Embraced suffering.
Chose hope.
And forgave each and every one of us.
As I wrote in the article Those Who Suffer From Mental Health Problems Are Not a Failure, “I feel compelled to raise my voice and say: Therapy is not demonic. Taking antidepressants is not a sin. Seeing a psychiatrist is not anti-christian.
And those who suffer from mental health problems are not a failure.
Lord knows we need more openness in our congregations because (and this is a fact) 50 percent of adults will develop depression, PTSD, anxiety, self-harm, eating disorders, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder or some other mental illness in their lifetime.
Half of the people reading this article already have (or currently are).
And for the sake of our family, friends and church leaders, we need to break the shame.
Jesus is the hope for each and every one of our needs. He’s the miracle worker who, ‘healed every disease and every sickness’ (Mat. 9:35). And when Jesus healed the leper, the demon possessed, the broken-hearted, he never blamed them for their condition.
Jesus is not a religious leader who will condemn us if we seek help, Jesus is the high priest who understands how it feels.”
The video above was filmed at Homeboy Industries. Located in downtown Los Angeles, this amazing community provides hope and job training for formerly gang involved and previously incarcerated men and women so they can redirect their lives and become contributing members of society.
Its founder, Father Gregory Boyle, wrote:
“Here is what we seek: a compassion that can stand in awe at what the poor have to carry rather than stand in judgment at how they carry it.”
I highly recommend his book Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion.
And I highly recommend we keep Jim and the Homeboys in our prayers.