The Value of Integration

The New Christian Counselor

Ron Hawkins

Chapters 5-8

Hawkins, R. (2015). The New Christian Counselor. Harvest House Publishers.  https://mbsdirect.vitalsource.com/books/9780736943550

Chapter 5 Addiction and Idolatry

God intended for mankind to enjoy the fullness of shalom. As we have seen, shalom is far more than simply peace. The Hebrew concept of shalom includes the sheer delight of flourishing in the love, power, and wisdom of God. It implies the full development and imple- mentation of our talents and abilities, put to good use to honor God and care for others. It is nothing less than a taste of the new heaven and new earth in the ups and downs of the here and now. Humans are capable of great good because of their heritage as image bearers and their conscience. Both of these were damaged in the rebel- lion of Adam and Eve but retain the knowledge of God and the content of his law. Additionally, all humans share the witness of creation to God’s existence and goodness and are called to reflect that beauty in their rela- tionships and cultures. A person’s potential for good is strengthened or weakened by experiences in the family, church, and culture, and by the person’s decisions to receive or suppress the truth.

The New ChrisTiaN CouNselor However, humans are also capable of great evil. Any potential to act on the claims of the law, conscience, or culture in a consistently positive manner are challenged by the presence of sin as a fixed component of the human personality inherited from the Adamic rebellion. As we have observed, sin has tarnished the image of God in us, dis- rupted our relationships, and distorted the inner world of our thoughts, motives, feelings, and will. Sin brings death to our bodies, corrupts our cultures, and places us in continual tension with the architect of evil and his demonic horde. We were created to live in God and for God, but we chose to live apart from him, opposing his rightful rule or ignoring him. Sin is much more than breaking moral laws or rejecting God’s abso- lutes. It is a personal offense against God himself and ultimately a deci- sive blow against freedom and health in the soul, in our relationships, and in our world. Sin wants what it wants when it wants it, regardless of the consequences. A biblical and transformational model of Christian counseling requires a comprehensive understanding of the nature of sin and its effects so that our clients learn to treasure the freedom, power, and love found in a right relation to God’s amazing grace. To understand the pow- erful dynamics of evil in the human heart, we need to connect the con- cepts of sin, addiction, and idolatry. Sin as Addiction As we mentioned in chapter 3, not all addiction is sin, but all sin has the destructive quality of addiction. Some argue that addictions, such as alcoholism, are at least partially the product of genetic predisposition. Other behaviors, such as sexual abuse, are often triggered by the perpetra- tors’ own victimization as children. Regardless of the various influences, all sin is ultimately self-absorbing, self-deceiving, and self-corrupting

Addiction and Idolatry 141 and it numbs the moral senses through tolerance. Christian counsel- ors insist that except for a few instances, people are responsible for their choices, regardless of the contributing circumstances. Personal responsi- bility is a part of human dignity. Though sin has demonstrable negative effects, the person continues the behavior, thinking, “I don’t care who it hurts,” or “This time it will be different.” Like addiction, sin is inherently self-corrupting. Manipulation and self-protection are normalized. Lies risk exposure, so liars lie about tell- ing lies. Abusers blame their victims and excuse their own destructive behavior. Those who harbor dreams of revenge have hearts like a desert, unable to absorb love and kindness from others, and they become more hateful each day. All addictions contain an element of irrationality for the onlooker, they ruin valuable relationships, and they poison the will. But the addict cannot fathom life without the escape and enjoyment of his addiction. Like addiction, sin is also irrational. It ruins the sinner’s most valuable relationships and poisons his heart, but he keeps sinning in the same way again and again because it seems to make perfect sense to him. In fact, he can’t think of any other way to live. In his explanation of sin’s parallel with the dynamics of addiction, Cornelius Plantinga (2002, p. 50) asserts that both lead to a form of slavery. The real human predicament, as Scripture reveals, is that inex- plicably, irrationally, we all keep living our lives against what’s good for us. In what can only be called the mystery of iniquity, human beings from the time of Adam and Eve (and, before them a certain number of angelic beings) have so often cho- sen to live against God, against each other, and against God’s world. We live even against ourselves. An addict, for example, partakes of a substance or practice that he knows might kill him. For a time he does so freely. He has a choice. He freely starts a “conversion unto death,” and, for reasons he can’t fully explain, he doesn’t stop until he crashes. He starts out with a choice. He ends up with a habit. And the habit slowly con- verts to a kind of slavery that can be broken only by God or, as they say in the twelve-step literature, “a higher power.” Sin as Idolatry The addiction of sin is inherently idolatrous. It removes God from the center of people’s lives and replaces him with a habit, a substance, or another person. These idols aren’t necessarily sinful objects, but people engage in sinful and destructive behavior when they make these things more important than God. Pastor Tim Keller (2009, p. xiv) offers this explanation in his book Counterfeit Gods: The human heart takes good things like a successful career, love, material possessions, even family, and turns them into ultimate things. Our hearts deify them as the center of our lives, because, we think, they can give us significance and security, safety and fulfillment, if we attain them. Idols aren’t abstract, optional issues. They become the central, defin- ing, essential, compelling thing in people’s lives. Without them, people feel that they can’t be happy and might not even be able to exist. Like an addiction, the sin of functional idolatry drives people to invest every- thing to possess, cherish, and use the idols. Idols can be many things. God’s greatest blessings can become addic- tive idols. Abraham waited for 25 years for God to fulfill the promise of a son. The birth of Isaac was a dream come true for the old man and his wife, Sarah. After a few years, the old father’s love for his son evidently may have surpassed his love for God. God tested Abraham to provide him with an opportunity to demonstrate that no other in his life came before his devotion to God. Simply put, Abraham was without idols. And Christians are not immune to the allure of these idols. We might think of idols as little statues worshipped in a thicket by half-naked savages, but they are all around us—and in us. The lie of idol- atry is that a created thing can adequately replace the Creator and give us the joy, fulfillment, purpose, love, and strength only God can give. Several simple tests reveal our deepest values. • WhatdoIdaydreamabout? • Whataremygreatestworriesandfears? • WheredoIinvestmytime,money,andtalents? • Whatthreatensme?Whatgivesmejoyandrelief? Idolatry and the addictive nature of sin are central issues in the work of Christian counseling. In an article titled “Idols of the Heart and ‘Van- ity Fair,’” David Powlison observed, “That idols are both generated from within and insinuated from without has provocative implications for contemporary counseling questions” (Powlison, 1995, p. 36). He con- cludes that the gospel of grace is the only hope for our clients—and for us. The biblical Gospel delivers from both personal sin and situa- tional tyrannies. The biblical notion of inner idolatries allows people to see their need for Christ as a merciful savior from large sins of both heart and behavior. The notion of socio- cultural-familial-ethnic idolatries allows people to see Christ as a powerful deliverer from false masters and false value sys- tems which we tend to absorb automatically. Christ-ian coun- seling is counseling which exposes our motives—our hearts and our world—in such a way that the authentic Gospel is the only possible answer (Powlison, 1995, p. 50). The long, sad saga of sin in human history is one of unparalleled tragedy. We were created for much more—for the beauty and glory of shalom, for the richness of our God-ordained purpose in his plan for humanity, and for deep relatedness to him and others. Apart from God, we still have a master, but not a kind and noble one. When we turn our backs on God, we seek to make ourselves the master of our own private universe, but even then, as in The Wizard of Oz, another player is behind the screen. But this is no harmless trickster. Paul describes the enemy of our souls as “the ruler of the kingdom of the air.” Without God’s grace and shalom, the picture of the human condition could not be more bleak: As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath (Eph. 2:1-3). Under the deceptive influence of the enemy, people have tried to take control of their own destinies and goals to fulfill their desires. The origi- nal temptation in the Garden was to be like God, that is, to be indepen- dent and self-possessed. That’s still sin’s goal and drive. Of course, most people would never say their primary aim in life is to become their own God. Spoken out loud, this claim sounds too arrogant. After all, if by some chance there is a real God, this brashness might offend him and cause real problems. However, most people have no problem ignoring God and the question of his existence, being con- sumed with the pursuit of power, prestige, and pleasure. Everywhere they turn, they hear promises that this product, that service, or another experience will give them the fulfillment they long to enjoy—and they believe every word. These promises are so pervasive, they are the water we swim in each day. Thoughts of God and his truth rarely if ever invade most people’s minds. If they do, they are summarily dismissed. With- out God’s wisdom and strength, people are left to their own devices and to the false promises trumpeted by the media—with disastrous results. As counselors we see clients who have believed the lie or have been victimized by those who believe the lie. We see the ruined people who believed more money, more power, more alcohol or drugs, more sex, more cosmetic surgery, or more approval would fill the gaping hole in their souls. Like the fish fooled by the worm dangling on the hook, these people have pursued idols with all their hearts, thinking these things would bring them true happiness and the control over their lives they longed for, only to end up enduring intense unhappiness, broken rela- tionships, and bondage. They come to our offices perplexed. They don’t understand the powerful forces and the lie that has driven them to despair. Idolatry makes powerful but empty promises of complete freedom, thrills, and shalom. In the addictive cycle of sin and idolatry, the person first found delight and perhaps welcome relief from pain, but soon the substance or behavior became a cruel master over the person’s thoughts, attitudes, desires, relationships, resources, and goals. He has become an addict. The person no longer uses the behavior or substance. Rather, the idol now owns him. Breaking free requires a new, powerful way of perceiving life and a rigorous commitment to