Nougat 22

Recently, I was exposed to the music of Citizen Soldier, a band that has established a niche in the music industry, by openly addressing mental health challenges through song. One of their songs speaks of the burdensome sensation that depression fosters; alone-ness.

I’m alright, I’m okay

Lying to myself just to make it through the day

The sun still shines (shines) on my face (face)

But what’s inside my head would scare the devil away

Feel like a burden asking you to stay

But I’ve been living in the darkest place …

My research on the group did not tell me whether they are Christian or not. However, as I listened to the lyrics (pasted below contact information), I couldn’t help but wonder whether the band had scoured the Bible for its coverage of mental health, and found Lamentations. I further wondered if the song is their interpretation of Today’s Holy Nougat

Lamentations 3:6-7 CEVDCI

[6] he forced me to sit in the dark like someone long dead.

[7] God built a fence around me that I cannot climb over, and he chained me down.

Depression is Real 3

Several of us have felt totally lonely before, in spaces that may have been bustling with people. Stephan Joppich refers to loneliness as a gap between expected and perceived social connections. In short, loneliness manifests from a sense of disconnectedness. It is a feeling of being ignored or punished for no valid reason. While many of us are able to move past that feeling, it isn’t always as simple for others. If the feeling persists, it may become depression. That could have been the state of those left behind during the Exile.

Self-Check

How do we recover from a sense of isolation – feeling alone in a crowd?

Digging Deeper

In speaking for himself or on behalf of the remnant, Jeremiah’s sense of disconnectedness translated as separation from God’s presence. The subject of his distress is not just any random person or empire. He writes of being ‘banished to the dungeons’ (my emphasis) by God. The feeling was so intensely real that it is stated as a fact, rather than sensation. Hence the imagery of a dark place, being imprisoned, and in chains.

That is a very difficult space to occupy. Whether or not the chains are of our own making they exist, they have the capacity to increase the gap between us and God. In turn, our faith that others will be present and available for us diminishes significantly. When we feel that God has not only punished, but also banished us, we have lost all hope. It is no wonder that Citizen Soldier cries out to the unnamed subject, ‘[the thoughts I have] would scare the devil away … Don’t leave me here alone with myself’, indicating that the devil’s vices can’t cure depression.

On another note, I wonder whether God’s imprisonment is actually about our protection. So, our being in the dark, confined, disconnected space might be rehab and detox from situations that drain us mentally and physically. If so, when things seem at its lowest, God is carrying us. Could that be the ‘sun shining on my face’ referred to by Citizen Soldier? If so, let us choose to make more room for the sun.

Point to Ponder

What is our go-to for overcoming the sense of disconnect between us and God? Do we still feel the Son shining on us in the Valley of Shadows?

Praise Break

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May all we seek be found in Christ.