Okay I'll try this one more time
I want to create a VPN server on a VPS.
Create and manage VPS via secure shell SSH and install wordpress to create websites
I want to host my own web server, email server, and cloud server.
I want to do this all again using a secure shell where as an ISP provider or anyone else cant view any data transmittal. Therefore I'm free from data
mining and my work, communications and browsing sessions are private.
However what I am hearing is that its not possible to do anything in private or protect my data with FOSS and have digital freedom
This is the best description I have seen to date. I will tackle them one by one:
"I want to create a VPN server on a VPS.
Create and manage VPS via secure shell SSH and install wordpress to create websites"
This is exactly what I suggested. Find a VPS provider that you like and sign up for (rent) a VPS from them. Everyone uses SSH (secure shell) to configure and do most things on their VPS. You can install VPN server software on your VPS to make it a VPN, and you can also configure it as a web server running Wordpress. These are all very common activities.
(My advice above was to rent two separate VPSs - one to be the web server, and the other to be the VPN server. If someone hacks your web server, the VPN will still be available.)
"I want to host my own web server, email server, and cloud server."
You can do all of them with a VPS, no problem.
Be aware that running your own mail server is very challenging. The ever-present problem is to get the big email providers (Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.) to send and receive email with the mail server on your VPS. The VPS may have a "tainted" IP address that was used for spam in the past. The big players often reject email in both directions because you have a personal domain. If your domain is newly registered, that's worse. The big players often reject email for no explicable reason. Just when you get email working, they start behaving badly again and rejecting email, and you have no idea why. Running your own mail server can be done, but you will find that it is more work than it is worth, and it requires continual effort to keep reliable email running.
"I want to do this all again using a secure shell where as an ISP provider or anyone else cant view any data transmittal. Therefore I'm free from data mining and my work, communications and browsing sessions are private."
The SSH (secure shell) connection is secure from end-to-end between your laptop and the VPS, no problem. If you use the VPN, then your ISP and anyone local will not be able view data transmittal between your laptop and the VPS/VPN. Once your data leaves the VPN, it will be in the clear on the internet. (Note: Browser sessions are still encrypted with TLS (SSL), but "they" will know which websites you are visiting by seeing the destination IP addresses. There are ways to hide that activity, but that requires more work and more understanding, and probably a huge performance penalty.)
The VPS provider has absolute power over your VPS. They can inspect or see anything they want on your running VPS. Even if you encrypt the VPS drive, as long as your VPS is running, the decryption key is somewhere in RAM. You MUST trust your VPS provider not to look, and there is no way to prevent it or know if they are violating that trust.
When you visit a website like Linux.org, you have a user account, and they know who you are no matter where you came from. Your VPS / VPN has a known IP address that does not change. Linux.org can share what you do with others. Linux.org also displays ads and banners from third party websites and networks, and they can do their own nefarious tracking without Linux.org's involvement. It is a complex world. I could say a lot more, but I hope you get the point.
"However what I am hearing is that its not possible to do anything in private or protect my data with FOSS and have digital freedom"
This is a false assumption. There are ways to do what you want, and FOSS has nothing to do with it. At this point, we need to talk about privacy and security, which are challenging topics on their own.
In general, your web surfing activities are private from outsiders because the connections are encrypted. Your browser connects to most websites using TLS (aka, "SSL"). Nobody can see your activities between you and Linux.org for example. That is what the padlock icon in the address bar means - the communications are end-to-end encrypted between your browser and the website's web server.
There are ways to enhance your privacy and make tracking harder. You can use the TOR network, for example. You do not need a VPS or VPN to use TOR.
The problem is all the tracking. Websites and their advertisers and other banners deposit cookies in your browser (stored on your computer), use "fingerprints", and many tricks to identify and track your activities. They share information between them to make it difficult for you to avoid the tracking. You can delete all the cookies and they may still know who you are.
There is a lot of information on the internet about how to avoid tracking. It is a war of escalation. As soon as people figure out how to avoid a certain tracking method, the "big data" companies find a way to work around it, and they have vast funds to develop new, insidious tracking methods. It is not easy. Do some web searches on how to avoid tracking. Good luck!
There is a concept called a "threat model" - WHO are you trying to protect your data from, and what resources do they have? It is easy to protect your digital diary from your kid sister. It is very challenging to maintain operational security if you are a terrorist cell operating in a European country. The two examples have very different threat models.
I will repeat that you must trust your VPS provider. That is absolute, because they have absolute control over your VPS. Even if you encrypt everything, as long as the VPS is running, they can find the keys in RAM.
BOTTOM LINE:
I use VPSs and do many of the things that you are asking about. Here is a recent thread describing my ongoing experiments in this general area. I recommend that you read the "Final Word" at the bottom.
