It's the most wonderful time of the year..... or is it? For many people, the holidays are a difficult time, filled with depression and grief. They just don't feel the holiday spirit. The cause of their sadness and grief could be a recent loss, a medical issue, or an underlying mental health issue. For whatever reason, for these people the holidays just add extra stress and sadness at a time when everyone else seems joyous and excited.

If this resonates with you, if you are one of the hundreds of people suffering with depression, I want you to know that, whatever the cause of your tears, you are not alone in your sorrow and grief. God always sees your tears; the Bible says He puts our tears in His bottle, and keeps a record in His book of our sufferings.

When David wrote this, Saul, the King of Israel, had been chasing him to kill him. He tried to escape Saul by running to the city of Gath. However, there he was captured by the Philistines. His was surrounded by enemies on every side, hunted and oppressed. They gave him no rest, trying to ambush and kill him all the time.

The bottle and the book are not necessarily a literal, physical bottle or book; it is more an allegory David used as a reminder that God knew and remembered his troubles and sadness. The psalmist expresses a deep trust and faith in God; acknowledging that God is on his side, and will not forget about him and his troubles.

Psalm 56 should be a great comfort to us in our times of great sadness and grief. It is an assurance that reminds us that God is on the side of His children, and He is aware of every thing that hurts us, grieves us, or troubles us. Large and small, He knows our sorrows, and will never forget them, as if He keeps our tears in a literal bottle, and writes our sorrows in a literal book.

And most importantly, God has promised us, His children, that one sweet day, we will no longer be depressed, or grieving, or in pain, because God Himself will comfort us.

He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. (Revelation 21:4).

If you have no other reason at all to rejoice in the holiday season, rejoice in the birth of our Savior, who made it possible for us to become God's children and receive God's promises. And if you don't already know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, there is no better time than now to invite him into your heart and receive this precious gift. Click Here to find out how you can be saved today!