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b'I\\u2019m twenty-six years old, and I wish I had known sooner that God wasn\\u2019t the\\nmaker of my depression. When ninth grade rolled around, I faced depression\\nlike I never had before. I didn\\u2019t think I could experience such strong and\\nunsettling emotions while being a follower of Jesus. The part that confused\\nme most was where the extreme sadness came from. Not able to find the\\nanswer myself, I\\u2019d ask God why He would allow such anguish to hurt me\\ndaily. Being a child of God, one misconception I had was that Christians\\nhad to be joyful all the time. Mind you, that is far from the truth. I\\u2019d\\nquestion if I was abnormal because the way I was feeling was not joyful.\\nWas I insane? Was I not doing something right in my relationship with God,\\nand that\\u2019s how this started? Because of this, I started doubting the\\nauthenticity of my faith. This was before I knew how much influence Satan,\\nsin, and brokenness have on this world. The enemy seeks to destroy\\nChrist-followers such as myself. God created the world good, but when\\npeople rebelled against God, sin and brokenness infected everything. One\\nversion of this brokenness is depression. But, despite all the brokenness\\nand evil in the world, God is the giver and maker of peace and joy. It\\u2019s\\nthrough Him and the good gifts He provides (including things like mental\\nhealth professionals and medication) that we can overcome our struggles.\\nThat doesn\\u2019t always mean the depression will go away, but it does mean that\\nJesus walks with us and brings us comfort and strength in the midst of it.\\nHe never abandons us. Though Satan continues to steal, kill, and destroy,\\nGod works miracles around the enemy\\u2019s conniving schemes. Jesus is far\\ngreater than the enemy, and His victory came through His death and\\nresurrection\\u2014when He defeated sin, death, and brokenness on our behalf. If\\nwe\\u2019ve put our trust in Jesus, God gives us a crown and a blessing in place\\nof ashes and mourning (Isaiah 61:3). God has already won the battle. When\\nwe pay attention, we can see His provision in the midst of the sufferings\\nwe face. He is with us in our trials whether they\\u2019re in smaller dosages or\\nlarger quantities. He provides comfort and strength. He is the maker of joy\\nand peace, not of depression. And someday, we will see His ultimate triumph\\nwhen Jesus returns to get rid of all brokenness\\u2014including\\ndepression\\u2014forever. \\u25cf Brenna Covelens \\u25cf Have you ever felt like Christians\\nare supposed to always feel joyful\\u2014and that it\\u2019s not okay for us to feel\\nany other way? \\u25cf Sometimes, God brings about full healing from depression\\nand other types of brokenness we encounter. But other times, depression is\\na lifelong struggle that won\\u2019t fully go away until Jesus returns. Even when\\nthe hurt is here to stay, Jesus is with us, weeping with us. He never\\nleaves us. As we draw near to Him, He wraps His arms around us and never\\nlets go. Have you ever felt Jesus\\u2019s presence in the midst of pain? What was\\nit like? \\u25cf God does not want us to face depression\\u2014or any other kind of\\nbrokenness\\u2014alone. Christians can bring each other hope and comfort in hard\\ntimes, pointing each other to Jesus. When you are struggling, who can you\\nreach out to? If you know someone who is hurting, how can you come\\nalongside them? \\u25cf If you have been feeling depressed and need someone to\\ntalk to, you can set up an appointment for a one-time complimentary phone\\nconsultation with a Christian counselor through the Focus on the Family\\nCounseling Service. In the United States, call 1-855-771-HELP (4357)\\nweekdays 6:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. (Mountain Time) to set up an appointment.\\nIn Canada, book your appointment by calling 1-800-661-9800 between 8:00\\na.m. and 4:00 p.m. (Pacific Time) and ask to speak wit'