Deeply Rooted
Photographer:Myself
Caption:
Gatlinburg, TN National Forest
Chapter 4 in the Therapeutic Expedition textbook struck me
as profoundly significant to helping me establish a strong foundation within my
counseling career. It offered many points of truth that I would like to adopt
into my framework for counseling. I was encouraged to find the emphasis this
text placed on the role of the heart
of the counselor. It is immensely important for counselors to know
themselves prior to attempting to assist others on a journey of pursuing
wholeness. Chapters 5 & 6 offered specific examples of the skills vital to
conducting professional counseling sessions with grace and love.
I count myself as extremely fortunate to attend a university
where Christ is the focus and rock of my education. My passion for counseling
began when I was only twelve years old. Throughout the years the Lord has
affirmed this calling in my life through my relationships with friends and
family. I often get caught up in the pursuit this degree. I know becoming a
counselor is a great goal, but sometimes this goal gets in the way of the
overarching goal of my life. A quote on page 106 puts this nicely, “the ultimate aim of
the Christian counselor is not to help the hurting, but to glorify God.”
I understand that pursuing this degree is a good thing and tend to rationalize my
desires away. I often struggle to look past tangible skills necessary for
counseling. The truth of the matter is that my motivation must be centered on
Christ. Apart from Him I am not able to accomplish any good thing.
I am encouraged by this text to continue in my education and
newly challenged to refocus my heart and mind on making Christ my ultimate
priority. Counseling is an admirable profession and a divine calling from God.
I must constantly rely upon His strength in order to gain the skills necessary
to become an effective Christian counselor. I am reminded that this journey must
be rooted in Christ
in order to see eternal growth.
Sosin, L., & Thomas, J.
C. (2011). Therapeutic Expedition Equipping the Christian Counselor for
the Journey.. Nashville: B & H Pub. Group.
Wonderful post Jordan. Those called by Christ do his will, what a fantastic adventure. Sometimes people like me choose not to follow and flop like a fish out of water, for a time. Fortunately God never gave up on me and now I am doing what I was called to do. This class is challenging but a Blessing and I look forward to my future as a Trauma counselor knowing the challenges will be great but nothing I can't handle.
ReplyDeleteReally loved your post. I drew a lot of the same inferences from this chapter as well. That is so great that you knew you were called to counseling at the age of 12! I was a junior in high school when I realized that the Lord was calling me to the counseling field. It is so true what you said about having to rely on Christ and keeping focused on Him while we navigate through this journey of becoming a counselor. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteJordan,
ReplyDeleteYour blog is greatly appreciated. First, for you to put God on the throne of your life shows a lot of your character; never lose that! Second, I am glad to hear you knew your passion in counseling at such a young age. Sounds like God used friends and family to affirm this desire. Third, I agree with you that a Christian counselor's main focus should be to glorify god, first. Many times Christians lose focus to the fact it's about the Lord, then people second. Lastly, you are right and consistent with scripture when you say you can do nothing good, apart from God! Adding the word good, brings clarity and context to what God's word is trying to communicate. I look forward to reading your future blogs and enjoy learning the banjo!