SCRIPTURE – A KEY TO MENTAL HEALTH
by Margaret Alison O'Hearn
One of the keys to mental health is the willingness and the desire to get well. Without the desire to get well and the desire to make the necessary changes in one’s life there can be no real progress on the road to recovery. A person who wants to recover from alcoholism and other forms of addiction or from a mental breakdown needs a sense of direction, and hope for the future.
The person who is on the road to recovery needs to take advantage of as many helps as possible to ensure growth to maturity and a full recovery that will allow a man or woman to take his or her responsible place in society once again. A person who is on the road to recovery can take advantage of the following helps:
GOD – THE GREAT PSYCHOLOGIST
The Scripture tells us:
"Give due honour to the doctor for you need him and God himself established him. Healing, in fact, comes from the Most High; the gift of healing comes from the Sovereign." (Sirach 38:1-2)
In accepting that all help and healing comes from the Lord Most High, a person who is recovering from mental illness or from addiction needs to ensure that he or she is making use of the available helps. It is pointless saying that God will help me and then doing nothing concrete about the initial cause of breakdown and addiction. It is pointless taking medication and doing nothing about the underlying problems that led that person onto the path that has ended in mental illness, addiction and general break down. All of the available helps have at their source the Most High, and it is the Lord who has given the gift of healing to those professionals who are available to give counselling and to guide the person in the restoration of self-esteem. It is God alone who has unlocked the gifts of those who are involved in medical research to try and find a way of restoring chemical balance to the brain. It is God who has given the General Practitioner the ability to listen to and diagnose that there is a problem that can be treated with medication and to pass the person onto the professional for further assistance. It is the Most High who has provided through the Scriptures a real sense of direction to the soul who has the desire to recover from mental illness and addiction.
HOPE – A MESSAGE FROM THE SCRIPTURES
There is a point in the life of a man or woman who has suffered from mental breakdown or who has fallen to the evils associated with addiction where that person begins to lose hope in the future. It is at this point when the person is far away from God that he or she can see no reason to continue living and suicide is contemplated. In some instances the attempt at suicide is successful, but in many other instances the attempt is not successful and the troubled person has the opportunity to take inventory and to begin again.
The man or woman who has reached rock bottom has wandered far away from God, and in that abandonment of belief in the promise of the inheritance of the Kingdom of Heaven that person has lost all hope. Even though this person has abandoned God and has lost hope in the future, God has not abandoned the one who is flailing because of the inability to fight the temptation associated with addictions. Just like the man who waits patiently to help a little bird that has become trapped inside a building, God waits patiently for the sinner’s return to Him through a sudden realisation of the need for repentance and reform. The message of the Gospels is that God will never give up trying to bring the fallen soul back to Him. This message is conveyed to us through the parables of Jesus Christ, especially those parables that are to be found in the Gospel of Luke. Jesus, through the parables teaches about God’s Mercy, instilling hope once more in those who have lost all hope because of their pursuit of a life of pleasure.
GOD SEEKS THE REPENTANT SINNER – THE PARABLE OF THE LOST SHEEP
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Who among you, having a hundred sheep and losing one of them, will not leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness and seek out the lost one till he finds it? And finding it, will he not joyfully carry it home on his shoulders? Then he will call his friends and neighbours together and say: ‘Celebrate with me for I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you just so, there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine upright who do not need to repent." (Luke 15:4-7)For the man or woman who has come to the point of breakdown or who has reached rock bottom because of addictions, this parable contains a message of hope. It is a statement that God seeks those who have fallen through sin and that He will never give up searching for the sinner, and when the sinner has been found, God and the whole of heaven will rejoice. This parable offers encouragement and a lifeline to the person who has discovered that the chosen lifestyle has been a sham.
