COUNSELING brings a healing presence in your life

Counseling can be a wonderful experience, because it means finally unburdening yourself of things that have been troubling you for weeks, sometimes years, but Christians who come for counseling often experience discomfort and a feeling of defeat that they, as Christians, should even need help. Teachings that suggest Christians should always experience health and wealth actually do a disservice to the cause of Christ, causing people to remain silent until a breakdown occurs. One has to see the counselor as a gift from God to bring His healing presence in your life.

Being a Christian does not exempt us from the storms of life, they will come; as the Bible says it will rain on the just and the unjust. But suffering often gives us the momentum to seek help, and in the very process of counseling, one is able to ventilate all the hurts locked up inside. It is one of the church's greatest needs today - to offer advise and help to its members, but it must be biblical and not psychological counseling, because true Christian counseling accepts the bible as the final standard of authority.

Divorce, anger, a devastating illness, addiction, unemployment, gambling problems and wayward children – churches often provide a pastoral counselor and support groups who play a vital role in meeting some of the practical needs of people, and the support group becomes a critical source of support for many of its members.

If you feel as though people can't satisfy and you can't face tomorrow, go for Christian counseling and find out about support groups in your church. Family Life has helpful resources and would love to be able to show Christians that there is never a time you have to face problems alone. When you place your primary focus on God, your problems will become manageable; its when you fail to focus on God, you fail to experience a healing presence.