not be the cure-all, but it may help you feel better about the season.
Don't shoot for a perfect Christmas, but instead strive for one that brings you peace.