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Matthew 17:14-20 I have chosen Matthew chapter 17, verses 14 to 20 talks about the epileptic man whose father came to Jesus to heal the son. Jesus was teaching a crowd and when the man saw Him, he knelt down under his feet and appealed to Him to heal his son who was epileptic and who used to fall on fire most frequently (Matthew 17:14-20). Indeed it seems the young man whose father met Jesus had a serious mental illness and just like we read during our class lessons, the faith families work closely with families whose members have severe mental illness. As a Christian student, I firmly believe that faith can take away mental illness because we are taught that mental illness usually results from demon possession, thus terrifying an already suffering and confused person. In this regard, our Christian faith does not demand people to suspend medication and rely on faith only. Still, there is a significant need to combine both medication and prayers, just like Jesus helped to heal the epileptic son through prayer and faith that his father had in Jesus. Thus, to make the symptoms not come back, there is a need for the Faith families to demand blind obedience and make the vulnerable people do the most insane things like every time (Ramos, Jaccard & Guilamo-Ramos, 2003). Moreover, I believe the Faith Families must remain strict in faith to avoid committing sin, developing or exacerbating OCD. As Christians, our faith demands that we stay in clean situations and avoid abusing people but only embrace a “mission” to save the mentally ill individuals within the US and worldwide through outreach programs. Ultimately, as the Faith Community, we must understand that working with the mentally ill individuals is like we have been called to do so. Therefore, because we are really there for the right reason, and it is not about money, certainly not about fame, and not about any gain we may make in life. We are not influencing presidents or world leaders. There are working with people who many consider being the least of the least. Churches, families, schools, clubs and even friendships have way too often rejected these people (Matthew 17:14-20). I believe that once a person is truly called and answers that call, the work will become not a “job” but instead a “passion” as the person I talked with once stated. Indeed people with mental illnesses are just like other people because some according to the Scriptures. Some individuals have short tempers, but are at the same time very quick to forgive. They sometimes have different outlooks but I’ve also been screamed at, threatened and people have attempted to assault me. Things that can be inspiring and refreshing, and for the most part I loved the people and enjoyed working with their families to help them heal. In conclusion, as a Christian and a member of the Faith Community, I ultimately believe that we will all stand before God someday. I know I have done enough in my life that he will certainly have good and sound reason to look down on me. Out of the good things I have done in this life, I want to treat the least of the least as people of value, people of joy, people of worth, people of importance, and only just people, to be one of the things that God says to me, “Well done.” That moment will make working in this life with people who live with mental illness a passion truly worthwhile and worth a lifetime. Reference Read Ramos, B., Jaccard, J., & Guilamo-Ramos, V. (2003). Dual ethnicity and depressive symptoms: Implication of being Black and Latino in the United States. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences, 25(2), 147-173. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.1002.6601&rep=rep1&type=pdf https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/jclp.20364 https://walkinourshoes.org/our-stories/mai |
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