Here at The Doctor’s Office we like to take the growth and development of the youth community -our valued and honored readership- very seriously. Yes, our number one goal is to make your visit to this site one of the most positive and enriching experiences of your day! To help achieve this wonderfully noble cause, we work extremely hard to help expand your knowledge of various subjects. This, of course, will enable you to astound your friends, amaze your teachers and irritate everybody else with your incredible knowledge.
Anyway, today’s subject for your mental enrichment is the form of poetry known as “Haiku.” For those of you who may be unaware, Haiku is a Japanese form of verse that features only three lines. In Haiku, the first and third lines are only allowed to have five syllables while the second line may only use seven syllables. Cool, huh?
To give you an idea of what this looks like, here’s an example of some really great haiku from the very brilliant (yet very humble) pen of The Doctor…
The Reality
That The Doctor Can’t Be Cloned
Is Most Regretful
So there you go. Tune in next time when The Doctor will show you how to travel in style by installing a 4 cylinder engine from a Honda Civic on the back of a Razor Scooter.
Now then, on to more serious subjects like this e-mail that we received recently here at The Doctor’s Worldwide Command Center…
I'm in high school and lately I've been feeling really depressed. I haven't really made any close friends. I feel so lonely and miserable when I see the popular groups hanging out and having fun. I know as a Christian I'm supposed to be content with what I have and not covet things other people have but I can't help it. I even stopped praying because I'm so unhappy. Please help.
Well, the first thing The Doctor would say is that there is nothing wrong with the simple desire to have close friends or have fun with a group. Those are good and healthy things that any reasonable person would like to have so you shouldn’t feel bad about wanting to have those things too.
You should also keep in mind that there is a big difference between simply wanting something and “coveting” something. Covetousness refers to a greedy desire to have someone or something that doesn’t belong to you which certainly doesn’t appear to fit in your situation. That being said, it’s also important to understand that it’s certainly not unusual for Christians to have times when they feel lonely or depressed. For example, perhaps you can identify with the writers of these Psalms…
“How long will you forget me, Lord? Forever? How long will you look the other way when I am in need? How long must I be hiding daily anguish in my heart? How long shall my enemy have the upper hand? Answer me, O Lord my God; give me light in my darkness lest I die” (Psalm 13:1-3).
“Listen to my prayer, O God; don’t hide yourself when I cry to you. Hear me, Lord! Listen to me! For I groan and weep beneath my burden of woe” (Psalm 55:1-2).
“Lord, hear my prayer! Listen to my plea! Don’t turn away from me in this time of my distress. Bend down your ear and give me speedy answers, for my days disappear like smoke. My health is broken, and my heart is sick; it is trampled like grass and is withered. My food is tasteless, and I have lost my appetite. I am reduced to skin and bones because of all my groaning and despair” (Psalm 102:2-5).
So you can see that it’s not unusual for God’s people to go through periods when they may feel lonely or unhappy. You could also look the experience of the prophet Elijah in 1 Kings 19 or read the short book of Lamentations for some more examples. In fact, The Doctor isn’t so sure that any true Christian has not gone through periods where they’ve felt depressed, tired or just plain lonely. Now this doesn’t mean that feeling lonely is a good or needed thing, only that it doesn’t necessarily indicate that there’s anything wrong with you.
Sometimes it’s easy to think that the men and women of the Bible were spiritual all-stars who never had any problems with their feelings but that’s just not the case. For example, John the Baptist had a crisis of faith in Luke 7:19 when he sent his disciples to Jesus to ask, “Are you really the Messiah? Or shall we keep on looking for him?”
Or how about the time when God called Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt? Exodus 4:13 tells us Moses’ response was, “O Lord, please send someone else to do it.” Speaking again of Elijah, James 5:17 says that this great prophet was a man just like us, which means that he had the same kind of faults and weaknesses that everyone has. So if you have times when you feel lonely or depressed then take heart- you’re in good company.
The way that you handle these times of loneliness can be one of the real tests of the Christian life. After all, it’s pretty easy to follow God when things are going well, right? But how about those times when Godly people feel lonely, depressed or spiritually dry? Will they still be willing to follow God even during those periods? The answer to this question can help tell whether someone is really after a deep, intimate relationship with their Creator or is simply looking for a warm, fuzzy, “feel-good” experience.
Have you ever wondered why God sometimes allows Christians to go through times when they feel lonely and depressed? Is there any real purpose behind those occasions when we feel alone or discouraged? Well, here’s a possible answer from 2 Corinthians 1:3…
“What a wonderful God we have– he is the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the source of every mercy, and the one who so wonderfully comforts and strengthens us in our hardships and trials. And why does he do this? So that when others are troubled, needing our sympathy and encouragement, we can pass on to them this same help and comfort God has given us.”
It seems that the people who are often the very best in helping others through a difficult situation are those people who have been through that situation themselves. With this in mind, it’s possible that God may be allowing you to go through a period of loneliness so that He may use you to help others who are going through a similar experience. If so, then your experience of loneliness now will be worth something then because God will be able to bring something good from it. (see also Romans 8:28).
Here’s something else: whenever you’re stuck in the middle of a trial or difficulty like the one that you’re going through now, try to step back for a moment and ask yourself these questions…
- What does the way I’m handling this situation tell me about myself?
- What can I learn from this situation?
- What is God trying to teach me through this situation?
The answers to these questions may help you to bring some sense from the things you’ve been feeling. Whenever a trial or difficulty comes your way you should also try and keep in mind something that’s written in the Biblical book of James:
“Dear brothers and sisters, whenever trouble comes your way, let it be an opportunity for joy. For when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be strong in character and ready for anything” (James 1:2-4 NLT).
The Doctor also wants to say that it’s really important to prayerfully read your Bible every day, especially if you want to pull out of a period when you’ve been feeling lonely or depressed. Don’t be afraid to pour out your feelings to God and ask Him to speak to you out of His Word. Perhaps God has something important to say to you through the Scriptures about the way you’ve been feeling- why not try it and see what happens?
One more thing- it’s always important to go to church and spend time with other Christians but it’s even more important to do so during times when you may be feeling down. It’s very easy to drop out of going to church if you feel lonely or depressed but it’s very important that you don’t isolate yourself from your friends at church who can help you. Talk to your Pastor, Youth Pastor or other church leader about the way that you’ve been feeling. They are often in the very best position to help you and encourage you.
Remember, many great people of God (including Moses, Esther, John the Baptist, Paul the Apostle and of course, Jesus Himself) had some very difficult times. God was faithful and brought each of them through their times of difficulty and The Doctor trusts that the results will be the same for you!
Do you have a question for The Doctor? Just send it to the email address above- you’ll get a personal reply and you just might see it answered here.