spiritual, psychological, and physical warfare. Addiction and idolatry have taken possession of the entire soul. Freedom will come only through the Spirit’s grace and power in concert with the person’s courage to overcome the devastating impact in all of the modalities that constitute personhood and contrib- ute to their individual ways to the imprisonment of the soul. New Variables of Addiction Our understanding of counterfeit gods and the addictive nature of sin applies to every client, but especially to those who struggle with the behaviors we traditionally define as addictions. In their lives we see the effects of these forces writ large. It is estimated that 22.6 million Ameri- cans (about 9.2% of the population) ages 12 or older have struggled with substance dependence or abuse in the last year (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Press Office, 2006). The good news is that the rates of addiction among teens and twenty- somethings have leveled off and have remained nearly steady over the past decade. However, the bad news is that addiction rates among boom- ers, the 50- and 60-year-old age group that has recently experienced a large demographic bulge in the US population, has nearly doubled dur- ing that same time period (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Ser- vices Administration, 2010). Though people 65 and older make up only 13% of the population, they account for one-third of all medications prescribed. Two specific variables are important in addressing this new reality in treating addictions. First, the fastest-growing addiction is to narcotic painkillers (Maxwell, 2006). The National Survey on Drug Use and Health found the use of pain relievers increased from 530,000 initiates in 1990 to more than 2.5 million initiates in 2000. Second, this addiction is happening to older people with aging bodies—bodies less able to avoid the harmful effects of narcotics. If this trend continues—and there is nothing on the horizon to suggest it will abate among boomers—three troubling outcomes are likely to arise. Corruption of medicine. First, increased rates of addiction to nar- cotics threaten to corrupt modern medicine. Increased abuse of pre- scription drugs often leads to an increase in illicit narcotic use as well because addicts become desensitized and seek out more potent narcot- ics (Brizer & Castaneda, 2010). Many desperate, gray-haired addicts turn to heroin, which can be snorted or injected for a powerful daylong, pain-controlling high. The natural progression from pain medications to prescription drug addiction to illegal drug use is a slippery slope for aged abusers. Death by overdose. Second, especially among those who combine two or more psychoactive drugs, overdose and unintended death are becoming significant issues. People who mix alcohol and narcotics— who cannot accurately judge dosage levels and the limits of their aging bodies—are especially at risk (Loue & Sajatovic, 2008). Family mem- bers often are embarrassed and try to cover up the reality of death by overdose with more socially acceptable stories. Drug-induced suicide. Third, based on current conditions and the drastic increase in prescription drug addiction, authorities project a spike in suicides by drug abuse. Intentional deaths by these narcotic substances will increase significantly. The onset of cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, debil- itating neuromuscular diseases, and sustained chronic pain are projected to push many elderly abusers to swallow triple or quadruple the number of pills they normally take, end it all, and leave their family members to assumed they died peacefully in their sleep. Accurate statistics on elderly suicides by drug abuse are difficult to obtain because many families fearthe shame (and the loss of insurance proceeds), so they cover up any evi- dence of suicide (Ross, 2001). What Is Addiction? The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (Ameri- can Psychiatric Association, 2000) has perhaps the most comprehen- sive definition of substance dependence, or addiction. Three or more of the following symptoms must have been present at some time during a 12-month period. 1. Tolerance effect. The person needs increased dosages or mixes addictions in order to produce the same intoxicating effects. The user experiences significantly diminished effect when the same amount of the substance or behavior is used. This factor is often behind drug overdoses. 2. Withdrawal symptoms. When the addiction is quickly stopped, the person suffers significant physiological or psychological withdrawal. The substance or behavior is often used to manage and relieve withdrawal symptoms. 3. Increasing dosage. The addictive substance or behavior is used in larger amounts and over a longer period of time than was originally planned. 4. Compulsive use and lack of control. After the initial stages (which are bypassed by some drugs so the person proceeds to addiction from the first use), the person experiences a strong and overriding desire, “being driven” to use and abuse the substance or behavior. The person is unable to control or reduce substance-taking or behavioral addiction patterns. Attempts at controlling use are quickly overcome by an insatiable desire. 5. Increasing time commitment. The person experiences increased levels of obsessive thinking and time spent in addictive pursuits. The process of seeking, finding, preparing, using, and then experiencing the high becomes highly ritualized. 6. Increasingly exclusive focus. Other pleasures and self-care are progressively reduced. Previously enjoyable social, recreational, and occupational activities become unimportant. 7. Continuing denial of harm. The person persists in addictive, self-destructive behaviors even when negative consequences increase. In fact, denial of harm increases even when the person faces direct physical or psychological consequences. The most prevalent and studied addictions are alcohol, drugs, sex, gambling, and food, including the impact on family members. How- ever, many other variations of addictive substances and behaviors are part of the story. Beyond the individual differences is one unerring reality— addiction is a downward spiral that produces dissolution, despair, dis- ease, and if not stopped, death. Types of Addictions People can turn any good or bad thing into an addiction. Literally anything—behavior, pursuit, or substance—can be corrupted. They try to find something that will give them relief from the pain of living and perhaps provide a biochemical buzz. Alcohol and drugs. Many people use legal and illegal substances to medicate the body and brain. They may use cocaine, alcohol, or narcot- ics—including narcotics increasingly prescribed by physicians—which temporarily bind with the pain receptors in the brain. The user is lulled into a few idyllic hours of somnolent denial. These drugs temporarily cause the person to feel good, relieved, even ecstatic...for a while. How- ever, when the drugs wear off, the pain comes roaring back, even more incessant in its life-draining demands. The progression from use to mis- use to abuse to addiction may take months or even years for some peo- ple and their drug of choice, but some drugs hook people into virulent addictions almost instantly. Food. Today, many people obsess over food and body image, which often leads to compulsive behaviors and disorders. Anorexics starve themselves to feel and appear thin, and even when they are far below their recommended body weight, they still perceive themselves as fat. This drive is often fueled by deep insecurity, perfectionism, and the fear of losing control. Bulimics binge on high-calorie, fat-filled, or sweet foods (often gorging on them in secret) and then purge through self- induced vomiting or the use of laxatives. They are often of normal weight, but they, too, are plagued with self-doubt and driven to control at least one element of their lives. Compulsive overeaters binge, but they don’t purge. Their motives may vary. Many view food as a friendly compan- ion, and some become obese as a self-protective mechanism to keep peo- ple and risks at bay. Gambling. Compulsive gamblers are always looking for the big win. They win enough to keep them hopeful, but they lose so often that they get into trouble. Like other addictions, the habit may start innocently. These people may begin betting casually with friends, but it spirals out of control. Soon they are obsessing about winning, studying poker plays or horses (or whatever type of gambling they’ve chosen), worrying about past losses, lying about their financial problems, and hiding their losses and behavior from family members. To keep their habit going, many of them resort to stealing from family and friends. In the addic- tive cycle, they have to place increasingly larger bets to get the same rush of excitement. Twisted sex. God’s gift of sex is one of the most wonderful, pleasur- able, exciting aspects of human relationships. It’s attraction and power, however, can cause it to be terribly misused. Sexual addiction comes in many forms, from occasional, seemingly innocent pornography to rape or child sexual abuse. In False Intimacy, Dr. Harry Shaumburg (1997, p. 22) defines sexual addiction: Sexual addiction exists when a person practices sexual activ- ity to the point of negatively affecting his or her ability to deal with other aspects of life, becomes involved in other rela- tionships—whether real or through fantasy—and becomes dependent on sexual experiences as his or her primary source of fulfillment...regardless of the consequences to health, fam- ily, and/or career. Pornography is based on the illusion of never-ending, thrilling, per- fect sex with a beautiful mate who never complains, never talks back, and never ever says no to kinky, perverse, and painful sexual practices. For many, pornography is only a first step. After a while, it no longer sat- isfies. The gnawing emptiness pushes the sex addict deeper. He or she turns to prostitutes, child porn, date rape, and increasingly risky crim- inal behavior. The bottomless pit and downward, destructive spiral of addiction in general may be most clearly seen in the world of sex addic- tion and perversion. of insecurity, despair, and fear. They long for love and justice. Some of them try to cope with the chaos by desperately trying to control those who are out of control. They fix people’s problems, plead with them to act responsibly, try to argue them into healthy choices...but nothing works. These people hope they can do enough to win the love they want to experience. They live on the false hope they can do just one more thing that will make others love them. Their minds are consumed with pleas- ing, fixing, and earning love—just as much as an addict’s thoughts are consumed with acquiring and using a drug. Money. In our nation, which consumes 25% of the world’s goods and services with only 4% of the world’s population, many people are obvi- ously materialistic. People who are addicted to wealth cocoon them- selves in the illusion they need more and finer cars, clothes, houses, boats, and pleasures. The lust behind this full-on, consuming pursuit may be the power and prestige that come from wealth, the pleasure money can buy, or the perceived popularity that comes from the adulation of jeal- ous observers. These perceptions are reinforced by virtually every media advertisement and conversation, so they seem completely normal. Education and learning. Some people are on a lifelong quest of learn- ing and education, which is highly valued in America. They believe advanced degrees and academic awards will give them the security and respect they long to enjoy. When they look back years