Vincent Liu

I hope people can correct their preconceived notions about depression. Depression is a chronic illness, not simply a matter of someone feeling down or being unable to “think positively.” No one would say to a terminally ill patient, “Why don’t you just get better?” or “Why are you in such pain? Cheer up, don’t be miserable.” 

Depression is a real illness. Accompanying and caring for someone with depression, just as you would care for someone who is physically ill, is the greatest comfort you can offer to a patient.

Please don’t say things like “Just feel better” or “Don’t overthink.” A person with depression wishes every moment to be able to feel joy like a normal person, but no matter how hard they try, they can’t. When others say such things to me, it actually deepens my pain. It’s like telling a paralyzed person, “Stand up, why are you lying down?” — this is a limitation caused by illness, not ordinary emotional lows that everyone experiences.

A lack of understanding from others and a sense of helplessness within are the reasons why many people with depression ultimately seek death. I once explained depression this way: “A terminally ill patient is waiting for death, while I, a person with depression, am seeking it.” Every day, I endured mental pain and torment. Unlike physical pain, mental suffering has no painkillers, no end. That’s why I often wished there was a button I could press to end all this pain.

To be honest, no human healed me, and I didn’t actively seek help from God — but God spontaneously showed His grace and power in my life and took away this illness. As 1 John 4:10 says, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”

God is a supernatural God. His love and power go beyond our understanding. While we were still rebellious sinners against Him, He already loved us. It wasn’t anything I did that moved Him. True love — love from God — is unconditional and not based on merit. God’s love and grace cannot be exchanged with material things or good deeds. “And the Lord said, ‘I will cause all My goodness to pass in front of you, and I will proclaim My name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’” (Exodus 33:19)

I only truly began seeking God after He pulled me back from the edge of death and healed my illness. It was through experiencing His grace and love that I gained faith. Everything is God’s grace, and all glory belongs to Him!

Each person experiences God at a different time and in different ways. I’m not sharing this so that others can copy my experience to be healed — in fact, I didn’t do anything. It was God who did all the work. The only thing I can share with those still suffering is: **do not lose hope.** Even if you feel that no one understands you and each day is filled with endless pain and torment, I want you to know — **God loves you.** He understands your pain, and He longs to bear it for you.

The love and peace of soul that you have been searching and longing for – is found with God.  That deep emptiness within you – only God can fill. Come and receive this love. God has always been there, waiting for you, waiting to give you this love. You only need to believe in Him — believe that He is all-powerful and awe-inspiring. Give Him the chance to love you.  

“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.  For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7:7-8)

I can testify from my own experience: when you receive God’s love, the peace and joy that surpass all understanding will be with you continually.

“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.” (Matthew 10:8)

God’s love healed me. He gave it freely to me, and I also want to share it freely with those in need.  My only hope for this article is that God may use these words to bring you closer to him.

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