American Missionary Fellowship

There is a man who recently has gone through a time of severe depression. He, like many men, did not reach out for help, and his wife made me aware of how he has been feeling. I asked her if she thought he would be open to a visit. She thought that would be fine, so I lined up a time when I could visit them. I asked God to help me to relay the hope of God to this man and to help him see that his feelings are only due to temporary conditions.
When I entered the room he was in, I could see that the usual sparkle was not in his eyes. He told me that he just couldn’t shake off the feelings. He explained that he has worried a lot about the crops and the lack of rain we have had this summer. He knows how vital the crops are to our economy, though he is not currently farming.
Through God’s guidance, I was able to help him back up and look at the big picture. Crops have failed before, and life has gone on one way or another for people. After an hour of talking through things, he had a smile on his face and was so thankful for my coming and spending time with him.  We prayed together, and I left. We are called into a great variety of situations as AMF missionaries and need to be in touch with God and ask for wisdom in many areas. Sometimes we are less threatening than others to talk to about personal problems.