later, they may realize they’ve sacrificed the things that really matter to the vain pursuit of false security and applause. Technology and video games. Some people are obsessed with the latest advancements in technology. They live for the introduction of the latest phone, tablet, website, or app. When a new product comes on the mar- ket, they sacrifice everything to have it. Similarly, many people—adults as well as teenagers—are hooked on video games. They spend hours every day learning techniques to play better, interacting with competi- tors and friends across town or around the world. Like other addicts, they are obsessed with their behavior, and they neglect relationships, respon- sibilities, and other important aspects of life. A million other things. Almost any desire or pursuit can become addic- tive. We can fixate and obsess on cooking, fly fishing, cleaning the house, travel, or anything else. These are not necessarily evil things. In fact, they are sometimes very good things. But when they become the most impor- tant things in life, the person has entered into the realm of idolatry and addiction. Increased User Tolerance User tolerance is insidious. Gradually—almost imperceptibly in most cases—the person becomes desensitized, requiring more of the substance or behavior to receive the same effect. When that level doesn’t work any longer, the person may switch to more extreme behaviors and more powerful drugs to achieve a sense of relief or thrills. The ugly truth about tolerance is that it is inherently progressive. Unless the cycle is arrested, the user becomes an abuser and then an addict. Not surprisingly, the devastating impact of increasing tolerance sneaks up on people who are progressing deeper into the cycle of addic- tion. The tolerance effect eventually becomes stronger than the addict’s willpower. When the progression from use to addiction began, the activ- ity may have been fun and benign. After a while, however, the effect of tolerance causes the addiction to consume the person’s thoughts, desires, and pursuits. The brain chemistry and wiring change to an addictive pat- tern, so choices to change become even harder. Eventually, addicts can’t get out of their addiction. No matter how hard they try—and eventually they either stop trying, are arrested, or die—they can’t escape it without the help of others. They are in bondage, slaves to their drug or behav- ior of choice. Sin and Addiction Sin is the universal enslaving power that delights in sponsoring any form of addiction. The heartbreak that inevitably flows from saying yes to sin’s sponsorship of a promising addiction is that once a person buys in they can barely free themselves on their own. In his insightful little book Sin and Grace in Christian Counseling: An Integrative Paradigm, Mark McMinn assesses the pervasive impact of sin from the triple perspective of psychology, theology, and spirituality. Psychology and human defensiveness. Psychology contributes to our understanding of sin and addiction by delineating the ways we lie to oth- ers and deceive ourselves when the truth about life is too hard to accept. “We live behind armor, protecting ourselves from painful realities with selective forms of self-deception. When bad things happen, we explain them to ourselves. Most often, we explain things in ways that take blame off ourselves, and place it onto others” (McMinn, 2008, p. 78). A theology of sin and grace. An astute biblical theology speaks about the depth and depravity of sin and the damaging effects of addictions in our own lives and in the contamination of every relationship and the entire creation. But it also reveals the depth of God’s gracious love, the only power able to set us free from the insatiable grip of sin and addiction. Freedom can come through repentance. When we sin, we need to go through the humbling process of confessing, repenting, receiving forgiveness, and also experiencing grace. We must continually pray for a deeper awareness of our sin, the necessity of repentance, and the wonderful gift of grace that is never-ending. God does not desire us to wallow in A spirituality of loneliness. The paradox of modern loneliness is that in spite of the worldwide impact of social media, telephonic technology, and a crowded planet, loneliness is increasing. If we do not admit our utter sinfulness and inability to be fulfilled this side of heaven, we will never appreciate the painful but accurate assessment that sin, pain, fail- ure, and deficiency are normative. And without this perspective about the pervasive and powerful impact of sin, we won’t truly grasp the won- der of God’s amazing grace. When a jeweler wants to show the brilliance of a diamond, he puts it on the backdrop of black velvet. God’s grace is the diamond that is most clearly seen against the dark, dismal backdrop of human depravity. We may not be as bad as we can be, but we’re as bad off as we can be—apart from God’s grace. The endless search. The text of history books and today’s newspapers tells stories of man’s search for meaning. People have tried to fill the emptiness of their souls with power, profit, pleasure, and applause. But regardless of how hard they have tried to fill the void, the emptiness remains. God has made us with a deep yearning for our lives to mat- ter, for a connection to something filled with purpose. When we look to other people or to things to fill the yawning hole in our hearts, we remain dissatisfied. We keep searching until we find God, or we die with the hole unfilled and the ache unhealed. Linking sin and grace. McMinn (2008, p. 90) makes this conclusion: Awareness of sin is a good thing. Pleading guilty, admitting our fallen, broken state opens the possibility of a grace that is greater than all of our sin and all our accomplishments. James Bryan Smith (1995), an author and spiritual leader, writes, “Now we can stop lying to ourselves. We are saved from our own self-deception the moment we say with the tax collector, ‘God be merciful to me, a sinner’ (Lk. 18:13). We no longer need to apply cosmetics to make ourselves more acceptable to God. We have been accepted by God; therefore we can accept our selves” (p. 36). One day when I was particularly sensitized to my own sin and inade- quacies, I said to God, “If our relationship depends on my getting all of the stuff right, we might as well call it quits right now.” In a flash, God spoke to my inner soul. “Where did you ever get the idea that your relationship with me was about your ability to perform well? This has always been about my decision to love you and have a rela- tionship with you. It’s always been about my free choice to love you with all of your frailty and failures. It’s always been more about who I am than who you are.” Christian counselors understand that, as McMinn has said, aware- ness of sin is a good thing. When that awareness is joined to the kind of true repentance Paul outlines in 2 Cor. 7, counselors and then clients are led into an experience of God’s grace and love that transforms our view of how relationship need to be done. Experiencing God’s grace not only delivers us into a safe haven of relationships—often for the first time in our lives—but also shows us in a powerful way the direction in which our client must go to find their way to their own safe haven. The causes for and types of addiction vary, and the treatment of addic- tions requires attention to many of the modalities contributing to the life of the soul. Caring for People God’s Way (Clinton, Hart, & Ohlschlager, 2005) describes an array of effective interventions. These range across the biological, psychological, social, and spiritual spectra. Physical Stabilization and Self-Care Addicts often damage their bodies. Many alcoholics suffer neuro- logical, gastrointestinal, or liver complications. Food addicts may starve themselves to death, ruin their teeth from repetitive vomiting, or suffer multiple effects of chronic obesity. Sex addicts run the risk of sexually transmitted diseases and a variety of sexual dysfunctions. All addicts also risk significant stress resulting from chronic fear and anxiety, often due to the consequences of the addiction. Medical and psychiatric evaluations. At the beginning of treatment, addicts need a complete medical evaluation. Alcoholics and some drug addicts may need to be hospitalized and supervised during detoxifica- tion. Anorexics may also need to be stabilized in the hospital to address the effects of chronic malnutrition. When stabilization has been achieved, addicts then need a thorough neuropsychiatric evaluation. The presence and severity of depression must be determined. In some patients, assessment is appropriate for a variety of forms of attention deficit disorder. Some addicts require phar- macological help for depression, and others need medications to manage the brain’s need for constant stimulation. Counselors should develop a relationship with a competent psychiatrist who can perform these eval- uations and services. The role of abstinence. Abstinence from the drug or behavior of choice will, over time, change the level of neurochemical tolerance the addict has developed. With support and accountability, alcoholics and drug users are able to achieve total abstinence from a substance. Food addicts may be able to abstain from certain kinds of food. Process addicts often have a harder time abstaining because secrecy is easier to maintain and accountability is more difficult. In some cases, temporary absti- nence is recommended for addictions to good things that have become addictions. Some addicts, such as gamblers, can stop certain behaviors altogether. Sex addicts, however, can arouse themselves by fantasizing about sexual behavior. One common protocol with sex addicts is to have them abstain from all forms of sexual activity for a period of time in order to achieve a detoxification effect from sinful sexual activity. Finally, addicts need to learn the skills of self-care. Paul explained that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19-20), but addicts have been treating their bodies more like the city dump than God’s holy temple. Being tired, hungry, angry, or lonely makes any addict more vul- nerable to destructive behavior. Behavioral Change Addicts have developed strong, highly ritualized, even automatic behavior patterns in order to maintain their addictions. They go to extraordinary lengths to deny, minimize, or rationalize their destruc- tive behavior. Counselors play an important role in challenging, correct- ing, and replacing old patterns. The idols of addiction can’t simply be suppressed—they must be supplanted by the grace, love, wisdom, and power of God. It’s not enough to attend church or groups, and it’s not enough to go to counseling or read the Bible. People need a genuine, heart-changing, life-transforming encounter with Jesus Christ, accom- panied by the motivation and resources to put off old patterns of behav- ior and put on new, healthy, productive ones that please God. Honesty and behavior change. As the old dictum goes, all addicts are liars. Therapists need to look beneath the client’s words, be suspicious of promises and explanations, and insist on raw honesty about behavior. When the addict seeks to divert discussion to family, emotional, or finan- cial concerns, the therapist needs to redirect attention back to behavior. Effective treatment may eventually address a wide range of important issues, but the clinician can’t let the habitual (but often convincing) lies of the addict take therapy off course. A productive tactic is to link the tangential topics the client raises with the central issue of his addiction. For example, if an addict com- plains about his wife, the counselor might