Not all who have Christ are free from trials and tribulation in their daily living. There are those who are depressed, anxious, and even those who feign being okay. Having the forum to address this today is a blessing to me. It would be nice to not have to write about mental health and even better if mental health issues didn't exist. Just as Jesus said the world would persecute those who had Jesus living through them, he also said that we would face adversity, character building and despair. Since we can see evidence of this throughout time from the garden forward; it would be ignorant of us to say that we don't have this in the Christian world any longer. That would also be a lie. Living with the issues in our lives is just as important as living with physical problems. I was once asked why God allows the mental and physical problems for believers. It's a difficult question. First and foremost, God doesn't put mental and physical problems upon us. The circumstances of the world we live in and decisions we make bring both blessings and cursing. We are asked to live through adversity even as Christ went to the cross for us. But what about children? Again, a difficult question. Sometimes there seems to be no answer. Maybe there is no answer in some corner of your life. Maybe, like Job, God's sovereign love for us is sufficient to go through the storm instead of staying in the storm. The great "Why?" questions seem to be out of reach for rhyme and reason and we are left with "Because." as the answer.
Some would like to suggest that it's a case of "mind over matter." Nope. Some would have you and I believe that it's a case of Satanic oppression or possession. Nope, not necessarily. Some would like to play the blame game and identify all the victimizers in their world to blame them for what's wrong with our world. That wouldn't be the answer either. For clarity, Christians cannot be possessed by evil spirits (demons). For Christ resides in the Christians and the demonic is kicked out of the house. The Christian can be oppressed by the demonic though. How the Christian reacts to the demonic around them is part of the solution. Knowing that "greater is he that is within me" is a victory lap the Christian needs to take every day. Yet, there is still the issue to deal with of mental health. It's a reality. We need to stop sticking our heads in the sand and acknowledge that sometimes "bad things happen to good people." Something has, is, or will be happening that throw off the balance of good mental health and bad mental health. I've purposely avoided the two terms: disease and disorder, until now. A disease is a condition that will never go away. A disorder is a condition where prayer, medication, therapy and other means are utilized to stop the disorder. Neither should be in charge of the Christian's life. Some conditions are inherited and some conditions begin with the current generation. Sometimes people are who they are because of inherited traits from their parents while other times it's a result of a flawed and fallen society.
Jesus, in giving the great commission, told believers that they can lay hands on the ill and they will be healed. He also told his disciples to go out into all the world and bring mankind to the foot of the cross for salvation. The ultimate healing is salvation which heals the sin damaged heart and replaces that heart with Jesus' heart. The next thing Jesus did was to tell the believers to come alongside their brothers and sisters and love them. Love can and does heal a multitude of issues regarding mental health. Let's keep in mind that sometimes the illnesses and disorders come from our environment. Pollutants and other invasive chemicals are all around us. When the body is attacked by these the result are seen both as mental and physical. Only the healing of Jesus can take care of these. There are 8 different ways that Jesus heals us from our infirmities. From, on the one end of the spectrum Jesus can miraculous healing to the other end of that same spectrum Jesus can take us home to be with him. Both are healing brought about by Jesus. In between those two points there are doctors, medicine, therapy, and other choices. However, as Paul puts it, the greatest healing power in the entire world is the healing power of the love of God. Exercise it with those who need his love through you.
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