Victory over death

A merry heart is the answer to the broken spirit. A merry heart is the cure to depression. A joyful heart is the bible prescription to depression. You cannot know more than God! You cannot outsmart Him. He says joy is the answer. A merry heart is medicine. Once your spirit is lifted by joy, it will lift your entire body system with it also. That is how it works, and not the other way round. You don’t wait for your circumstances to change before you cheer up, they may never change. You have to cheer up before your circumstances change.

The spirit of heaviness or depression crushes the soul, while joy lifts the soul. The spirit of man gets its strength from joy. Joy is the fuel that pumps the heart of man. The joy of the Lord is my strength. Joy removes any heaviness from the heart of man; it then transmits its radiance, brightness, strength and power to the entire body. Just like its opposite number, joy is contagious. The enemy, the devil cannot contain a joyful person. That is why he wants to first depress you before he can oppress you. A joyful atmosphere suffocates the devil and all his cohorts. When your heart is full of joy, healing becomes cheap for you. The heart breathes by joy. Depression rides on the wings of a sad soul.

We are told that stagnant water is good breeding ground for mosquitoes. But if you work on the drainage system and make sure that the water is constantly running, you are sure to get rid of the troubling mosquitoes. Similarly, a sad countenance is the breeding ground for depression. If you want to get rid of depression, you must first of all get rid of a sad countenance. That’s the only way it works. Don’t get the whole process upside down. You don’t wait for your circumstances to change before you begin to cheer up. You have to begin to cheer up in your present condition. So the choice is yours.

Though joy is a fruit of the Spirit (Gala 5:22), you still have to sustain it as an act of your will. You make a conscious decision to be joyful regardless of the prevailing circumstances. Decisions are powerful. If you make up your mind to be joyful, no matter what you go through, nothing can stop you. At times it is not easy to have joy, especially if you are sick. How can you be joyful when your whole entire body is in pain? Well, difficult as it may be, but if you make up your mind and with God on your side, it can be done. I have discovered that sickness is at two levels. It first comes as a physical challenge, the physical level. But then it graduates to start affecting your heart, your spirit man. If you allow your heart, your spirit man, to be dampened because of the physical condition, then you will stay longer in that condition. Whatever the physical challenge, never allow it to dampen or break your heart. Maintain a good attitude always. Have hope that the situation will change for the better. Protect your heart at all cost, because from there are the issues of life. It is the wellspring of life. Once it breaks down, it takes the whole body with it. Bible scholars tell us that the bible uses the phrase ‘heart of man’ and ‘spirit of man’ interchangeably.

Armed with these revelation truths, I eventually made up mind to be joyful despite my present circumstances. How I wished there was another way of doing it, but there was none. I couldn’t do it my own way. I had to do it the bible way. That is the only way it works. No one is exempt, no matter how spiritual one may be. It was not easy, but with God on my side, I realized it can be done.