refocus his response toward the addictive behavior by asking, “So how is the way you approach your anger toward your wife similar to the way you act out your anger in your sex addiction?” Or “How is your tendency to denigrate yourself reflected in your addiction ritual?” Clients often assume their addiction has a life of its own and operates apart from other concerns. That’s not true. It’s always integrally connected with every other aspect of the person’s life. Unlike many other diseases and clinical issues, addiction is both symp- tom and disease. Changing ritual behavior patterns. Addicts need to find the courage to change certain behavior patterns that trigger or maintain their addic- tion. These behaviors are referred to in the addiction community as ritu- als. Many different authorities describe this cycle, which usually includes dissatisfaction, craving, fantasizing, obsessing, acquiring, using, shame, and dissatisfaction again. The competent Christian counselor helps an addict assess the cycle of ritualistic behavior and how he or she acts out. Taking detailed histories of usage and behavioral patterns is essential. When this information has been sorted out, addicts must be trained to identify triggers, make good choices (for instance, to call a sponsor or leave the area), and establish boundaries against those behaviors in the future. Alcoholics need to avoid friends who are drinking and drugging, particular areas of town, or stress- ful situations that led them to drink and use. Food addicts may need to avoid going to the grocery store in the early days of recovery, or they may need to schedule meals at regular times and find someone to encourage them and hold them accountable to eat at those times. Sex addicts need to avoid people and places that trigger them into their fantasies or “con- necting” rituals. For example, sex addicts who use the computer to con- nect need to become accountable for every minute of online access. Intervention. In most cases, family members have begged and threat- ened the addict for years, but the lack of enforceable consequences has sent clear signals that these were empty threats. The addict saw no reason to change. At some point, however, the family should choose a formal, structured intervention under the guidance of a professional trained in this important arena. The professional will meet with the family to deter- mine the goal of intervention, the consequences of refusal to comply, the process, and the role of each person. In the encounter with the addict, the professional takes the lead, explains the purpose of the meeting, and asks those present to communicate their stories of hurt, betrayal, and loss. When they’ve finished, a clear step of treatment is demanded, and sig- nificant consequences are outlined. If the consequences aren’t enforced, the intervention will fail. Even if they are enforced, there are no guaran- tees even the finest treatment center will be effective. Still, intervention is one of the most powerful tools in the therapist’s toolbox. Twelve-step programs. Many kinds of 12-step groups serve as essen- tial support and accountability for addicts. Increasingly, believers are establishing Christ-centered support groups in local churches. For exam- ple, several ministries are creating materials for the field of sexual addic- tion. Consult such websites as faithfulandtrueministries.com for useful information. One Christian group, Overcomers Outreach (Bartosch & Bartosch, 1994), has created Christian materials for general addiction support groups. The Nehemiah principle. When Nehemiah was building the walls of Jerusalem after the long years of captivity, he learned an attack could come at any time at the weakest spot in the wall. He prepared for the enemy by carefully supplying his men and giving them orders. He didn’t close his eyes and hope an attack wouldn’t happen. He did everything possible to be ready and strong. His attitude was, “Whatever it takes, we’ll be ready to fight and win!” In a similar way, addicts need to prepare in their times of strength and renew their determination to change their thinking and behavior in times of weakness. If they wait until the attack comes, they won’t be ready. For example, addicts should talk with sponsors daily and attend support groups regularly—even when they don’t feel as if they need to. These are some of the common principles of relationships in recovery: 1. Never try to recover alone. 2. Fellowship is essential to promote freedom from addiction. 3. Prepare in times of strength and resolve to stay connected to others in recovery during times of attack and weakness. 4. Be in intimate accountability with at least four people. Be alert to relapse. It is not unusual for an addict to relapse a number of times and to take a year or more to establish a consistent path toward mature Christian living. Temptations threaten progress, and small set- backs can trigger urges to use again. But relapses are not tragic. The trag- edy occurs when the addict refuses to repent and come back. Staying free of any addiction is a lifelong challenge that requires addicts to keep their guard up over the course of their lifetime. Emotional and Cognitive Restructuring Addicts tend to come from family environments that have wounded them emotionally, physically, sexually, and spiritually. They experience deep anger, pervasive fear, feelings of shame, nagging sorrow, and loneli- ness. They replicate these wounds in harming their spouse and children, so the destruction is passed on to the next generation. The destructive pattern of behavior, however, may not be identical from one generation to the next. For example, one child of an alcoholic may become a sub- stance abuser. Another child may religiously avoid alcohol and drugs but become addicted to approval and the desperate desire to please others. Healing family-of-origin wounds. Family stress and emotional wounds deriving from this stress need to be addressed early in counseling addicts. Unhealed wounds are time bombs waiting to explode. Unresolved pain- ful feelings often are contributing factors in relapse. Stimuli that trig- ger addicts’ ungrieved wounds and unhealed anger often cause them to retreat to the familiar, destructive answers and activities they used to medicate and change those feelings. These rationalizations are referred to as stinkin’ thinkin’ in the AA vernacular. Cognitive restructuring involves identification, confrontation, and correction of erroneous thinking, which requires a psycho-educational approach. Pastors and friends may think they are offering good advice when they give simplistic answers to an addict’s dilemma, but it is irre- sponsible to suggest that a person should just forgive and forget. Heal- ing of life’s hurt can be a rewarding, lifetime journey, but there are many detours that get people stuck in sadness and anger. The process of heal- ing requires several factors, including... 1. understanding the nature of the harm that caused the wounds 2. providing support 3. Addressing anger or bitterness 4. Allowing the person to grieve the losses 5. helping the person find meaning in suffering 6. Guiding the person in the process of forgiveness of those who caused the harm 7. Adopting healthy, new, biblical thinking and self-talk Relationship Repair People who live with addicts know how painfully difficult it can be to sort out truth from lies and distinguish authentic love from manip- ulation. Sometimes the spouses of addicts are referred to as co-addicts or codependents. Addiction is a family problem. Everybody is affected, and everybody needs help. Competent counseling assesses the emotional and spiritual health of people living with addicts. In therapy, some hard questions commonly surface: Is it safe to continue to live with the addict if he doesn’t get help? How have other family members suffered from the betrayal of lies, the untrustworthy and irresponsible behavior, and the anger and control? Often, the spouse and children also have drink- ing or other addiction problems. Mark Laaser’s research has shown that about one third of spouses who live with sex addicts are also sex addicts. Old scripts cycle in new generations. Counselors should assess factors that brought spouses together. New theories are being developed which suggest that people find each other to resolve painful, destructive pat- terns of family trauma. Sex abuse survivors may, even unconsciously, find another sex abuse survivor—or even a sex addict—for a relationship. Authorities theorize that addicts may be trying to replay old patterns in order to create a different result. A corollary theory is that addicts replay old family patterns, trying to become the one who controls the situation rather than remaining the victim. The attempt to find healing in a mar- riage relationship for early life wounds is called “trauma bonding.” Both parties, the addict and spouse, together or individually, need concen- trated, skilled, therapeutic intervention to restore the marriage. Simple communication strategies or intimacy-building exercises will not work in these situations. Work on the deep wounds with both partners is essential to help them heal and rebuild. Suffer little children. Invariably, the children of addicts are deeply wounded, confused, and angry. Counselors need to address these issues and support the entire family. The most common (and understandable) tactic in these families is to blame the addict for every imaginable prob- lem. There is, however, enough culpability and responsibility for every- one. Gentle forms of education and support can be helpful. Support groups, books, seminars, and therapy may be utilized to provide insights, encouragement, and steps to new ways of relating to one another. Victim empathy. Multifaceted addiction treatment encourages addicts to develop empathy for loved ones they’ve hurt by their destruc- tive behavior. The addict is taught to understand and empathize with their victims. Genuine empathy gradually tears down walls of shame, hatred, and distrust, and it begins to rebuild relationships based on trust and respect. However, when addicts develop empathy and consider the consequences of their actions, they may present with suicidal ideation, shame, and guilt. The road to recovery in relationships is long and diffi- cult, but the possibility of profound intimacy is worth the effort. Spiritual Renewal Addicts are spiritually immature, so they often search for childish, black-and-white answers to their problems. If addicts have developmen- tal problems, they will also have faulty, immature beliefs about God. Christian counselors, pastors, and lay helpers who work with addicts have several spiritual challenges. Letting go. Addicts must address their craving for control. Many of hem have made professions of faith in Christ, but their hearts, minds, emotions, and wills were not transformed. They may be angry with God for not “delivering” them from their cravings and the consequences of their foolish, selfish choices. In addition, they have a hard time letting go of the high and the mood alteration of their addictive activities. Addicts have become accustomed to getting their way regardless of the cost. They demand control. Being enslaved to addiction is what they know, and turning back to what they know is a temptation for a long time. One of the first principles of AA is to “let go and let God.” This statement reflects the need for addicts to admit they’re not God, not in control, and not the center of the universe. It sounds like a simple statement, but it has pro- found implications for recovery. Learning new habits. Addicts almost universally tend to drift back to familiar people, places, and practices even if those things