One Christian's Holiday Depression

Although statistics show that the holidays do not produce a spike in suicide rates, http://bit.ly/holidaysuicides , for some people it is still a very depressing time of year. The period between Thanksgiving and New Years is actually the time of year that suicide rates are the lowest; but don't let the statistics fool you into thinking that people aren't depressed during the holidays.

There is still a lot of depression over the holidays and there are still suicides committed. I, for one, am normally down in the dumps over the holidays and worse yet, I'm not sure why. Those loved ones that you have, who suffer with depression, need to be watched all the time and I personally believe that you really need to watch them closely over the holidays.

For some of us the holidays are just not a happy time of year. Personally, in the past, I always loved Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. These holidays are not the same anymore. People on the whole are no longer very thankful on Thanksgiving. Watching the Macy's day parade, I noticed several of the commentators calling Thanksgiving, Turkey day. It has long been a day that we eat turkey; but the emphasis no longer seems to be on giving thanks. The emphasis is on the dinner, getting together with family, and watching football.

Christmas has a similar problem. We are supposed to be celebrating Christ's birthday on Christmas. When I was a little boy the world tried to get Christ out of the word Christmas and change it to Xmas. Thankfully, that hasn't been done much in recent years. Unfortunately, now, everybody working in the stores is trained to say, "Have a happy holiday." What happened to "Merry Christmas!" Eighty percent of the United States claims to be Christian, are they going to be offended when someone says, "Merry Christmas." I think not. I am offended by people not recognizing Christ at Christmas.

I am also saddened somewhat by New Years eve and New Year's day being turned into primarily a big party followed by a party and football. It seems like this should be a reflective time of year. A time to thank God for His blessings of the past year, and to thank Him in advance for the blessing to come. Instead we have parties to drown out the sorrows of last year and to blur the problems of the upcoming year.

Don't get me wrong, I like family gatherings, food, and football; but there is just something missing now a days from our holidays. It might just be that on the whole, Christ is missing from the holidays. The Spirit of God makes the holidays special, and it is difficult to find His Spirit dwelling outside the church.

Folks say that Christians should not be depressed; but when we no longer see Christ living in the world, it is tough not to be depressed. If you want to help someone like me during the Holiday period, and you claim to be a Christian, show Christ in your life. Recognize Christ at get togethers, when two or three are gathered in His name, Jesus is in the midst. Show Christ in your actions toward others. Make Jesus a birthday cake. Be thankful to God at Thanksgiving and all other holidays.

There are a lot of us out here that get depressed during the holidays. I'm sure a few of you get down for the same reasons as me. If all of us would just share Christ's Spirit during the holidays we'd all be a lot better off. If you are a Christian, think about sharing the Spirit of Christmas today, Christ.