⁶ Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, ⁷ casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you. (1 Peter 5:5-7 NKJV)

I have family and friends who deal with depression and anxiety. I too have dealt with this throughout my life, though not as severely as others.

It is so hard to watch them go through this and not be able to help. I have been around it enough to know that no amount of platitudes or scriptural references can fix their immediate problem. They may see the value of both when not caught in the claws of this greedy creature, but when caught it consumes their every thought.

I heard it said once that a faithful man may be quick to lay his problems at Christ feet but picks them up twice as quickly when things do not change immediately. The enemy knows this and works to steal, kill and destroy any form of peace we might find.

I cannot account for others, but for me I had to make myself not just lay my burdens at Christ feet, but I had to abide in Him continually, knowing that He would ultimately take care of my burdens. Sometimes this took a while and I had to be patient and wait for His timing. Sometimes He fixed my problem, but more often He fixed me. You see, we want God to take away our pain when often the pain resides in us more than anywhere else. We must be willing to do the work, internally, for this to mend.

Reflect on: Are your problems external or internal. Are you expecting a quick fix or to work out more of a lifetime issue.