have wreaked devastation on them and their families. They have lived out of control, but they thought they were totally in control of themselves, their addic- tion, their families, and their finances. In therapy, they need to learn new ways of thinking, believing, relating, and acting. When Jesus met a paralyzed man lying by a pool, he asked the man, “Do you want to get well?” It seems like an absurd question for a man who had been paralyzed for 38 years. The man, however, didn’t answer affirmatively, but instead gave excuses why he hadn’t been able to get into the pool. Christian counselors also have to ask this hard question. When we ask, “Do you want to get well?” we implicitly also ask, “And are you will- ing to take the risks, surrender control to God, cooperate with the coun- selor and do the hard work that is necessary?” Regardless of how much we want them to change, and regardless of how much their family mem- bers plead with them, addicts have to answer for themselves. New habits are established the same way Nehemiah built the wall around Jerusalem: one brick at a time. In the first few weeks of therapy and treatment, the old cravings may threaten progress every day. With renewed faith and support and the acquisition of new skills, people begin to climb out of the hole they’ve been digging for years. Gradually, they begin to develop a wide range of new habits of reflection, truth, trust, communication, and responsibility. During this time, the hard work of forming new ways of thinking and acting courageously begins to rewire the brain. In the first months and up to a year, family members should be sus- picious. The addicts have undoubtedly made plenty of promises in the past and broken every one. But after a while, healing, trust, and love can become the new normal in the family. Do it for others. In the grip of their addiction, addicts were motivated by a poisonous blend of arrogance, anger, fear, and anxiety. At all costs, they avoided consequences for their behavior by blaming everyone else— especially those closest to them. They have been totally self-absorbed. In recovery they learn the value of humility, and they begin to care for oth- ers. The 12th step of Alcoholics Anonymous states, “Having had a spiri- tual awakening as the result of these Steps, we tried to carry this message to alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.” Serving others is an important part of maturing spiritually and is vital to getting well emotionally and physically. Paul encourages believers to “follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (Eph. 5:1-2). In a 180-degree turnaround made possible through real repentance, addicts learn to sacrifice, giving their lusts and cravings to God, surrendering to accountability, appro- priately fearing their addiction of choice, and giving themselves to love and care for others. Getting to spiritual roots. Addiction is, at its root, a spiritual issue. Alcohol is called “spirits” for a good reason. A spiritual awakening is essential for someone to leave the clutches of addiction and find mean- ing, forgiveness, joy, and power in a new life of sacrifice and service. Dis- cipleship never happens in a vacuum. We need the support, correction, love, and acceptance of others who love us enough to share with us the wonderful truth of God’s grace and the hard truth about our sin. In initially assessing clients, note their spiritual perception and atti- tude toward God. “By examining the patient’s religious views in the con- text of his or her personality dysfunctions, the clinician can differentiate between valid expression of spirituality and defensive religiosity” (Earle, Earle, & Osborn, 1995, p. 12). Wisdom’s RevieW Life hurts at times! As Hemmingway wrote in Farewell to Arms, “The world breaks everyone.” Solomon concluded that the hurt we experience sends us in pursuit of anesthetics. We search for pain killers, but we are forced to confess that our quest is like trying to catch mist in a bottle, and we cry out, “Every- thing is meaningless” (Eccl. 1:2). This accurate and painful assessment of life under the sun leads multitudes into idolatry and addiction. By this analysis, we can surmise that everyone is addicted to some- thing and flirts with idolatry. Addiction and idolatry are the natural out- comes for someone who doesn’t value the wisdom and love of God as the primary treasures of life. All of us can sing with hymn writer Rob- ert Robinson, “Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it; prone to leave the God I love.” The lure of wealth, the thrill of sex, the joy of approval, the relief of feeling no pain...these pleasures and more drive us to pursue things that cannot possibly satisfy us. We’re all fools at times, and the best thing we can do is admit it. Hope for a Way Out We often think of repentance as something people have to do only occasionally and only after really big mistakes. That’s not the picture we have of repentance in the Bible. People with a tender heart toward God are sensitive to the Spirit’s whisper when they’re drifting as well as when they’ve completely gone off the tracks. When Martin Luther nailed the 95 Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, this was first on his list: “When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, ‘Repent,’ he willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.” That’s the message of God to addicts, to people who have put their hopes in the wrong things, and to all of us who are serious about know- ing, loving, and following Jesus. Repentance becomes a way of life. When we admit our sin, we don’t grovel in self-blame and shame. Instead, we rejoice in the love and delight of God, who has graciously forgiven us. True repentance always produces joy, love, and gladness. This kind of repentance is essential for transformational change to begin and to con- tinue for the rest of our lives. Make no mistake. Sin, idolatry, and addiction are not trivial matters. The choice to go our own way apart from God led to death in the Gar- den, and it leads to death today. People often say an addict needs to hit bottom, but even that doesn’t guarantee he will come to his senses and repent. Some insist on remaining in the cesspool of resentment, self- absorption, and the corruption of everything God has promised. We are, as Gary Moon (1997) has written, homesick for Eden. Every person’s behavior and choices can be analyzed as attempts to find the peace and thrill of Eden or numb the pain of failing to find it. We instinctively know things have gone terribly wrong. We long for some- thing else, something more, an opportunity to find our true home of joy, meaning, and shalom. Even the most basic, crass behavior can be under- stood in this way. A person who masturbates creates a moment of euphoria. A few hours later, he does it again—not for the behavior, but for the euphoria. Euphoria is a comforting high, a brief but false sense that everything is right with the world. For the moment, endorphins circulate in the brain, and life seems good. Or in another situation, a woman buys a new car, sits in the driver’s seat, and takes a deep breath. The smell of the leather is wonderful! And for a moment, she’s back in Eden. It’s not the addiction, but an Eden experience that people really want. The addiction is merely the means to an end. But apart from God, it’s a destructive means to an illusory end. Spiritual life is a long journey. It’s not a quick helicopter ride to the top of a mountain—it’s more like a long hike up a trail to the summit. Sometimes we look out on beautiful vistas of trees, mountains, and sun- sets, but often we have our heads down, looking at the next place we put our boots. Through it all, God is cheering us on, inviting us to trust in him, and providing the resources we need. He doesn’t protect us from all trouble, but he promises to use every situation for good in our lives— even our sin and the sins others commit against us. In his letter to the Romans, Paul asked some piercing questions that have implicit answers: What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? (Rom. 8:31-32). When we look at the cross, we never need to wonder if God cares, if he loves us, or if he is invested in our lives. The Father demonstrated the immensity of his love by sending his Son to die for us. Paul concludes, For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any pow- ers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all cre- ation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:38-39). In earlier chapters, we have seen that a biblical and transformational approach to Christian counseling occurs from the inside out. Genuine and lasting change doesn’t happen by following rules or wishing change would occur. God melts our hearts with his love and empowers us to walk in a way that honors him and produces spiritual fruit. This kind of transformation is also upside down. In Jesus’s day, people assumed the insiders were the rule-keeping Pharisees, the wealthy Sad- ducees, or the politically powerful Herodians. They saw prostitutes, tax collectors, foreigners, and the blind, lame, and sick as outsiders. Jesus turned this concept upside down. The outcasts flocked to him and became insiders in God’s new kingdom, while the religious, rich, and powerful chose to remain outside, angry and self-righteous. The good news for addicts and their families is that even though peo- ple may have thought of them as second-class, outsiders, and unfit for God or church, Jesus opens his arms wide to embrace all who are hum- ble enough to admit their need for him. Because of God’s grace, there’s hope for all of us—including addicts, idolaters, and sinners of every stripe. Some of the people who come into our counseling offices have ruined their own lives and the lives of those they were supposed to love. No matter how badly they’ve sinned, no matter how far they’ve fallen, no matter how much bitterness and hopelessness clouds their hearts, God’s love is deeper, higher, and wider. God delights in dramatic stories of rescue and restoration—stories like yours and ours. References American Psychiatric Association. (2000). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (4th ed., text rev.). Washington, DC: Author. Bartosch, B., & Bartosch, P. (1994). Overcomers outreach: A bridge to recov- ery. Enumclaw, WA: Pleasant Word. Brizer, D., & Castaneda, R. (2010). Clinical addiction psychiatry (p. 167). New York, NY: Cambridge University Press. Clinton, T., Hart, A., & Ohlschlager, G. (Eds.). (2005). Caring for people God’s way: Personal and emotional issues, addictions, grief, and trauma. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson. Earle, R. H., Earle, M. R., & Osborn, K. (1995). Sex addiction: Case studies and management. New York, NY: Brunner/Mazel. Keller, T. (2009). Counterfeit gods. New York, NY: Penguin Group. Laaser, M. (2009). Healing the wounds of sexual addiction. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. Loue, S., & Sajatovic, M. (2008). Encyclopedia of aging and public health (p. 72). New York, NY: Springer. Maxwell, J. C. (2006). Trends in the abuse of prescription drugs. Retrieved from http://asi.nattc.org/userfiles/file/GulfCoast/PrescriptionTrends_ Web.pdf McMinn, M. (2008). Sin and grace in Christian counseling: An integrative paradigm. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic. Moon, G. (1997). Homesick for Eden. Ann Arbor, MI: Vine Books. Plantinga, C. (2002). Engaging God’s world: A Christian vision of faith, learn- ing, and living. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans. Powlison, D. (1995). Idols of the heart and “Vanity Fair.” The Journal of Bib- lical Counseling, 13(2), 35–50. Ross, B. (2001). After suicide: A ray of hope for those left behind (pp. 134–135). Cambridge, MA: Perseus. Shaumburg, H. (1997) False intimacy. Colorado Springs, CO: NavPress. Smith, J. B. (1995). Embracing the love of God: The path and promise of Chris- tian life. San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration Press Office. (2006). New national survey reveals drug use down among adolescents in U.S.—successes in substance abuse recovery highlighted. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (2010). Results from the 2009 national survey on drug use and health: Vol- ume II. Technical appendices and selected prevalence tables. Office of Applied Studies , NSDUH Series H-38B, HHS Publication No. SMA 10-4856 Appendices. Rockville, MD. Retrieved from http://www.oas .samhsa.gov/NSDUH/2k9NSDUH/2k9ResultsApps.htm#AppG

