I'm kind of following up on the previous post where I wrote about our need to be able to be honest with people, and especially God.
It is my belief that the more we can be honest with God, the more He will reveal Himself to us and the more we will be set free from what keeps us bound in sickness and sin.
The picture of the quote from the bible above actually starts with "and you will know the truth and..."
God is a god of peace and ultimate understanding.
He knows all of the things that have affected us and helped form us into what we are today.
Oftentimes we don't know the truth about ourselves, though.
Good and bad.
In my short book Winning the Battle with Mental Illness... I contend that we are only able to reach out for help when we have the freedom to do so.
I found out as a young man who was suffering from severe anxiety, depression and mood swings (which I didn't even recognize as such yet; I thought that was just being tested as I pursued a "calling" to the priesthood) that by opening myeslf to God first, I was freed to be able to reach out and take the initial steps toward healing and the relief of the enormous burden of anxiety and pain through the mental health community.
Over the years, I discovered that the reality and goodness of prudently prescribed medication (if one truly needs it) was another major key to freeing me to live a normal, healthy life.
"Are we ever truly free?"
There is always something in this lifetime which keeps us bound, but I liken it to having the "freedom" of a jail cell to that of a small apartment or even a house with a yard. (Some people almost literally have the world as their playground.)
There is interior freedom, economic freedom, physical freedom, etc that all carry the weight of responsibility that we will be answerable for in this life and the next.
As we celebrate our great nation's 250th birthday today, let us celebrate the hard-won freedoms that we enjoy and remember that we are only as great and free as the "least" in our society.
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