sampleofreflectionpaper.docx
I think a person’s perception about psychology changes if they have a Christian faith. having a Christian faith can change how many things are viewed. I believe that all fields of science, whether that be studies like biology or psychology, can benefit greatly from having a Christian faith incorporated into the studying of them. If you are a Christian, who believes in the one true God creating everything, then it is easy to see His hand in many aspects of psychology. Whether they be the pastor and his wife, a church elder, a deacon, or even a missionary and his wife, I believe all prominent members of a church should have some sort of base knowledge in psychology. This can help them better understand and help the members of the congregation who need them. this can also help them to direct them in the best possible direction for more help if the person requires a more professional ear to talk to. However, I also believe that there are many churches that overlook the importance of psychology all together. This is how I feel about the church I grew up in until the age of fourteen. I do not remember psychology ever being a very prominent aspect of the leadership in that church. What little I knew of it then, I learned from my mom, who has always been interested in psychology. All of these factors helped drive me towards declaring psychology as my minor. I hope to someday be a social worker, and I firmly believe it is important for anyone working with people in any way, shape, or form to have some sort of training in psychology. I feel that it is important to be able to see where they’re coming from mentally, if you have any hope of helping them. I have personally heard Christians claim that a person does not need a therapist; all they need is church. While I fully believe in God, the importance of His Word, and His ability to heal all troubles, physical and mental, I believe that is why God allowed the profession of therapists and psychologists alike to come into existence. I believe that having a faith of any kind is good for everyone’s own personal psychology. Believing in something can be a powerful thing. I think the church needs to start developing a more outspoken view on the importance of psychology. I am not saying they have to promote it as a positive thing, but just talking about it and putting it out there. It feels like any subject even close to things such as mental health has become very taboo and uncomfortable. Even simply mentioning psychology seems to make people think something bad is coming up right behind it. In the church I grew up in, I always felt as if is was more important to present a good face than it was to ask for help if you felt that you were having trouble. There was never anyone who actually said this to me, but it was just a feeling I always had. It never mattered how bad I felt inside; I felt that at church it was important to keep a smile on your face and sing the hymns. Problems at home should be left at home. Personal problems were just that. Personal. The first serious interaction I ever had with both Christianity and psychology in the same setting was here at Liberty. I learned so much and had the interest I already carried for psychology sparked even further. Before coming to Liberty, I was really struggling with my Christian faith. the different psychology classes have actually helped me to better understand how to make my faith in God my own. How to best go about using my personality and my way of doing things to promote God in my life. I am not someone who has been very good at sticking to devotions, but by finding a creative way to do them, I have been doing devotions twice a day. I have learned that not everyone is the same and that is okay. We all think and process things differently. It is important for us each to find the best way to have our relationship with God. He wants a unique and special relationship with each of us. It is our jobs to work at developing and following through with them. Understanding our own psychology is the first step in this.