Chapter 6 Authority and Armor In a postmodern world, authority has almost become a dirty word. Social Darwinism has taken root in many academic circles, and schol- ars emphasize the supremacy of individual rights and liberties. A recent edition of the Chronicle of Higher Education, the greatly respected voice for most contemporary higher education in America, featured an article titled “The Task of the American University.” The thrust of the article was that the university must separate its students from the belief system of their parents. Contemporary culture promotes at every turn the “sov- ereignty of the self.” In stark contrast, early academic institutions in America viewed the educational process within the context of what was called in loco paren- tis.Teachersviewedthemselvesasfunctioninginplaceoftheparentsand promoting views and values that supported the views and values that the parents had taught their children. The Scriptures are not silent on the issue of authority, providing a lofty and expansive concept of the authority of God as well as a rich and balanced perspective on the use and abuse of authority by people created in his image. God’s authority is absolute and is embedded in his nature, whereas human authority is only and always derivative—it comes from God to us, and it must always be exercised for God in ways that are con- sistent with his character and bring honor to him and his purposes. The Authority of God As the Creator, God has all authority throughout his creation. The early chapters of Genesis proclaim God’s delight in creating everything that exists in all its varieties, colors, complexities, and idiosyncrasies. (They also reveal the richness of his imagination and love for diversity, for he created giraffes, hippos, ladybugs, and us!) When Job asked God for answers to the enigma of his suffering, God didn’t give him specific answers to his particular dilemma. Instead, God provided a catalog of his vast and wondrous creation, from stars to sea monsters. The implication to Job was crystal clear: We may not under- stand what God is doing, but there is no doubt that he is sovereign over all things. King David wrote eloquently about the wonder of God’s omniscience, omnipresence, and omnipotence (Ps. 139). To the children of Israel who complained about the difficulties they faced, God spoke through Isaiah, “I form the light and create darkness, I bring prosperity and create disaster; I, the Lord, do all these things” (Isa. 45:7). Like us, the Israelites sometimes wondered if God was even aware of their pre- dicament. God corrected their misconceptions. Why do you complain, Jacob? Why do you say, Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? he Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint (Isa. 40:27-31). As the Word, the very expression of God, Jesus embodied the fullness of God’s authority. As he walked the earth, he laid aside some aspects of his authority and “emptied Himself ” (Phil. 2:7 nasb), but the Gospel writers describe many scenes that demonstrate Christ’s supreme majesty and might. Matthew gives us three glimpses into the authority of Jesus. The power of his words. The teaching of Jesus about the nature, pur- poses, and grace of God was astounding to those who heard him. “When Jesus had finished saying these things, the crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority, and not as their teachers of the law” (Mt. 7:28-29). His power over the physical world. Jesus healed many people, even from a distance. When Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to him, asking for help. “Lord,” he said, “my servant lies at home paralyzed, suffering terribly.” Jesus said to him, “Shall I come and heal him?” The centurion replied, “Lord, I do not deserve to have you come under my roof. But just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I myself am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. I tell this one, ‘Go,’ and he goes; and that one, ‘Come,’ and he comes. I say to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” When Jesus heard this, he was amazed and said to those fol- lowinghim,“TrulyItellyou,IhavenotfoundanyoneinIsrael with such great faith. I say to you that many will come from the east and the west, and will take their places at the feast with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven. But the subjects of the kingdom will be thrown outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” Then Jesus said to the centurion, “Go! Let it be done just as you believed it would.” And his servant was healed at that moment (Mt. 8:5-13). His power over death. The resurrection showed Christ’s authority over death. Before he ascended, he reminded the disciples where they would get their authority to reach the world with the gospel of grace. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make dis- ciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Mt. 28:18-20). Derivative Authority All that we are, all that we have, and all that we can be comes from the hand of God. In the opening chapters of the Bible, God gave Adam and Eve a crucial role—to multiply, fill the earth, and have dominion over it by caring for the plants and animals God entrusted to them. King David reflected on the delegated authority given to man, a role and responsi- bility we still have today. As he thought about the role of human beings, he marveled at God’s grace to include us in his plans. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them? You have made them a little lower than the angels and crowned them with glory and honor. You made them rulers over the works of your hands; you put everything under their feet: all flocks and herds, and the animals of the wild, the birds in the sky, and the fish in the sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! (Ps. 8:3-9). Centuries later, Paul wrote a circular letter that was initially sent to the Christians in Ephesus. His prayers give us insight into God’s pur- pose for us. He asked that God would open the eyes of our hearts so we’d know Christ more intimately, follow his leading more fully, delight in his love more deeply, and experience the fullness of his power. Paul described Christ’s power in terms designed to stimulate our faith and deepen our humility. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and author- ity, power and dominion, and every title that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way (Eph. 1:19-23). All people are recipients of common grace. God has given insights, resources, and blessings to every person who draws breath. Rain falls on both the just and the unjust. However, those who know, love, and fol- low him have received the special grace of the forgiveness of Jesus Christ and adoption into the family of God. We have rights and responsibili- ties as his children and as his partners in the grand enterprise of reclaim- ing the world with the gospel. Many passages in the Scriptures describe our role as God’s children and partners. One of the most familiar is found in Peter’s first letter. You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy (1 Pet. 2:9-10). Christ fulfilled the roles of prophet, priest, and king. In his threefold office as prophet, priest, and king, Jesus cures our ignorance, he removes our guilt, and he delivers us from our corruption. It is here that we find some of the specifics of what it means for Jesus to be the only mediator of the cove- nant of grace (Riddlebarger, 2012). As his followers, he entrusts those roles to us, so we become his hands, feet, and voice. Counselors meet people at their point of need. Chris- tian counselors derive their authority from Christ in these three responsibilities. • Asprophets,wespeaktheWordofGodtopeople,point them to his grace, and warn them to avoid the consequences of a wayward life. • Aspriests,weintercedewithGodforourclients,caringfor them with tender hearts, empathizing with their pain, and providing comfort in their suffering. • Askings,wegivedirectiontoclients,speakwithauthority, point out the way for them to walk with God, and support them as they make progress. Of course, counselors express these roles in very different ways depending on their training, counseling models, experiences, personal- ities, and spiritual gifts. We often feel most comfortable in the role of a comforting priest, but we serve as prophets when we ask diagnostic ques- tions, and we’re kings as we make gentle suggestions and issue directives. The point is that the most important, powerful, spiritual role we play in the lives of our clients wasn’t bestowed by the state licensing committee. It was delegated to us by the authority of God himself. Strength From Strength, Strength From Weakness God has given us many resources to use in the exercise of spiritual authority. We have the message of hope, forgiveness, and eternal life. We have the power of the Spirit and the spiritual gifts he has entrusted to us. We also have our training and experience. When someone steps into our counseling offices, we offer them our help from a position of strength. Yet our role is paradoxical. We exercise this strength by admit- ting its source is outside us, and we confess our inherent flaws and weak- ness. We are able to empathize because we, too, have experienced pain. Regardless of how talented and experienced we are, we always need to rely on God to accomplish his purposes in the lives of people we coun- sel. We are cracked pots (2 Cor. 4:7), and we are strong only when we admit we’re weak (2 Cor. 12:9). When we are full of pride, God has lit- tle room to work in and through us. Natural talents are wonderful, God-given resources. The finest aca- demic training adds to our abilities and understanding. But humility is a vital trait for Christian counselors. In a chapter on the shepherd-counselor in Competent Christian Counseling, Diane Langberg (2002) instructs coun- selors to deliberately step down in order to be raised up and made useful by God. In God’s upside-down kingdom, a position of weakness makes us depend on God’s power to accomplish his purposes in our clients’ lives. Jesus exemplified humility. He stepped out of the glory and riches of heaven and became poor to make us rich in grace. In him, omnip- otence became weak, and omnipresence became a baby, a boy, a man, and then a victim of brutal injustice. Augustine beautifully described Christ’s humility. Man’s maker was made man, that He, Ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother’s breasts; that the Bread might be hungry, the Fountain thirst, the Light sleep, the Way be tired from the journey; that the Truth might be accused by false witnesses, the Judge of the living and the dead be judged by a mortal judge, Justice be sentenced by the unjust, the Teacher be beaten with whips, the Vine be crowned with thorns, the Foundation be suspended on wood; that Strength might be made weak; that He who makes well might