Whether its alcohol, drugs, sex, pills, pornography, food, gambling, etc., addiction leaves individuals with feelings of helplessness and loss of control. The pain of addiction is apparent all around us. Families and relationships often experience the detrimental effects of addictive behavior. Some of the devastating consequences include: guilt, shame, depression, anxiety, mood swings, loneliness, and abandonment.

An addiction can be described as a complex physiological or psychological compulsion to habitually participate in an activity in spite of the severity of its physical, mental, social, and spiritual consequences. This leaves individuals desperate for seeking comfort in the midst of their pain. Whether pain from an addiction is directly affecting your life or whether it’s another person’s addiction that causes the pain, there is HOPE.

Seeking professional help, joining a recovery group, and having close accountability partners are a few steps that can begin the process of healing from the pain of addiction. God created us to be in fellowship with one another and to “Carry each other’s burdens” (Galatians 6:2). Healthy relationships are an essential part of the healing process.

Relying on the truths of God’s Word while seeking wise counsel helps one cope with the pain that coincides as a result of addictive behavior. What seems impossible on our own power is possible with the help of God. In the midst of the suffering and pain that comes alongside addictive behavior, we have a Savior who comforts, protects, and loves us. Psalm 34:18 says, “He comforts the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.” The person suffering from the consequences of addiction can feel trapped in a web of overwhelming darkness and defeat. Trusting God for comfort and healing provides a sense of peace in the middle of the pain.

Many of us struggle with being assertive in our interactions with others. Oftentimes, we tend more towards either passiveness or aggressiveness when dealing with others. Those who tend toward passivity, are likely to keep quiet and withdraw from conflict and may allow others to make decisions for them rather than speaking up and stating their opinions, wants or needs. Passive people tend to have underlying self-doubt about the validity of their feelings or thoughts and their right to express them. Those who tend towards aggressiveness, are likely to dominate in conflict and ignore the rights of others in the pursuit of having their opinions, wants, and needs heard without regard for the feelings of others. They may be hostile or even physically aggressive in pursuit of their own desires. A third tendency we may have is to behave passive-aggressively by not communicating our wants/needs openly (passiveness) while subtlety sabotaging the person we are in conflict with either through backstabbing behavior, being sarcastic in our interactions, or complaining about him or her to others (aggressiveness).

Some may feel that this is just who they are and these patterns can’t be changed, however, there is a better way to communicate and that is to learn to be more assertive. An assertive person is able to communicate his or her feelings, beliefs, desires, and needs openly and honestly while also understanding and accepting the rights of others to communicate their feelings, beliefs, desires, and needs. Additionally, assertive people take responsibility for themselves and do  not blame others for their choices. There are many benefits to communicating in a more assertive manner including:

• Gaining confidence in who you are and your right to express yourself.
• Respecting the rights of others as well as your own.
• Improving communication with others by being more open and honest and, thus, improving your relationships.
• Making it easier to have your own needs and desires met because others are more aware of them.
• Decreasing stress and anxiety in relationships while allowing for more calm, straightforward communication.

For most of us, learning to communicate more assertively will take some time and effort. If you feel this may be an area you need to improve, you will need to honestly evaluate your own natural tendencies in your interactions with others and especially how you tend to deal with conflict. If you tend toward passive behavior, you will need to work to accept yourself and your right to your own feelings, thoughts, and beliefs first. Next, you will need to work to communicate and express yourself clearly and confidently. If you tend toward aggressive behavior, you will need to work to accept the validity of others’ feelings, thoughts, and beliefs and come to an understanding that validating others does not invalidate you or make you powerless. Then, you will need to work to calmly hear others out, especially during times of conflict, while also clearly and calmly expressing yourself.

Working to make changes in your communication style and working towards assertiveness can be difficult. If you find that you would like more help in learning how to make these changes, the many counselors on staff at The Well Counseling Center are here to help. Please give our office a call and we can help you get started on your journey towards more assertive communication and more fulfilling interactions with others.

