ITS GREAT FLAW

Much Is being done to teach would-be supporters about various forms of mental health challenges. Yet I see a great problem with this.

To put the primary focus on people’s mental health needs is to take away from seeing them as the people they are—people just like you and me.

Those who live with mental health challenges are individuals. Their mental health conditions are simply something they happen to live with. It is not who they are.

It is to be noted that symptoms are often temporary, allowing them to live a fairly normal life the rest of the time.

People with such challenges have gifts and abilities, just like everyone else does. They need to be given opportunities to contribute in whatever ways they are able, That would help them more than anything else. Is attention being drawn to this?

Christians with lived experience need to be encouraged to live out their faith—faith in a God who sees us all as having equal value. And God’s call on all Christians is the same—supporters as well as those they support:

. . . let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)

marja