Over the last couple of weeks, I have been silent. I
remained silent as I mourned the deaths of the nine precious individuals of
Charleston. I silently grieved with the faith community of Emanuel AME Church
and the people of my home state, South Carolina. I prayed in silence for the
perpetrator, his soul and for his family. All of these are my people. I am a
part of them and they of me. I grieved, prayed and reflected silently.
In the days that followed, I became prideful once again of
the great state of SC as they prayed, hugged, worshipped, held vigils, forgave
and even marched in the spirit of unity and love. The nation and world could
most assuredly learn from these images and news stories.
Today, my heart aches as voices across the country shift the
conversation and focus. The issues are not about a flag, gun control, people
carrying guns or not, racism or the past. I am not interested in joining that
conversation. That conversation is for another day. Today, in my opinion,
should be about conversing and focusing on the REAL issues. I see three of them:
(1) the misplaced ideology of freedom, (2) the state of morality in the U. S., and (3) the lack of focus on mental health issues. All four of them have a common thread of a spiritual void.
The ideological view of freedom in our nation has gone so
far to the left that people are adopting the belief that individuals are free
to do whatever, whenever and wherever. Freedom came to this nation with a huge
price, but it also came to us with parameters/boundaries. I was always taught
that my freedom ended where another’s began. Politicians, activists and
Hollywood have been inching toward no parameters/boundaries for years, and we
accept behaviors under the umbrella of “freedom acts” that trample on the
rights of others. Freedom is precious. Freedom is not free. Freedom is not a
right to do whatever, whenever, wherever or with whomever. Freedom doesn’t get
to maximize its potential without a regard for others. Let’s go back to the
basics and talk about freedom and its relationship to “do no harm.” You my brothers (and sisters) were called to be free. But do not use your
freedom to indulge in sinful behavior; rather, serve one another in love. The
entire law is summed up in a single command, “Love your neighbor as yourself.
(Galatians 5:13-14)
The state of morality in the U. S. has plummeted and is not
much higher than the lowest cesspool. The newspapers, television, talk shows
and social media are filled with stories of the fall of morality. We focus our
attention more on the dramatic, negative sides, and ill-gotten gains of society
rather than the good. When you focus so much on the negatives most assuredly
only more negatives are to come. Just a matter of the replication theory. Focus
on the positives of people in our newspapers, television talk shows and social
media and good things will start to happen. So let’s talk about what we are
allowing the media to feed our minds and hearts, but wait, that’s a freedom
issue! Finally, brothers (and
sisters), whatever is true, whatever is
honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is
commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise,
think about these things. (Philippians 4:8)
Mental health is a thread that weaves through most events as
witnessed in Charleston. According to Sarah Kiff of the Washington Post
(12/17/2012), the mental health-care system in this nation is not big enough to
handle all of the needs. She poignantly points out in her article: (1)
approximately 5.6% of our healthcare budget go toward mental health care, (2)
mental health dollars mostly goes toward prescription drugs and outpatient
treatment, (3) access to mental health care is worse than other types of
medical services, (4) 45% of the untreated individuals cite costs as a barrier,
(5) negative attitudes toward mental health treatment become barriers, (6)
states cut mental health dollars during the recession, and (7) the Affordable
HealthCare Act is to require insurance companies to pay for certain mental
health treatments. The bottom line for me is this: the mental health of our
citizens should be a priority. Downplaying the mental stability and need for
treatment, inpatient and outpatient, will only give rise to negative behaviors
and more people becoming victimized. Want talk about mental health? The waters closed in over me to take my
life; the deep surrounded me; weeds were wrapped about my head at the roots of
the mountains. I went down to the land whose bars closed upon me forever; yet
you brought up my life from the pit, O Lord my God.
(Jonah 2:5-6)
There will be those who read this and berate it. There will
be those who read and proclaim, “This is from a simpleton.” There will be those
who read and want to debate. There will be those who read and will want to
intellectualize it. There will be those who will read and want to proof text
the Scripture used. That’s okay.
I am a simple person. A person of simple faith. I believe in
God and believe in Satan. I believe in the Spirit of Good and the Spirit of
Evil. Freedom can be good and evil. Morality can be good and evil. Mental
health can manifest good and evil. Good comes from God, evil from Satan. Each
and every day I deal with children who challenge the bounds of freedom, push
the limits of morality, suffer from mental health issues and manifest certain
behaviors that teeter on the realm of evil. There is no one pill or spiritual experience that makes it all magically disappear. By treating the whole person (spiritually, mentally, emotionally and physically), we have a much better chance at success and transformation.
I don’t want to converse about a
flag, a gun, some type of “ism” or camp out in the past. A conversation is needed both inside and outside of the Church. I want to converse
with and focus on people, individuals and groups, seeking to make a better life
for one and all. Is that too much to ask?
Just one man’s mind.
(Photos from Washington Post, The Post and Courier and ABC News)
