You Cannot see the Change, but the Change is Coming

We often talk about being in a particular frame of mind. Sometimes a happy frame of mind, sometimes a sad one. We are sometimes joyful, sometimes depressed. And the interesting thing about the way God controls our moods is that they are almost always totally consuming. What I mean by this is that the frame of mind we’re experiencing at any point in time becomes our reality — it is impossible to see things in any other way.

Fortunately, it also seems to be the case that God changes our frame of mind very regularly. So we have the saying, ‘there is good and bad in every day’. Perhaps these changes in our frame of mind happen in a quite extreme way to people who have bipolar tendencies (such as myself), but in a less drastic way they happen to all of us. I sometimes feel a profound despair and my entire reality is consumed by bleak thoughts. I sometimes feel so elated that everything seems perfectly wonderful. When I am immersed in one of these states, the other vanishes entirely.

I don’t mind the elated moods so much (for obvious reasons), but it’s important to note that when things feel utterly bleak and desperate, my frame of mind is going to change. When I cannot see a way out of a particular frame of mind, this doesn’t mean there isn’t a way out. I can almost guarantee that before long I will experience a shift in mood that changes my reality. It will probably happen in a surprising way and when I’m least expecting it, but the darkness will give way to a renewed sense of joy and peace.

Sometimes, during depressive episodes, we cannot see that change is possible. But by the grace and mercy of God, a change in our frame of mind is going to come — indeed, it’s likely just around the corner.