In discussion with a friend, I made a suggestion that they consider meeting with a counselor to help them sort through some things they are going through… their answer?
“God is my Counselor… and I talk to Him all day long.”
It struck me funny, in my year of PRAY that I didn’t immediately suggest or even think that. Ironic? Had I become complacent? Is there ever a time when God couldn’t counsel us better than an earthly thrapist?
Of course, I believe God can use others to bring healing, but is there any better Counselor than the Lord Almighty himself? Therapy with Jesus… again
The irony is his statement is that I, too, talk to God all day long.
I was reminded of a “note” that I wrote on Facebook nearly 10 years ago that, when posted, stirred up a hornets nest of controversy. In the note, I quoted Dr Siligman of the University of Pennsylvania. In his book, Learned Optimism, Siligman suggests that depression is merely the result of wrong thinking. “Depression is caused by conscious negative thoughts. There is no underlying disorder to be rooted out… there is no childhood conflicts, not our unconscious anger, or even our brain chemistry. Emotion comes directly from what we think: think ‘loss’ and you feel sadness. If you change these habit’s of thought, you cure depression”
“Scripture memory is our most powerful tool in changing our habits of thought, and the internalized truths of God’s work keep us mentally healthy.”
When I posted this note to my Facebook page, I had an immediate negative response from a girl who had struggled with depression her whole life who vehemently argued with me that God could do anything to change her depression. She spoke to me as if she were the authoritarian on depression, as if I had never experienced it. Whew! The hate comments that followed!
The reality is, though, that I HAVE experienced it… I spent years of my life victimized by the loss of my father and blaming God for it. I know what a wreck I was before God rescued me… i know that I was absorbed with self pity for my circumstances. I know that I allowed negative thoughts to overrun me life, to the point I considered suicide on more than one occasion. I knew depression well, like an old friend.
I also know the transformation that’s taken place in my life since I surrendered my life to the lordship of the Counselor. I know the healing that’s taken place, and the boldness He’s given me to reach out to others to share with them what He’s done for me.
And really, that is what we’re called to do… to share what God, the Counselor, has done for us. What He’s done for me, He’ll do for you.
I share some of my journey in my fiction book Masquerade , though thinly veiled in fiction. I am beyond grateful for the Counselor, who not only saved my life (literally and figuratively) but gave me a passion to help others find what I’ve found.
Yes, I agree that God is the Counselor. But I am interest in your opinions of earthly counselors… please feel free to comment back … have you had good experience with counselor? Have they helped? In what way? What advice would you give to someone looking g for a counselor?
Be blessed, my friends
SB
Journey-For-Life 