Lamentations 3:21-24
Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease. Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning. I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”
Philippians 4:8
And now, dear brothers and sisters, one final thing. Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about things that are excellent and worthy of praise.
It’s a tragedy when a person struggling with anxiety or depression believes the negative self-talk that he or she will never experience relief and decides to act upon thoughts of suicide. The pressures of life are great – stress, isolation, sleep-deprivation, and frenzied lifestyles all take their toll – but suicide is a permanent, irreversible attempt to solve a temporary problem.
Negative self-talk can’t always be trusted because your mind and emotions will often change. For the prophet Jeremiah, his feelings of despair subsided (Lamentations 3:21-24). As his thinking cleared, he regained hope.
As difficult as it may be in the middle of deep darkness, ask God to remind you that anxiety and depression are tunnels to walk through, not pits where you’ll be trapped forever. Ask God to help you sense his presence with you as you walk through your struggle, and to give you the right thoughts to dwell on as you seek to heal.