Down in the dumps???

I don't know about you but I tend to get "blue" in the winter. The cold temps & lack of sun really mess with me. I use to despise winter but now I embrace it. I can't say that I "enjoy" it but I do enjoy what winter can teach me. The winter "season" is a necessity in our lives whether you live in a place where you actually have winter weather or not. It's a time that may seem barren & cold but it's a time for relaxing, rejuenating, & reflecting. I use to skip this season & would rush into spring without a clear direction or sense of purpose. Now I embrace my winter hibernation season because even though my skin maybe ghastly white & I have to wear a lot of clothes to keep warm, I am growing & rebuilding on the inside.

Many people prone to depression get really depressed in the winter due to the cold & lack of sunlight. I was reading Psalm 42 today & realized it mention depression.

Psalm 42
As the deer pants for streams of water, so I long for you, O God.
I thirst for God, the living God. When can I come & stand before him?
Day & night, I have only tears for food, while my enemies continually taunt me, saying, "Where is this God of yours?"
My heart is breaking as I remember how it used to be: I walked among the crowds of worshipers, leading a great procession to the house of God, singing for joy & giving thanks-it was the sound of a great celebration!
Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again-my Savior & my God!
Now I am deeply discouraged, but I will remember your kindness-from Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan, from the land of Mount Mizar.
I hear the tumult of the raging seas as your waves & surging tides sweep over me.
Through each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me, & through each night I sing his songs, praying to God who gives me life.
"O God my rock," I cry, "Why have you forsaken me? Why must I wander in darkness, oppressed by my enemies?"
Their taunts pierce me like a fatal wound. They scoff, "Where is this God of yours?"
Why am I discouraged? Why so sad? I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again-my Savior & my God!
NLT Life Application Study Bible
The following is the footnotes from Bible for verses 5 & 6. Depression is one of the most common emotional ailments. One antidote for depression is to meditate on the record of God's goodness to his people. This will take your mind off the present situation as you focus your thoughts on God's ability to help you rather than on your inability to help yourself. When you feel depressed, take advantage of this psalm's antidepressant: read the Bible's accounts of God's goodness, & meditate on them.