Athletes come in all shapes and sizes and compete in different sports that require a wide variety of expertise. Some skills can be learned, whereas others are God-given traits that must be utilized for success. There are some qualities, however, which transcend these external differences and are crucial to the make-up of an athlete.

I believe every athlete possesses each of the following, but maybe not in the same degree. To function best in life and in competition, it is essential for these to be in balance. My future blogs will go into more detail about how each quality impacts the rest of the athlete’s life, relationships, and spiritual health as well as potential issues that occur when they get out of balance.

Without further ado, here are the top five qualities of an athlete:

Discipline. This is the dedication to work hard day in and day out. This involves willingly submitting to sweat, pain, tears, long days, hard practices, and extra sprints. This is what is required on the front end for positive results.

Integrity. This is sportsmanship, following the rules of the game. It’s not cutting corners when no one is looking. This is doing the right things in the right way for the right reasons.

Sacrifice. This is giving up your time, sleep, energy, and schedule. It’s letting go of what you would rather be doing for what you know you should be doing. It’s thinking more of your coach, your team, and your potential than your momentary desires.

Courage. This is the ability to try something new in spite of fear or resistance. It’s being willing to battle back against the odds when others say it’s not possible. This is taking risks and being vulnerable to failure for the hope of something greater.

Passion. This is a love of the game. It’s what makes the previous four qualities worth it. This is the drive required to continue when things get hard, to get excited for each and every game, and to miss it three days into the off season.

I’ve come up what I believe are the most important qualities for an athlete. Feel free to comment if you agree or disagree. Would you add any? Are some not necessary for every athlete?

Many times when the journey of life becomes difficult and worries seem to pile on at every turn, we have a natural reaction that makes us want to retreat and withdraw into ourselves. I guess you could say that is the “flight” part of the “flight or fight” response. When marriages are deteriorating, finances are spinning out of control, children are falling into destructive patterns, or we simply feel depressed and frustrated with this life, we have a natural tendency to withdraw from others and try to work on our problems alone behind closed doors. We don’t want others to see how hard things are or how much we are hurting. We stop calling our friends and family members and participating in other kinds of social interactions. It seems that we think if we can just hunker down and get through this stage in our lives, then we can come out and show our “good selves” to the world again. The old adage, “Never let them see you cry” comes to mind. We feel that others won’t want to be around us during this difficult time and that others will only want to share in the happy parts of our lives. This may seem like a logical conclusion since so much of our world is based on appearances. In our fast-paced world, there is so much pressure to look like we have it all together, like we are managing each area of our lives perfectly.

However, there is something flawed in this line of thinking. The truth is that we were made for relationship and if we were made to be in relationship that means that we were made to stay in relationship even when things get tough. It may be hard at times to hear God or to feel like He is listening and wants you to be in relationship with Him when you are going through a tough time. Nonetheless, Scripture says that we are to ask for what we need and to pray believing that we will receive it (Matthew 21:22, John 15:7). God hears your pleas and He wants to comfort you in your distress, but He won’t go barging in where you don’t invite Him to go. Take some time to be with Him, to tell Him about your struggles, and ask Him to come into the middle of them and to bring you comfort.

Don’t be afraid to ask others for the help you need also. Of course God is the one who provides for all of our needs, but that does not mean that He doesn’t use others to provide. You’ve heard, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7). That Scripture most certainly applies to God, but I think it also applies to relationships with others. The truth is, God has gifted others with many different talents and placed them all in relationships. Other people may be just the avenue God wants to use to bring you the help and healing you need. Reach out and tell your friends and family members that you need a job, or you need marriage counseling, or financial guidance, or help dealing with your difficult teenager. You may be surprised at how others can help you or who they may know that can help you, if you will only ask.

