We live in an unprecedented time of mental illness. Many mental health specialist and mental health facilities are listed in the Yellow pages. Many of the most heinous crimes we read about are committed by people who are “mentally ill.” Support groups abound to help people deal with mental illness. Why so much mental instability? Can something be done? Or do we just fold our hands and pray that it never come to us or someone in our family?
How is your mental health? The woman who said on approaching Jesus, “If I just touch His clothes, I can be made whole” (Mark 5:28) was certainly hoping for mental, physical, and spiritual healing. All desire “wellness” in every part of life. We seem to have more problems dealing with mental illness than other types. One truth we all must learn about mental health: “You are as sick as your secret!” Mental illness is a sickness.
Mental illnesses are fixations of the mind, the refusal to stop thinking about something. There is healing for all sorts of mental illness and the healing process can begin when we are willing to give up our secret burden. It may be a secret sin, secret fear, secret fixation, secret passion or such. As we hide our secret, we give it permission to chain our lives. When we release the secret to God and loving friends and professional counseling, the process of healing is allowed to begin.
David prayed in Psalm 19:12, “cleanse my secret faults.” “You are as sick as your secret!” may sound strange but compare to a physical wound: until the wound is cleansed of foreign matter, healing can never begin. 1 John 1:9 offers wonderful medicine: “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness”.
“Thank You, Great Physician, that You are able to heal and deliver us from
any mental or emotional illness. We surrender our brokenness to You. Amen”
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