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Before I Forget…
· I have hope because I believe that God is born anew each morning, because I believe that God is creating the world at this very moment in time. It is happening now. We must be ready to expect the unexpected from God. God is here, near us, unforeseeable and loving. I believe the Holy Spirit is at work in the Church and in the world, even where the name of God is unheard. I believe in the surprises of the Holy Spirit. To hope is a duty, not a luxury. To hope is not to dream, but to turn dreams into reality.
-Cardinal L. J. Suenens
Maybe you've heard this story, but it's such a good one that it deserves repeating every now and again.
It's the story of the businessman whose wife was experiencing depression. She began to mope around and be sad, lifeless-no light in her eyes, no spring in her step, joyless. It became so bad that this "man of the world" did what any sophisticated person would do. He made an appointment with the psychiatrist. On the appointed day, they went to the psychiatrist's office, sat down with him and began to talk. It wasn't long before the wise doctor realized what the problem was.
So without saying a word, he simply stood, walked over in front of the woman's chair, signaled her to stand, took her by the hands, looked in her eyes for a long time, then gathered her into his arms and gave her a big, warm hug. You could see the change come over the woman. Her face softened, her eyes lit up, she immediately relaxed. Her whole face glowed.
Stepping back, the doctor said to the husband, "See, that's all that she needs."
With that, the man said, " Okay, I'll bring her in Tuesdays and Thursdays each week, but I have to play golf on the other afternoons."
Back in the 4th century B.C., Hippocrates coined the term, "melancholia". We may euphemistically refer to it as "the blues" or "a slump" or "feeling gloomy". More accurately, the experience is depression. It attacks the rich and the poor. It has no respect for race or creed or nationality. Young people suffer almost as much as adults. Did you know that suicide is the second leading cause for the death of teenagers?
For some depression is sporadic; for others it's chronic. For some it is severe, and demands professional help. For others, it's mild but still strong enough to make one's life tough and oppressive. When depression is severe, it makes us powerless. Even when it 's mild, it colors our lives gray and robs us of joy, hope and meaning. Depression is the most common emotional problem in America today. Chances are each one of us knows someone who is depressed. In 1982, Clarence Forsberg wrote "The Art of Coping" Even Preachers get the Blues. Yes, even women and men who have given their lives to God and are in service to the church get depressed. Many of the saints suffered from depression. If we are going to deal with our depression, blues, and lows, we must be honest with God. That is why the Psalms are great for prayer
Read Psalm 40. The Psalmist writes: " I waited patiently for the Lord; He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the desolate pits, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God." Did you get it? God drew me out of my miry bog? Look up bog and mire in your dictionary. Some times, our lives are like a "miry bog". Sometimes the blues bogs us down and we can't experience the abundant life Christ promised to His followers. One of the problems with Christians is that we think there is something wrong with our Christian experience if we admit we are not "up"! Do you think Jesus was "up" while He hung on the cross? What did he say? "My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?"
When we are low, blue, down, depressed, the temptation is to retreat in to ourselves, to hide in our homes, or even hide through alcohol or other drugs. The psalms remind us to stay close to God. And God gives us other people, significant people in our lives, to stay close to, those who really love us and care for us.
A few years ago at a workshop I met an elderly black woman from Youngstown. Life had been hard for her and her ancestors who had been slaves. She told our group the praising God over and over again, year after year, gave them all hope. That God was faithful in the past and God would continue to be faithful today, tomorrow and always. Then she sang an old black spiritual about praise: "Get so happy, praising my Jesus. Get so happy, praising my Jesus. Get so happy, praising my Jesus. Ain't got time to die."
There is hope. Can we put our hope and trust in God… and bring the hurting to Jesus Christ?
Fr. Bill
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