What is the lesson in this parable for the one who is recovering from mental breakdown and addiction? The focus of this parable for the man or woman in recovery is the realisation that God never abandons anyone who has become enmeshed in the snares set by Satan. Even when a person has lost his or her way through sin, God is there seeking to find and bring that person back to Him, so that all of Heaven will rejoice in the final recovery for the soul. Recovery requires at some point making a personal and moral inventory of one’s life. In making that personal inventory, a person is able to examine his or her life up to the point of reaching rock bottom. It is at this point that there is an opportunity to examine the past, make a full confession and reconcile oneself to God. When the person repents of the past, then there will be rejoicing in heaven for the soul that has been reconciled to God.
This is a parable that offers hope to the one who has suddenly realised that he or she cannot continue to behave in a certain way. It is a reminder that a person is never abandoned by God even if there are humans that are willing to abandon him or her. It is a reminder of the trust that one can have in God at times of trouble, giving the soul hope for the future.
THE PARABLE OF THE PRODIGAL SON
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Jesus continued, "There was a man with two sons. The younger said to his father: "Give me my share of the estate. So the father divided his property between them. Some days later, the younger son gathered all of his belongings and started off for a distant land, where he squandered his wealth in loose living. Having spent everything, he was hard pressed when a severe famine broke out in that land. So he hired himself out to a well-to-do citizen of that place and was sent to work on a pig farm, so famished was he that he longed to fill his stomach even with the food given to the pig, but no one offered him anything.
Finally coming to his senses, he said: "How many of my father’s hired workers have food to spare, and here I am starving to death! I will get up and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I have sinned against God and before you. I no longer deserve to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants. With that thought in mind, he set off for his father’s house.
He was still a long way off when his father caught sight of him. His father was so deeply moved with compassion that he ran out to meet him, threw his arms around his neck and kissed him. The son said: Father I have sinned against Heaven and before you. I no longer deserve to be called your son…
But the father turned to his servants: Quick! Bring out the finest robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Take the fattened calf and kill it. We shall celebrate and have a feast, for this son of mine was dead and has come back to life. He was lost and is found. And the celebration began" (Luke 15:11-24)
What is the lesson that can be learned in this parable for one who is trying to grow to maturity? First of all, a person on the path to destruction has allowed ego to become his or her god. It is at this point that the person has abandoned God through the seeking of pleasure from drugs or alcohol, or in some other form of wilful behaviour that eventually brings the person to rock bottom. Just like the younger son, this person has turned from the Father, and his or her inheritance. However, the Father continues to wait patiently for the soul to realise that what he had in his or her Father’s house is far better than what is available on the path to destruction.
A second lesson is the hunger that is felt by the person who suddenly realizes that something is missing in his or her life. The alcoholic and the drug addict are spiritual beings and they are seeking something but they do not know what that "something" might be. This is similar to the hunger that the son feels. It is an unsatisfied hunger that has been brought about as the soul finally realises that he or she cannot continue to go it alone. It is at this point that a person might face several options:
It is at this turning point that a person has to make the decision for a change in lifestyle and to return to the Father. It is at this point that the Father is celebrating the return of one who has gone astray but who has decided to return. God continues to wait for the soul to return to Him.
A third lesson from this parable, therefore, is that one has to make the conscious decision to recover from addiction or from mental breakdown. When the younger son hit rock bottom he realized that the life he was leading was due to very poor lifestyle choices. It is the same with the addict and the person who is suffering from mental illness. It was due to poor lifestyle choices that the man or woman had entered onto the path that could only lead to despair, but there is a point where there is a sudden realization that one cannot continue with a form of behaviour that is anti-social and there must be changes in habits and in thinking. Mental illness and addictions do not just happen overnight. Addictions happen because of poor lifestyle choices. In order to move away from addiction the person must have the desire to become well.
Therefore, a person who desires to overcome addiction or to become well after mental breakdown, needs to follow the example of the younger son and make the conscious decision to return to the Father, to take a moral inventory and make the decision to change bad habits that had led to the addiction in the first place. Without such a conscious decision the soul will not begin growth to maturity so that he or she can once more take his or her place in society.