If you feel that you naturally tend to withdraw when tough times come along, that may be where you need to work to stay and “fight” rather than give in to “flight.” Fight the urge to withdraw and make a point to reach out to others. If you reach out to some people in your life and you feel they aren’t listening or providing the support you need, keep fighting by telling them that you need them to really listen. If they still won’t listen, look for others who will. Keep fighting until you find that friend, family member, pastor, other church staff member, or counselor who will listen to your story and offer encouragement and support.

When you do share, push yourself to stay in relationship. I have seen many clients that feel an urge to withdraw after they have shared their stories of pain and sorrow with me and with others in the lives. These clients fear that their counselor or family or friends may not be able to handle the truth of their pain. But, good counselors are trained to help you work through the pain and they are ready to help you process all of your thoughts and feelings and walk alongside you during this difficult journey. Your family and friends may not have a complete understanding and may not be able to help you process thoughts and feelings as well as a trained counselor, but they are a part of your life and they can often tell when you are in pain, whether you seek to share it or not. If those are safe relationships, being open and sharing may be just what the doctor ordered. And, if they are not safe relationships, that doesn’t mean that you should withdraw and retreat within yourself. Make a point to seek out new relationships and start with the safest of all…by opening up to the Lord.

Throughout the past few weeks a theme of misunderstanding God’s gospel has emerged in session.  This theme may seem simple and fundamental, yet at times that is exactly what we need to hear, learn, and trust—the basic TRUTH.

The gospel is simple, yet so profoundly deep and infinitely wonderful.  So many times we lose sight of the basic truth and we focus on the details which blur our understanding.  We add to the gospel to make our limited human minds comprehend more or we avoid meeting with Jesus to meditate on truth because it is hard to step outside of ourselves.  When Christians trust in “self” rather than renewing their minds with Scripture, the well-intended person becomes confused and frustrated with the gospel.

“The gospel” is a word Christians use interchangeably throughout their lives, yet many times not fully understanding its significance and meaning.  We speak in terms of the gospel, but rarely apply it to everyday life.  Unfortunately applying the gospel to our lives is exactly what God wants for us.  I once heard that the gospel is nothing less than “the power of God” (Rom1:16).  Trying to live without understanding at least a portion of what the gospel truly means is living without understanding what your Father has purposed for you on this earth.

Many believing Christians have a misleading view of the gospel. We sometimes see it as the “bridge”, “entrance”, or “way” to God’s kingdom.  In all reality it is so much more!  The gospel is not just the “door” or what we are supposed to believe; rather it is a way of life.  It is meant for our salvation and our transformation.  We are delivered from the penalty of sin and released from the power of sin.  The gospel makes us right with God and frees us to continue in relationship with God.  The point is—the gospel changes EVERYTHING.

At the point of salvation, we have a limited idea of God’s holiness and our sinfulness. As we grow and learn (sanctification) our awareness of God’s love, grace, holiness, and glory will grow (Isa 55:8-9) in accordance with the awareness of our own depravity and sinfulness (Jer 17:9-10). As a response to this our appreciation and love for Jesus grows. The cross, becomes more central to our everyday life and we are transformed daily.

Many times Christians will get stuck in one of these two extremes. We will focus on God’s holiness and believe we have the right to be treated as holy, the authority to judge others as unholy, or the power to control our fate.  OR we will focus on how terrible, worthless, and insignificant humans are apart from Christ.  Each extreme minimizes “the cross” and the result is PRIDE.  The gospel should not be used to dictate how a Christian “should” live (legalism); rather we view it as “why” Christians live, work, and believe.  Rest in the gospel.  Rest in Jesus as our perfect Redeemer—the One who is our righteousness, holiness, and our redemption (1 Cor 1:30).

Each of us has God-given gifts that He intends for us to use to bring glory to Himself. We were each created for a purpose (Jeremiah 29:11, Psalm 139:13-16) and we can do our part to fulfill that purpose by using our gifts to their fullest potential.

