Faith Based Counseling
What is faith based counseling?
Core Beliefs:
Sarah came to the counselor stating, “I wanted to come to a faith based therapist because if I told a regular therapist that the Holy Spirit lives with in me, and I believe in the power of prayer and have seen miracles in my life, they will think I am crazy and spend sessions challenging what I believe. I wanted to find a therapist who knows who I am inside, who can look at my problems through a different lens then a secular therapist and offer guidance from a Christian standpoint.”
When therapists use methodology and do not link it with Christianity, it is difficult for the client to connect it to his own set of values. It is much easier to speak openly about your whole self when the client feels that the therapist is connected with them.
Interesting enough, many of the individuals who come to my practice and are seeking a faith based therapist with their own set of religious convictions, do not attend a church regularity and many do not attend church at all, but have strong spiritual beliefs. It is important that they seek a counselor that shares their same worldview, and patterns of thinking.
What are some of the issues why people seek Christian counseling?
1. parenting issues
2. mental illness
3. bereavement
4. self-esteem issues
5. career and vocational counseling
6. relationship issues
7. decision making
8. panic attacks
9. irrational anger
10. anger issues
11. social anxiety
12. PTSD
13. depression
14. feeling overwhelmed
15. feeling disconnected
16. feeling hopeless
17. anxiety