The Christian Life and Depression

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Nate Devlin. August 9, 2026. 1 Kings 19:1-18.

Summary

Depression needs no introductory illustration; all of us have experienced it. We all know what it feels like to find ourselves in a cave: to be in the dark, to feel alone, and to think, I and only I am left. We are not alone, because God is with us. But we still feel it. That is why I appreciate 1 Kings 19: it speaks to lived experience.

Borrowing Sir Philip Sidney’s distinction, Elijah under the broom tree and in the cave is an icastic story, not a fantastic one. A fantastic story is out of step with reality. An icastic story works with reality and helps us see the good, the true, and the beautiful: a kingly lion who lays down his life for a traitor (Narnia), a devoted spider who looks after a scared little pig (Charlotte’s Web), the unlikely heroes who carry a ring of evil power to its destruction (The Lord of the Rings). Elijah’s story may sound fantastic, but it is icastic history. We have all lived among the tombs of dead dreams and dashed expectations, where passions have grown cold. And when Elijah is in the cave, God meets him there and asks one question, twice: “What are you doing here, Elijah?” The cave is the best time to answer it. Filled with despair, not wanting to eat or move or talk to anyone: that is the exact moment God asks. Be honest with him; he can take it. Depression is real, the cave is real, and God is real.

How did Elijah get there? In 1 Kings 18 he confronts Ahab, married to the infamous Jezebel, over a three-year drought, and it comes to a showdown with the prophets of Baal. Elijah drenches his altar, prays, and fire falls from heaven. The false prophets are slaughtered, the rains come, and it looks like a happy ending. Then Jezebel threatens his life, and inexplicably Elijah runs, collapses under the broom tree, and crawls into a cave.

Keep the distinction between the brain and the mind. There is a legitimate distinction between clinical depression, which afflicts the brain, and spiritual depression, which afflicts the mind, heart, and spirit. Clinical depression is a serious medical disorder that causes a lasting sad, empty, or hopeless mood and a loss of joy in normal activities for at least two weeks. It goes far beyond normal sadness and disrupts daily life, work, and sleep. It is caused by something wrong in the brain; it is a material problem. Clinical depression should receive the attention of a medical professional; if that is your struggle, it is good and right to seek medical help. Spiritual depression, depression of the mind, requires care of the soul, which is what the church offers. Elijah is suffering from spiritual depression, and I define it as a sense of despair caused by a failure to believe in the promises and good purposes of God. Living as though there is no God means carrying everything yourself, and you crumble; Christians do the same when we take our eyes off God. Martin Luther struggled with depression. Once he came down to breakfast and found his wife dressed for a funeral. “Has someone died?” he asked. “Yes,” she said, “God has died.” “Why then, dear Martin, do you live as you live, if God is still alive?”

So why do we take our eyes off God? Sin, in our hearts or in our environment. One diagnostic question is, am I sinning? Not all depression is caused by sin, but maybe you are neck deep in it, or there is sin all around you; twice Elijah says the people have forsaken the covenant and killed the prophets. Failure to align ourselves with God’s good purposes. The low after a high output; I know the Sunday afternoon crash well. Frustration at our limitations; Elijah thought he alone could reform Israel. We stop pushing forward. And we believe the rhetoric and the lies; Elijah listened to Jezebel more than to the word of the Lord, fear entered his heart, and depression followed.

What do we do in the cave? Answer the question and receive the peace of God. There is no faster way to become depressed than to adopt a “protect your peace” mentality. God blows right through our boundaries, because he wants to make us lie down in green pastures and restore our souls. He says eat, drink, and rest; maybe you are depressed because you are hungry and exhausted and avoiding the Sabbath. He gives his presence; we envy Elijah his angel, but Elijah was the one missing out: you have the Holy Spirit, the Word, and Christ in the sacrament and the body of believers. He whispers; he has been here working quietly the whole time. And he gives good news: the work will get done, and seven thousand have not bowed to Baal. You are not alone.

We serve a God who knows his way out of the cave. Jesus entered the cave in death and broke it: sin, death, the curse, the shackles that drag us down. He leads us out. So fix your eyes on him, the author and perfecter of your faith, who is calling you out: Son, daughter, what are you doing here? Arise and follow me. We have work to do.

Key texts: 1 Kings 19:1-18; 1 Kings 18; Psalm 23; Hebrews 12:2

For reflection

• When God asks, “What are you doing here?”, what is your honest answer right now?
• Which of the reasons for taking our eyes off God (sin, misalignment, the low after a high, our limitations, stopping, believing the lies) describes your cave?
• How might eating, resting, the Word, the sacrament, and the fellowship of believers be the very ways God is offering you his peace?