In order to use our gifts, we must first know what they are. We need to take some time to really know ourselves. If this is an area you are struggling in, here are some things you can do to work to identify your gifts:

• Pray and ask God to reveal to you what gifts He has given you specifically. You might consider writing in a journal as you pray about any things you feel you may be gifted at or that you feel God is revealing to you.
• Ask those who know you best what qualities or characteristics they observe in you and how they could see you using those gifts to serve God and others.
• Another way of discovering some of your gifts would be to take a personality test or interest inventory. Some examples of these include the Strong Interest Inventory, the 16PF, the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, the Campbell Interest and Skill Survey, etc. These types of tests can be administered by a trained therapist who can discuss your results with you and help you determine your next steps. The staff of The Well can help you identify which tests might be best to take and set up a time for you to take those tests in our office.
• Another test that you can take to help you determine your gifts and career interests is the Self-Directed Search. This test is available online at http://www.self-directed-search.com/ . Once you take the test, you’ll want to discuss your results with a trained therapist who can help you process your thoughts and feelings and help you determine your next steps.

As you are seeking to use your gifts, recognize that your gifts will be different from others and that is by design. We all have different gifts God has given us and He wants us to use them to work together to serve Him and others (Romans 12:4-8, 1 Corinthians 12:4-31).

Remember that it takes stepping out in faith to trust God about using your gifts. When you work diligently and do your part to use your gifts, God will do the rest. When you are not following His lead and using the gifts He has given you, it is hard for much to be accomplished. However, when you are using those gifts He’s given you, you may be surprised at what can be accomplished. A good example of this can be seen in Matthew 25:14-30. In this parable, Jesus talks about a master who loaned varying amounts of talents (money) to 3 of his servants and then went on a journey. When he returned, 2 of his servants had invested what their master had given them and had doubled the amount of talents they had. One servant had not invested the talents and he had nothing more than what his master had originally given him. Jesus demonstrates through this parable that we have a very active role in using our talents and gifts that God has given us.

Remember as you are seeking to use your gifts that the enemy wishes to hold us down and he does not like when we are using our gifts, so we may come up against challenges that seem to make it hard to use our gifts. 2 Timothy 1:6-7 says, “For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love, and of self-discipline.” Be encouraged and reminded that even when the enemy wishes to challenge us and make it hard for us to use our gifts, we can press into the Lord where we will find that God has given us a spirit that can help us overcome those challenges with power, love, and self-discipline.

Depression is a scary and ambiguous illness, disorder, or complaint.  It is often recognized by various names and definitions.  Some define depression as strictly biological using clinical terms which mandate that a certain amount of symptoms be met to qualify.  Others believe depression is spiritual oppression followed by sayings like “if you just had more faith you would not feel so sad…”  Still others see depression as weak-willed personalities crushing beneath the weight of life’s stressors.  I believe each of these stereotypes alone is a false representation of depression.

Depression is a wicked beast.  It is mysterious and sometimes unpredictable.  These qualities may be what lead people to overgeneralize its meaning, minimize its validity, or ignore its debilitating effects.  I think depression is multifaceted and can affect a person on every level, thus confining its definition to “biological” or “spiritual” is a harmful conclusion.

I believe God created man and woman with more qualities and characteristics than we can fully understand.  God has gifted humans with the cognitive and mental ability to think, create, work, design, problem-solve.  He has created humans to be in relationships, to love, to be social, and to live in harmony with family and friends.  God has designed the body to function in brilliant ways that even the most trained and intelligent doctors are still baffled by its complexity.  God has given the most honorable or detestable man and woman worth and value because He sent His son to die and be raised.

The human being is an intricate and multifaceted design created for glory, yet we live in a broken world.  This means, our bodies, our minds, our relationships, our emotions, and our work once functioning in perfect harmony is now fractured and depraved.  But God has not left us in this brokenness— in Him there is hope and healing.

