I’d like to share how Charis helped me through a sudden and severe depression.
“Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world.” 1 John 4:4
“And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8: 28
8/10/24 was the deadline for enrollment for the second year of Charis, and I was one of the last students to enroll in the program. Soon after I signed up, I had a video chat from the director who wanted to get to know the students before the program.
To my surprise, I received a message from my director afterward, asking me to be the translator for the first day class because the original translator couldn’t make it that day. They said that I could pray and think about it before replying. In fact, during that period of time, I was terribly depressed and could only lie on the couch and weep every day, expecting that tomorrow would never come. I couldn’t pray, I couldn’t read the Bible, and all I could do was cry out in my heart, ‘Lord, help me.’
The only thing that kept me going during those months was Charis Year 1 courses, because I had to finish them in time to go to Year 2. At that time, I could only lie on the couch or bed and listen to the classes. I didn’t even have the motivation and energy to sit up, but every time I listened to them, I felt a strong stirring inside my body. Therefore, when I received the invitation to translate, I decided to turn my soul to the Holy Spirit in me, so I said yes to the invitation, especially because Andrew’s “Spirit, Soul, Body” teaching always came into my mind.
After agreeing, I actually regretted it because I didn’t know how I could translate under those circumstances. Besides, many students in my class were very good at English, why did they need me? I was puzzled. Although my director told me that the Holy Spirit would help, my soul and body were still very weak.
A week before school started, my director sent me his script, but I couldn’t read it until the midnight before class. It’s amazing that when I got to the second half of the script, there was a passage that suddenly hit me like a bullet shot into my heart.
“God didn’t create us to be comfortable in our flesh, we were made to be comfortable leaning into Jesus.”
“Anything God is calling us to do – no matter how uncomfortable it is in our flesh – He gives us the grace for, and He empowers us to do it. And as we rely on Him – as we let the life of Christ flow out of us, we grow and mature.”
I started to cry out loud. It’s like a huge balloon inside my body suddenly burst, and I could breathe freely again. I knew that was the Holy Spirit helping me overcome my flesh. Then I realized why I was invited to translate. It was because God loved me, and He wanted to heal me from my depression. Hallelujah!
By the time I got to the class on 8/31, I had regained my strength. No one could tell that the day before I was still very depressed. Two days later, I received a message from a sister at church asking me to pray for her friend who had been suffering from depression for years. I was shocked and realized that the severe depression I had been experiencing for months for no reason had made me understand what it is like to be in depression. I truly knew how to pray and care for this friend.
Thanks to the Lord for His willingness to use me. Thanks to the Holy Spirit for reminding me of His truth in the time of my need, strengthened me and healed me. Thanks to Charis for the powerful teaching of the truth that helped me get through a time of severe depression.
Praise God.
– Amy, Charis student