Does God Care When I Feel Down?

Do you ever get nostalgic? Have you found that your friends are feeling down a lot lately? In today’s post we’ll explore more about this “down” feeling and most importantly, what you can do about it.

Feeling down about the past

In Portuguese we have the word Saudade. That would be like saying “I miss you” or “I miss the time when…” If you miss something or someone you have this saudade feeling. Saudade also evokes a sense of incompleteness and loneliness. You may think you’re the only who feels lonely but you’re not. This study shows that compared to other people in society, young people feel the loneliest.

So that’s what “feeling down” means to me. And you probably know that having this feeling isn’t nice. For me, the worst part is hearing that people are down because they believe that their recent past, like their childhood, was better. Have you ever looked back and felt like this?

Yes, God cares when I feel down

It’s wonderful to have good memories of your past but feeling like life isn’t going to get any better just feels terrible. And it’s not even true. God can make your life better despite the circumstance you’re facing. Of course this may be hard for you to believe. But you can look to the bible and find many words of encouragement. In one of them God says “Behold I’m doing a new thing”. And even in the last book of the Bible – Revelation – we read about a better future with new heavens and a new earth.

I can turn to Him when feeling down

Considering who God is also brings hope. God is “Immanuel” – a name that means that he’s with us. Personally, I haven’t always gotten everything I wanted. I have even experienced many losses in only one year. During that time, I thought everything was gone. I didn’t know why bad things were happening to me. But I learned to trust God. A verse that encouraged me was,  Commit your way to the Lord, trust in him and He will act. (Psalm 37:5). I believe that Immanuel has changed many lives – including mine. And he’s always ready to do something for you.

To experience this for yourself, how about reading God’s word? Find some time to read it and He will reveal his plans for you. I’m not promising a road of roses but his presence refreshes us in hard times. One passage that gives me hope is Romans 8. There’s a verse in this chapter that says “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”

What if this feeling won’t go away?

But what if this is hard for you to believe? What if you’re starting to doubt? What if you’re still feeling down and are asking yourself questions like, where was God when this happened? Why did it happen to me? Is it okay to doubt? How much am I worth? Does God notice me? 

I’s normal to ask these questions.  And it’s really difficult to trust God when life gets complicated. But know that Christ notices you. As you walk with him you will find that he is a faithful companion on this life journey.

Bonus!

Want to find more resources that can help you when this “down” feeling won’t go away? One interesting thing researchers have found is that simply thinking about being happy doesn’t make the sadness go away. But what if you could find happiness and even joy from impacting someone else’s life? If this saudade feeling is about longing for a time past, what if you thought of something kind that someone did for you in the past, something that really touched your heart…and then did the same for someone else? If you don’t know where to start, you can read this post that gives more ideas about practically reaching out to someone who may also be feeling down.