Every individual is unique; therefore everyone will experience depression in their own unique way.  More specifically, a child and adolescent will exhibit signs and symptoms of depression far different than an adult.  Depression is not simply a biological illness, a spiritual oppression, a mental disorder, or a battle of will-power.  Depression is a result and will effect many compounding factors.  Sometimes the answer may be medication, sometimes it may be positive self=talk, sometimes it may be learning new skills, or social engagement.  Whatever the course of treatment, depression is a serious problem that cannot and should not be confronted with a one-dimensional approach.  There are many treatment options when seeking help for depression.   The first step is finding help and knowing there are options in treatment.

Depression stinks for everyone, yet there is HOPE.

(Continuation of How Children Grieve)

Ever wonder why children seem confused, happy, or emotionless after the death of a loved one? Due to cognitive development, children have a difficult time understanding the abstract concept of death. Therefore, after the death of a loved one, you often hear children asking, “When is Dad coming back?” or “When can we go to heaven to see her?” “How long will Grandma be gone? Children often have the understanding that death is temporary and that their loved one can still breath, eat, and feel. Also, when we tell children that “Grandma is in heaven,” he/she might think of heaven as a location and believe that he/she can go visit Grandma, or that Grandma will one day return. You may have to remind them from time to time that their loved one isn’t coming back.

It is very important to tell children the truth about the death and what happened, IN AGE APPROPRIATE LANGUAGE. One may think that he/she is protecting the child if they do not tell him/her what really happened; and although children may not need to know every single detail, it is important that they know the truth. If not told, children will typically fill in the holes using their own imagination, which tends to be much worse than the reality. Try to be as honest and concrete as possible. Being honest with your child about how their loved one died also gives them the chance to cope with hurt, loss, and the many other emotions they may feel. They are able to better understand suicide, for example, and begin processing the emotions they feel earlier in the grieving process. Children who find out the truth years later, are left to begin the healing process all over again, revisiting the painful situation and emotions involved. They may also become angry or hurt that the truth was not told to them sooner, complicating the grieving process.

With young children, it is also important to allow them to attend the funeral/memorial service. Children are actually very resilient and capable of handling their own emotions. Young children typically cope with their grief in waves, a natural and very appropriate process.

Being honest with your child at an age appropriate level is always the best thing to do in any situation. If you do not know how to tell your child the devasting news, you can always consult with a grief professional or counselor. We will be more than happy to help you come up with the best way to tell your child, and equip you with possible ways to respond to his/her questions.

You know that feeling when you find a great friend or group of friends and everything seems to be going along great? The two or three (or more) of you hang out all the time and you find that you can do just about anything together and enjoy each other’s company. Everything is going along great…and then things change. Maybe your friend has to move away, maybe you move away, maybe your friend gets married or divorced or has some other life-changing event occur.  Or maybe something else happens that changes your friendship, something that you can’t quite put your finger on, but you know things have changed.

These are tough times for sure. I think as humans we generally aren’t so big on change and when our friendships change or aren’t quite as fun, easy, or free-flowing as they used to be, we tend to be grieved by this. God made us to desire friendship and fellowship (Genesis 2:18), so it makes sense that we would have a hard time dealing with the changes that inevitably occur in friendship. It can be so frustrating to realize that a friend just can’t be there for us the way he or she used to be or that we don’t seem to connect on the same level that we used to.

There are times, that in our desperation to get things back to just how they used to be, we can miss some very valuable lessons that God wants us to learn in the midst of changing friendships. If you find that your friendships are strained, it may be that God is trying to teach you about forgiveness and reconciliation. Or, it may be that He is growing you as a person, drawing you closer to Him and making it more difficult for you to hang out with some friends that may be distant from Him. Sometimes, it seems it really can’t be explained why our friendships change.  Sometimes friendships just fade or go away entirely, because they were only meant to be a part of our lives for a season.

