Many people describe depression as a kind of intense grief. It is a deep sadness. It's like heartbreak, agony and despair all at once. I think depression is worse than grief. Grief usually has an identifiable cause. There are stages. People understand why you are sad. It eases with time.

In the 30th chapter of Deuteronomy, Moses speaks in the voice of God and offers the Hebrew community a choice:

"I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life" (verse 19).

This is a wonderfully dramatic passage -- on which I've heard many good sermons...

When I was a teenager, I liked a boy who attempted suicide. I remember calling his home on an ordinary day. His mother answered the phone and told me a harrowing story of how she came home, and found his tall lanky body in the bathtub with blood spilling into...