THE DESIRE TO PERMANENTLY OVERCOME ADDICTION TO ALCOHOL AND DRUGS
"When the evil spirit goes out of a person, it wanders through dry lands looking for a resting place. And finding none, it says, ‘I will return to my house from which I came.’ When it comes it finds the house swept and everything in order. Then it goes to fetch seven other spirits even worse than itself. They move in and settle there, so that the last state of the person is worse than the first." (Luke 11: 24-25)
When a person hits rock bottom as a result of addiction or of mental illness, the soul seeks to be free of the torment and will attempt to make the necessary changes in lifestyle. The message of the Gospel is that if one is not guarding against the return of the old habits, then the demon – alcoholism, drug addiction, and workaholism, sexual depravity - that has possessed the person, will return in a more ferocious way.
Families affected by the drug addiction of a loved one know the struggle that goes on when the young addict wants to be free of such a bad habit. There are many factors that lead to drug addiction:
The desire to be part of the in-crowd can be disastrous for the innocent boy or girl who seems unaware of the dangers that are presented through the use of drugs. The downward spiral into drug addiction and alcoholism begins when the young person is pressured into trying the "bong" or whatever else is offered. What happens when the supply dries up? The young addict is not able to cope with the withdrawal and something new, such as hard liquor is introduced so that he or she does not have to suffer. The downward spiral continues until he or she ends up with alcohol induced psychosis and attempts to commit suicide. It is at this point when the young addict ends up in a mental hospital that he or she is given the opportunity to dry out and make changes to his or her life.
In this situation, the young person is given the opportunity to make the necessary changes. However, there continues to be a constant battle of falling back into old habits. It only takes one drink, or in the case of drugs, one hit and the person is back on the path to addiction. It is the return of the demon.
A person who is recovering from a mental break down also has to face a similar vigilance. In order to become well changes in thinking and in habits are necessary. The person can begin to make the changes but these changes can be sabotaged by others who desire that the person return to the old ways. It becomes a constant battle to not give into these old temptations and to return to the old ways.
What happens to someone who suffers from bouts of depression and who wants to overcome the causes of the depression? She might be successful for a while and then suddenly things begin going wrong. She cannot cope with aggressive people and begins to react to the aggressiveness, and once again she has become sad and is in tears that cannot be helped. This person is a target for those who have a vicious streak and who play on such weaknesses. If she is not vigilant she will once again fall victim to the vicious behaviour of others and once more sink into depression.
However, so long as the person has a desire to continue to recover, he or she will eventually overcome what could be only a minor slip. At the other end of the spectrum, is the person who is not willing to make the effort to fully recover from addiction or mental illness. In such a case the ego continues to rule the mind. He or she will resist all efforts to help the recovery by putting up mental roadblocks to a full recovery. This is the person who refuses all outside help and claims to have no need for a 12 step recovery program, and who refuses to do the necessary work to ensure a permanent recovery. When a person behaves in this way, he or she will continue to end up in the mental hospital due to an inability to cope with life.
CONCLUSION
If a person truly desires to recover from mental breakdown or addiction, then much can be found in the Scriptures that will give hope for the future. No matter what is the state of our spiritual or mental condition, God is there waiting to call straying souls to return to Him. He is waiting to offer comfort to the souls that have become depressed and have almost given up hope. He is waiting for the drug addict and the alcoholic to discover what it means to be at rock bottom and He is waiting to help them to recover from their addictions.
In the GROW program we are reminded of the necessity of Personal Value:
"No matter how bad my physical, mental social or spiritual condition, I am always a human person loved by God and a connecting link between persons. I am still valuable; my life has a purpose; and I have my unique place and my unique part in my Creator’s own saving, healing and transforming work."
Jesus says: "Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened and I will give you rest. Shoulder my yoke and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Yes my yoke is easy and my burden is light." (Matthew 11: 28-30)