Out of the Cave: Stepping into the Light when Depression Darkens What You See
- Downloads：9671
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-05-21 12:31:24
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Chris Hodges
- ISBN：1713598493
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
Bestselling author and pastor Chris Hodges helps those struggling with depression find liberating solutions by drawing from the life of the prophet Elijah。
Shame about the dark thoughts swirling in your mind。 Guilt about how powerless you feel to overcome negative emotions。 Alternating bouts of sadness and numbness。 You might be asking， Should a Christian even be having these struggles？
Depression is the number one health issue in the world today， yet those who suffer are still sometimes stigmatized--especially followers of Jesus。 Many assume God's peace， power， and protection should prevent us from ever feeling anxious， depressed， and afraid。 But the Bible teaches otherwise， particularly in its depiction of the life of the Old Testament prophet Elijah。
In Out of the Cave， bestselling author and pastor Chris Hodges uses Elijah's life to show us that everyone is susceptible to depression。 Even when we're walking closely with God， we can still stumble and get lost in the wilderness of tangled emotions。 But we don't have to stay there， because we serve a God who meets us in the darkness。 Out of the Cave helps us
remove the stigma of depression and realize we're not alone;
understand the ways our temperament and view of God affect the way we handle depression; and
learn a comprehensive approach to wellness—mind， body， and soul—from Elijah's journey。
With his trademark blend of Bible-based wisdom， practical application， and vulnerability in sharing his personal struggles， Hodges explores the causes of depression we can't change， the contributors we can conquer， and offers transformative hope and spiritual power to help us win the battle。
Shame about the dark thoughts swirling in your mind。 Guilt about how powerless you feel to overcome negative emotions。 Alternating bouts of sadness and numbness。 You might be asking， Should a Christian even be having these struggles？
Depression is the number one health issue in the world today， yet those who suffer are still sometimes stigmatized--especially followers of Jesus。 Many assume God's peace， power， and protection should prevent us from ever feeling anxious， depressed， and afraid。 But the Bible teaches otherwise， particularly in its depiction of the life of the Old Testament prophet Elijah。
In Out of the Cave， bestselling author and pastor Chris Hodges uses Elijah's life to show us that everyone is susceptible to depression。 Even when we're walking closely with God， we can still stumble and get lost in the wilderness of tangled emotions。 But we don't have to stay there， because we serve a God who meets us in the darkness。 Out of the Cave helps us
remove the stigma of depression and realize we're not alone;
understand the ways our temperament and view of God affect the way we handle depression; and
learn a comprehensive approach to wellness—mind， body， and soul—from Elijah's journey。
With his trademark blend of Bible-based wisdom， practical application， and vulnerability in sharing his personal struggles， Hodges explores the causes of depression we can't change， the contributors we can conquer， and offers transformative hope and spiritual power to help us win the battle。
Reviews
Jed Walker
，
At the risk of sounding hyperbolic， I can’t think of a more needed book for our culture。 Whether or not you’ve ever struggled with depression， this book speaks so clearly to the challenges we’ve all experienced over the past year and a half。 The book blends excellent research with biblical perspective and tangible， practical application。 I’ve learned a great deal from Chris Hodges and this is certainly his best book yet。
Susan Mather Barone
，
Chris Hodges is a pastor who has struggled with anxiety and depression， so he has personal experience with the health condition。 He knows the stigma surrounding mental health issues – especially when the person suffering is a Christian。 He writes to believers in Christ in this book， but also shared how one could have a relationship with Jesus。 He provided a strong testimony based on his own battles and carved out a path for others to follow using biblical illustrations， as well as the stories of Chris Hodges is a pastor who has struggled with anxiety and depression， so he has personal experience with the health condition。 He knows the stigma surrounding mental health issues – especially when the person suffering is a Christian。 He writes to believers in Christ in this book， but also shared how one could have a relationship with Jesus。 He provided a strong testimony based on his own battles and carved out a path for others to follow using biblical illustrations， as well as the stories of other pioneers of great suffering。 