Whatever the reason that these human friendships wax and wane, we can rely on the truths of God’s character during this season of change. We can know that the Lord knows the desires of our hearts and that we long for fellowship and He wants to fulfill that need. Even when it seems that no one else in the world is there for us, He is there to walk with us through all the trials of life (Deuteronomy 31:6). He can and will use others to help fulfill our desire for fellowship, but, we will need to do our part. We will need to work to reconcile with friends where we can, reach out to make new friends whenever possible, and remember that although the seasons of life may change and cause some friendships to drift in and out, Christ remains constant and He is waiting to meet with us each and every day.

INTERVIEW:  What is a Christian LPC?

Tiffany Southerland is the wife of pastor Caleb Southerland of Urban Hills Baptist Church.  Urban Hills has a growing diverse community and is located in Irving Texas.  Tiffany is very active in every aspect of the church plant and has a heart for the healing ministries such as counseling. Tiffany is involved with children’s ministries, family ministries, women’s ministries, and outreach to the surrounding community.  Specifically, Tiffany has a heart for women who have been victims of sexual crime as well as women struggling with infertility.  The following interview is a word for word verbatim of Tiffany’s response to the following questions regarding the indirect ministry of Christian counselors:

1. How do you define Christian counseling?

“A gospel world-view equipped person who will address heart and mental distress of their patients/clients with the gospel, creation, fall, redemption and reconciliation. Christian counseling exists as an alternative to self-help moral philosophicalism and allows regeneration to happen through the gospel.”

2. What about the counseling process (having a trained professional supplement pastoral care) would you say is most helpful to a church? WHY?
“There are many grievous and atrocious things that happen to people in this season of human  history and the mental health needs of our community are growing by staggering rates, it is optimal to have at the very minimum, one person to ascertain their gifts of counseling for the body of the church as a whole. At very least one professional on staff for the needs of the surrounding community to aid in grief counseling (short term) and extensive- long term counseling for addictions, marital and suicidal manifestations. Pastors and lay leaders in the church can only do so much and then they need to be referred to a trained counselor, especially in cases of extreme abuse, neglect—whether sexual deviancy or physical, in addition to the aforementioned.”

3. How can a LPC complement certain ministries within the church?  (ex: marriage, family, youth ministries).

“It would be extremely beneficial to have a LPC involved in several aspects of the church. For example many elders and/or lay leaders who lead various redemption groups, recovery groups are not fully trained in all aspects and therapies relating to mental disorders, clinical disorders such as clinical depression, endocrine function disorders and basic addiction analysis.”

“ It would be an excellent service to have at least one involved in those, more pressing outreach ministries as well as internal ministries. Internal ministries would benefit exponentially, such as with the case of youth and the disorders, predicaments, and hormonal changes that today’s youth face. An inordinate amount of teens suffer from addictions, image-based disorders such as anorexia, low self-worth and over sexualization, by having a practicing LPC on staff or even as a supplement to youth ministry would open the door for further outreach, a greater chance at healing and aid in helping youth understand what they are doing/going through in a fallen world.”

“ I firmly believe that each married couple should have at least one counseling session a year at minimum, to complete at best a psychological categorization of the communication, intimacy and family dynamic in their marriages.  Having a go-to LPC would free up the pastoral and elder-led role for more outreach and allow the marriages to be worked-through with the LPC. Having an LPC on staff would be great as well  for family ministries—for example if a child presents with categorical Autism Spectrum Disorder symptoms, having an LPC to ease the situation of referral, aid in practical advice and offer grief counseling at their disposal during their time of transition would be of great priceless value.”

4. What qualities and characteristics would you want and not want in a counselor?

Preferred characteristics in a counselor:

1. “Gospel driven, has a keen gospel understanding world-view, patience, adept listening skills, a profound understanding of the human body and the human condition, including but not limited to an understanding of hormonal, chemical and physiological changes at each life stage that may be present.
2. “An awareness of societal norms, biblical norms and an understanding and ability to be able to differentiate between the two and effectively lead people back to the gospel in times of duress. Basic: kind, loving, patient, exuding fruits of the Spirit.”
3. “An understanding of spiritual warfare is present in the lives of all believers.”