be wounded; that Life might die (cited in Lawler, 1978, p. 107). As Christian counselors, we depend on God’s wisdom and strength, we use every resource he has given us, and we humbly represent Christ as his prophets, priests, and kings on our clients’ behalf. Christ’s author- ity is delegated to us, and we learn to use it with humility, grace, and skill. We exercise our spiritual gifts, such as leading, comforting, discerning, serving, and teaching. Our anchor is the greatness, goodness, and grace of God. Jesus depended on the Father, spent long seasons of prayer, and always devoted himself to do what the Father wanted him to do regard- less of the cost ( Jn. 8:29). He is our example. We are committed to the possession of our souls through the power of the Holy Spirit under the authority of the Word of God within a community of accountability and encouragement for the express purpose of the imitation of the Christ. In counseling, the requirement of informed consent challenges us to be explicit about our sources of authority and to create a safe relation- ship in which clients can learn and grow. Authority, as Jesus exemplified it in his relationships, provides a safe place and leads to a successful path forward. In the transformational model of biblical counseling, our effec- tiveness is rooted in Christ’s authority, and we are protected by the spir- itual armor we have chosen to put on piece by piece. Sadly, scandals in the Christian world have eroded trust. The recent sexual abuse scandals in the church are some of the worst abuses of reli- gious authority since the sexual exploits of the Borgia popes in the Mid- dle Ages. Some clients come to us with suspicions that we don’t have their best interests at heart. We have always had to to earn their trust and vul- nerability. We now have to work even harder to win their respect and confidence. Authority and Revelation A proper understanding of delegated authority is integrally connected to the concept of revelation—both general and special revelation. God has revealed his existence and aspects of his character through all he has created. David looked up at the night sky and exclaimed, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” (Ps. 19:1). Paul was less poetic and more pointed. The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of people, who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities— his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse (Rom. 1:18-20). God gives general revelation through the amazing vastness and complex- ity of creation. We see his good and beautiful work whenever we look through a telescope or a microscope. God gives special revelation through the presence, person, and pur- pose of Jesus Christ, through the inspired Scriptures and through the work and guidance of the Holy Spirit. The writer to the Hebrews explains that this was always God’s plan. In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the proph- ets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representa- tion of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven (Heb. 1:1-3). The Word of God, the revealed Scriptures, articulate the majesty, holi- ness, grace, and purposes of God. In Psalm 119, David describes liter- ally hundreds of ways God uses the Bible in our lives. Paul summarized his view of the power and beauty of God’s truth in his letter to Timothy: “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, cor- recting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17). Built into Christianity is a principle of authority. This is because Christianity is revealed religion. It claims that God our creator has acted to make known his mind and will, and that his revelation has authority for our lives. Biblical reli- gion is marked by certainty about beliefs and duties. The dif- fidence and indefiniteness of conviction that thinks of itself as becoming humility has no place or warrant in Scripture, where humility begins with taking God’s word about things. All through the Bible, God’s servants appear as folk who know what God has told them and are living by that knowledge. This is true of patriarchs, prophets, psalmists, apostles and other lesser lights, and is supremely true of the Lord Jesus Christ himself (Packer, 1995, pp. 22–23). The Holy Spirit awakens our hearts so we can respond in faith, and he illuminates our minds so we can grasp spiritual truth as we read and study God’s Word. Special revelation becomes operative and alive in us when we trust Jesus Christ as Lord. When we begin this relationship, we enjoy the blessings of adoption, we grow in our faith, we use the gifts of the Spirit, and we serve God by caring for people. Then, as groups of people love and honor God, he reveals himself through the community of the people of God. As students of the Scriptures, human nature, and our culture, we have a high calling and privilege to step into people’s lives at their point of need. To provide effective care, we need insight and discernment. We use every resource available to us, including valuable insights of psychology filtered through biblical truth. In fact, if we look through the lens of the Scriptures, we gain greater insights into family systems, addictive behav- iors, personality disorders, and other problems our clients face. We close this portion of our discussion of authority by referencing again the words of J. I. Packer. True freedom is found only under God’s authority. What we are seeing now is that it is found only under the authority of Scripture. Through Scripture, God’s authority is mediated to people, and Christ by his Spirit rules his people’s lives. Bib- lical authority is often expounded in opposition to lax views of truth. Not so often, however, is it presented as the liber- ating, integrating, invigorating principle that it really is. The common idea is that unqualified confidence in the Bible leads to narrow-minded inhibitions and crippling restraints on what you may think and do. The truth is that such confi- dence produces liberated living—living, that is, which is free from uncertainty, doubt and despair—that otherwise is not found anywhere. The one who trusts the Bible knows what God did, does and will do, what God commands and what God promises. With the Colossians, the Bible believer under- stands “God’s grace in all its truth” (Col. 1:6), for the Christ of Scripture has become his or her Savior, master and friend (Packer, 1995, pp. 36–37). he Armor of God As God’s children and his partners in advancing his kingdom, we are in a spiritual battle with the dark forces of Satan as well as the blind- ness and evil of human nature. Some Christian counselors seldom think about this dynamic as they work with clients because their training has omitted this crucial, unseen factor. We don’t want to overempha- size the reality of spiritual conflict, but we don’t want to minimize it either. In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, he paints a grand, sweeping pic- ture of God’s desire and design. In three places in the letter, he refers to authorities and powers opposed to Christ and his people (Eph. 1:21; 3:10; 6:10-12). For Paul, the eminent theologian and church leader, the reality of spiritual conflict was undeniable. In Ephesians, Paul beautifully describes the wondrous grace of God, the magnificent purposes of God, and the specific ways Christians can repent, trust, and follow Christ in humility, love, and strength. At the end of the letter, Paul finishes with his final admonition. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Eph. 6:10-12). People who come to our offices often feel weak, angry, confused, and out of control. Their expectations of love and fulfillment have been shat- tered. They may have made many attempts to improve themselves, but all their attempts have ended in failure. They feel more ashamed than ever. Or they may have become consumed by the substances or behav- iors they have used to numb their pain. Those they love have betrayed them, or they have betrayed those who have counted on them. They have often failed to realize that we are all in the midst of a conflict that goes beyond family, finances, and anything else in the tangible world. Many of those who seek our help have a small, narrow, flawed view of God. Some see him as a vending machine. They’re convinced that if they do the right thing, they can expect blessings and safety. Some view God as a traffic cop who is waiting to catch them doing something wrong, or a fierce judge who delights in meting out punishment. Still others drift away from these dark views of God and think of him as a kind but senile grandfather who overlooks their flaws, or a Santa Claus who gives lots of gifts with no questions asked. Eventually, all of these faulty concepts of God leave people confused, angry, and desperate. Gently pointing them to the truth of God’s provision for battle, majesty, grace, and sometimes inscrutable purposes is part of our task to help them be strong. Difficulties, the Bible clearly explains, aren’t aberrations in God’s plan for his people. They are the curriculum God uses to teach us lessons of humility and dependence. They are classrooms where we learn the most important principles about the meaning of life. Whatever the source of problems may be—the sin inside us, the sin inflicted by others, or tragic, unforeseen circumstances—God will use everything to weave our lives into a beautiful fabric...if we trust him. Part of our task as Christian counselors is to help our clients gain new insights about their struggles so they can trust God with them. Only then can they follow Paul’s direc- tive to “be strong in the Lord.” As a loving Father and powerful commander, God has given us, his soldiers, the necessary equipment to fight effectively. Paul uses an image that was familiar to his readers—the armor of a Roman infantry soldier— to explain the resources God makes available to each of his children to achieve victory over Satan and sin. Each piece of equipment parallels truths we can count on in fighting the forces of darkness. herefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extin- guish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Pray also for me, that when- ever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should (Eph. 6:13-20). Let’s examine the components of our armor. The belt of truth. The Roman soldier’s belt held everything together. His pouch and sword hung on it, and it held his tunic in place. Our belt is the truth given to us in the Scriptures. In the Bible we find a full and truthful account of God’s power, creativity, compassion, and forgiveness. Life is confusing—counselors and their clients need the truth of God’s inspired Word to guide our thoughts and actions. Some people think the Bible is outdated because it was written thousands of years ago, but its pages describe human nature, family dynamics, and the complexities of motivations in vivid and relevant terms. The breastplate of righteousness. A soldier’s breastplate covered his chest and primarily his heart. In the Bible, the heart is the seat of reflection, feelings, and desires. Apart from the redeeming power of the gospel, our hearts are desperately wicked. Even as believers, we are easily deceived and discouraged. We can be arrogant when we’re doing well and ashamed when we’re failing miserably. One of the glorious truths of the gospel is that we can’t earn a right standing with God on our own merits, but God graciously gave us the righteousness of Christ when we first trusted in him. We are declared righteous, with the merit of Christ instead of our own. Jesus is our substitute. He lived the life we should have lived, and he died the death we should have died. He took our sins