What makes his approach different is his focus on what we have in our control -- our thoughts and behaviors -- and how to free ourselves of patterns and habits that have kept us in a mental bondage。 Relying on God's promises in the Bible， Hodges shows how to come out of the cave of depression with new purpose and hope for the future。The book opened with the reason Hodges decided to write this book: a well-known pastor had taken his life。 He knows that pressure。 Pastors care for their community and church family。 They walk with people through trauma and pain。 Burnout and self-sabotage， he said， can open the door to depression。 He could no longer stay silent with this recent suicide。 He had to do something to help those struggling with depression。 His research into the scriptures led him to the prophet Elijah’s journey。 He traces the path Elijah took from the highs of seeing God perform an amazing power display to the lows of feeling isolated in his ministry and running for his life。 God met Elijah on every point of his journey away from danger and forward into healing。 Hodges said God first met Elijah’s physical needs， and then worked on the spiritual aspects of his journey。 While we may not have control over some of the causes for depression – our circumstances， genetic predisposition， or chemical imbalance – Hodges said we do have control over how we think， react， and move。 He provided raw emotional data about his own struggles。 Alongside the anchoring story of Elijah， he used a story from Daniel 5 where God wrote a message of warning in His own hand on a wall before the eyes of King Belshazzar and others。 The king failed to heed that warning， and the prophecy was fulfilled。 Hodges used this story to show how to watch for depression’s warning signs。 Hodges used a story in Exodus 17 where Aaron and Hur held up Moses’ arms so the Israelites' could defeat the Amalekites in battle to demonstrate how much we need others。 Depression can cause people to self-isolate， he said， and he used this story to show we were never meant to do life alone。 Probably the best role model for this behavior was Jesus when He took His closest friends with him to pray in the garden of Gethsemane。 He could have isolated Himself during the agonizing hours before His betrayal and eventual death， but Hodges said Jesus had been alone during that 40-day desert time。 Satan tried to tempt Him。 Satan would try once more， so Jesus not only prayed， but leaned on God’s people when facing this physical and spiritual battle。 I liked that Hodges gave "homework" within the pages， and I thought he should definitely have a separate workbook for the things he shared for how he keeps up soul care to keep depression at bay。 He wanted to flip the scripts we replay in our minds that set us up for defeat when facing great hardships and spiritual attacks。 He wanted us to take an inventory of our daily life （our viewing habits， time management， sleep - or lack of it）， and provided examples from his own notes。 But leaving the cave of depression does take time。 While his focus was on the spiritual aspects of healing， Hodges repeated throughout the text that he supported the treatment plans provided by physicians。 Doctors can work on the physical， he said， but when comes to the spirit， we need spiritual solutions， which he provided in the third part of the book。 When the Spirit is in charge， he said， then body and soul no longer battle for dominance and there’s balance and healing。 I am reading Priscilla Shirer’s “Armor of God” as part of a women’s support group study right now。 Hodges echoed some of the same ideas about the enemy and his playbook， our daily need for putting on the full armor of God。 He reminds us that we have God's attention and are seated in the heavenly places even now。 Jesus came that we might have life and have it in abundance he said。 The Holy Spirit will help us change our habits and confront negative thoughts with truth。 Like Elijah， God will show us what we need to do when we pray and ask Him for help， read His word， and become doers and not just hearers。 I loved this book as a fellow veteran of the depression and anxiety wars。 I've confronted both several times and often after coming off great heights of feeling and emotions。 I read my story with every description Hodges gave about depression at the beginning of the book -- what goes through your mind， how you feel powerless to do anything at times and completely hopeless。 My road back was the same: read God's word， pray God's word， take care of my body through diet and exercise， seek treatment through therapy， and join a church support group。 I found so many takeaways and answers that I know others walking the path now will find useful， so I can't wait for this book to come out。 It is very timely and I'm definitely sharing this with the people in my life who are grieving losses from this pandemic。 。。。more
Mhughessc
，