Characteristics not preferred:

1. “A counselor who has a world-view incompatible to the biblical world-view, including but not limited to; marriage beliefs, parenting beliefs and social interaction. One who does not allow for the Holy Spirit to work. A narrow-minded counselor who believes his or her methodology is always fitting, always perfect and the one and only right way.”
2. “A counselor who is not well-versed in basic bodily systems, mental processes and the understanding of the human mind and how we relate to our world, intake information and process through,  knowledge, society and the world both in duress and in times of great joy.”
3. “A counselor who is not open to the understanding that God doesn’t always heal everyone and sometimes there are chemical and biological changes beyond basic thinking and processing. Basic: arrogant, self-reliant, prideful, untrained and one who lacks the ability to discern and listen not just to what the person says but also body language, social interactions and past history.”

5. In your opinion, what potential risks and benefits could a counselor bring to certain ministries?
“As with any suicide case there are risks in how things are handled, that’s an extreme example but relevant. A great reliance on the Holy Spirit, the redeeming power of the gospel to transform lives and the ability to step back and allow for those to work would be a huge benefit.”

“Many ministries would benefit from a well-trained counselor, marriages could continue and grow healthier, addiction ministries could flourish, youth could have a safe, non-school related “friend” to talk to, and pastoral care would be at an all time high. Huge benefits for the local body of Christ and the surrounding community.”

“As I mentioned before the characteristics not preferred in a counselor would be in my opinion, detrimental to the mental health and well-being of a patient / case.  Anytime you are counseling someone there are great risks to misinformation, pridefulness and an inability to discern the situation.

6. How can a counselor help with a church-planting team and families involved in the starting stages?
“In church planting there are many valleys and mountains to climb; having an LPC would be of exponential value to the early stages of gathering a core group and the initial launch phase. In church planting there is the potential for extreme spiritual warfare, especially if the area is primed for a movement. Spiritual warfare occurs both internally with marriages and families, but also externally with the body as a whole. Having an LPC ready and willing to help with grief

counseling, basic psychological categorization of what is happening and someone just ready to listen would be, as I stated previously, of extreme value. Marriages are attacked, family structure is often attacked, health is always attacked, and weakness is exposed. An LPC would be something I would personally recommend for all new church starts or new missionaries to be linked up with.

7. What experience have you had with counselors?  Please explain the good/bad and what you would want to be different?

“There seems to be an abundance of LPC’s now and many more psychologists entering the workforce, I’ve had interactions with both. I’ve had probably the best experience with a Christian psychologist or rather a psychologist who operates her practice with the classical psychological training and a gospel-centered perspective.”

“Some LPC’s have either little to no knowledge of the Holy Spirit workings or the science of the mental process which in turn has had negative effects on their “subjects” or “cases.” Again, without making over-generalistic statements, not all are that way – just a few seem on the outset that way.”

“I have several close friends who have opened practices in Dallas that have continued their education by reading online medical journals, medical books, blogging and offering a variety of counseling variables. The ones who don’t limit themselves to only what they learn at a seminary or university setting seem to flourish and have great qualitative results. I know that some schools teach very specific trainings and analysis that does not allow the basic understanding that God doesn’t heal everyone and that medication isn’t of value. Cancer patients need medicine, so do patients with severe mental disorders; schizophrenia, chronic major-depressive disorder, bipolar I & II for example. It’s always a fine line blending science and theological understanding of the human existence, suffering and the need for the gospel.”

“In a perfect world, everyone would keep learning, keep refining their craft and keep a keen, adept listening to the heart of God and to the movement of the Holy Spirit. LPC’s are of great value to churches, ministries and global missionaries and I’m glad that there are training programs to aid them in their craft of listening and helping.”

“ LPC’s are the future of pastoral-care, I foresee the churches of the future all having a counseling program and having several counselors on staff to aid in the understanding of the fallen world, the redemption that comes only from Jesus and the reconciliation that can take place through the mediatory of the Holy Spirit.”