on himself, and he gave us his righteousness. Paul described this great exchange this way: “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Cor. 5:21). The boots of the gospel of peace. A soldier in the first century wore hob- nail sandals, much like today’s golf shoes. The spikes gave the soldier firm footing when climbing slippery hillsides, trudging through mud, and making sudden movements to defend himself or attack his enemy. For believers, stability and inner calm are the results of a deep, profound grasp of the gospel of grace. The more grace penetrates the recesses of our hearts, the more we feel profound relief that we don’t have to mea- sure up by trying harder to earn God’s acceptance. The Bible says God has chosen us, adopted us, forgiven us by the sacrifice of Christ, and sealed us in this relationship by the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:3-14). In all this, God “lavished” his love on us. When our clients (or we) feel insecure and lacking in peace, we need to go back to the incredible, life-giving, heart- transforming truth of the gospel. The shield of faith. Roman soldiers often carried leather-covered shields into battle. They sometimes wet the leather as protection against the enemy’s flaming arrows. If an enemy appeared on the flank or in the rear, the Roman infantry soldier turned his shield to face the attack. Sim- ilarly, we need the mobile defenses of finely honed spiritual disciplines so our faith can shield us from the effects of deception, accusation, tempta- tion, false thoughts about God, and the manipulation or abandonment of those we trusted. Our faith must always be on guard because we never know where or when the enemy will attack. The helmet of salvation. A soldier’s helmet protected his head from arrows and blows. God’s salvation protects our thoughts from the many lies of the enemy (and the enemy’s partners in the visible world). Believ- ers are often deceived and easily manipulated. Satan sometimes appears as “an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14) so his foolish suggestions seem rea- sonable and his sinful choices feel right. When we wear the helmet of sal- vation, we study God’s truth, trust in his grace, and live by his promises. The sword of the Spirit. The sword of the Spirit is God’s truth, which reveals God’s nature and exposes our sins. It cuts deep into our hearts and reveals our deepest secrets (Heb. 4:12-13), and we wield it to protect ourselves and those we love. God invites us into a relationship so that we know and love him. But we are finite, and he is infinite. We will never fully grasp the wonder and majesty of God, but it is our delight to keep pursuing him, so we are continually amazed. Prayer. Soldiers can’t fight effectively if they aren’t communicating with their commander. In the same way, prayer is our two-way connec- tion with God. We pray “in the Spirit” (Eph. 6:18). Believers have vari- ous conceptions of this phrase, but we can all agree that it means that we rely on the Holy Spirit to focus our attention on the grace of Christ, we trust him for wisdom, and we depend on him for the courage to carry out his will. Sometimes, we don’t know how to pray for ourselves or our clients, but the Spirit “intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” (Rom. 8:27). Paul directed believers to “put on the full armor of God” (Eph. 6:11). A Roman soldier wouldn’t go into battle with only part of his equip- ment. Omitting one or two pieces would be foolish and perhaps deadly. Similarly, the Christian counselor must never engage with a client with- out bathing the upcoming encounter in prayer and submitting to the need to put on each piece of the armor so we are equipped and ready to face every challenge. For centuries, believers have put on their armor by practicing spiritual disciplines of prayer, Bible study, confession, fellow- ship, fasting, and service. These don’t earn points with God. Instead, they focus our minds and hearts on God so we grow stronger in grace, more humble in attitude, more loving toward God and the people around us, and better prepared to engage the spiritual battles that await us around every corner in our ministry to souls. Establishing Authority as a Counselor We don’t establish our authority in the counseling office by demand- ing compliance or impressing people with our knowledge of psychology or the Bible. We establish it by letting the grace and power we experience in a relationship with Christ pour out from us into the lives of others. For authority to be authentic, it has to come from the inside out. Through the American Psychological Association, counselors are held responsible for their profound influence on clients (Strong, 1968). Gen- uine authority makes an impact, for good or for ill, and counselors must be able to control and stop ill effects while maximizing the beneficial effects of influence in the life of those being helped. Perhaps counterintuitively, true authority is the source of true free- dom. As we work and serve under the authority of God and exercise derivative authority, we realize we aren’t the final source and resource for our clients. We are simply God’s messengers, God’s mouthpiece, and God’s servants to care for the brokenhearted. Actually, we hold the seem- ingly counterintuitive roles of being God’s prophets, priests, and kings, but at the same time, we are servants of God. Every person, the apostle Paul asserts, is a slave of something or some- one. Believers have chosen (and must continue to choose) to make God our master. “Now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the result is eternal life” (Rom. 6:22). It is a paradox: Freedom of heart comes from being the slave of a loving, wise, and powerful Master. In counseling, our task is to help our clients transfer their allegiance from other gods (their addiction, children, spouse, past wounds, and so on) to the true God. How do we impart this lesson to our clients? The powerful blend of God’s Word, God’s Spirit, and God’s people convinces minds and transforms hearts. Faith—initially in salvation and then throughout the process of growth and change—is a gift that must be received to be experienced. Rational argument alone is insufficient. As Christian counselors we must remind ourselves often that the love of God must melt hearts, the Spirit of God must redirect choices, and the power of God must provide the strength and courage to take steps leading to last- ing change. As God’s servants, we follow the example of Christ when we speak truth in love and depend on the Spirit to do a work in the heart of the client producing real repentance and opening the path to change. We never coerce and manipulate. We don’t demand compliance or obedi- ence. We may ask, “Do you want to get well?” And we respect the per- son’s reply. We always give people the freedom to choose, and we are well aware that patience is necessary. God is supremely patient with us, so we model his kindness and patience by giving people time to choose change or to choose to continue on a familiar path. Some people claim Christian counselors are demanding and manip- ulative. That accusation may be true in isolated instances, but this is a grossly inaccurate and false caricature of our engagement in the coun- seling profession. Jesus spoke the truth—both the glorious truth about grace and the hard truth about sin. He offered the gift of eternal life but he frequently watched and allowed people to walk away when they chose to. When the rich young ruler walked away from Christ, Jesus didn’t yell condemnation and didn’t call him back. His heart broke for him as he allowed him the right to make his own choices and shape his own destiny. Authority without the wisdom to allow others the freedom of choice results in the abuse of that authority and a dominance of others that is a gross abuse of power. Wisdom without the courage to properly use authority is sentimental and directionless. To exercise good and godly authority with the insight and balance required, we must rely on God’s wisdom. Together with our clients, we collaborate to agree upon goals and the process to be followed in achieving them. As part of our thera- peutic model, we see the necessity of imparting truth to clients. We can teach the truth in many different ways. In Teaching as Treatment, Rob- ert Carkhuff and Bernard Berenson (1976) made the persuasive case that counseling is a unique form of psycho-education. We believe counseling is a collaborative, educative approach to reaching agreed-upon goals to better the client’s life for the ultimate glory of God. To establish this collaborative process and exercise derivative author- ity, we practice the skills of our counseling model infused with God’s wis- dom, love, and power. In our pursuit of God’s wisdom, we dig deeper into the Scriptures. Simplistic answers aren’t good enough. We seek to understand the four grand aspects of the Bible’s message: creation, Fall, redemption, and restoration. We develop a theology of suffering in tandem with the wonderful promises of God. There is, we discover, a dynamic tension between the “already” (promises that are fulfilled in our lives today) and the “not yet” (promises that will be consummated in the new heavens and new earth). Our exploration of God’s truth helps us to better understand sanctification, or the process through which God’s children grow to maturity. God has given us three major resources to support and resource his children as they seek to reach higher levels of health across all the modalities that contribute to the defining and shap- ing of their souls. • TheHolySpirit’sindwellingpresence,power,andfruit(Acts1:8; Gal. 5:22-25). Through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which takes place at the time of regeneration, children of God begin a personal relationship with the same Holy Spirit, who quickened Jesus’s body and brought him back from the dead. This resurrection power indwells believers and sponsors the growth of their character by producing his fruit in them. • TheWordofGod(2Tim.3:15-17).Scripturegivesinsight into God, human nature, relationships, and the purpose of life. Scripture is also more powerful than a two-edged sword. When the child of God memorizes Scripture, the Spirit of God provides what God needs to begin an inside-out trans- formation of the soul of the child of God, leading in the direction of the imitation of the Christ (Eph. 3; Col. 3). • Thechurch,thecommunityoffaith,thefamilyofGod(Eccl. 4:9-12; Eph. 4:15-16; Heb. 10:24-25). Through intimate, pow- erful relationships with other believers, we find the necessary encouragement, exhortation, and accountability required for growing to full maturity in Christ. he Opposition of Atheistic Secularists In some corners of our nation, our faith is under the strain of ridicule or is ignored as irrelevant. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution bars a national church but not faith’s influence of God on public policy. The Constitution has never barred God’s influence on the affairs of state, even from the birth of our republic. Even though many of the founders were deists, they believed in a deity similar to the God of the Bible. The words on our currency state, “In God We Trust.” Our country was founded with reverence for God and trust in his goodness and sovereignty. Christian counseling is under attack from some political and aca- demic sources today. Ironically, this comes at a time when faith-based counseling, spiritual identity, religious freedom and diversity, and the explicit incorporation of spiritual assessments and practices in all forms of counseling and psychotherapy are increasingly popular and respected (Clinton & Hawkins, 2011; Tan, 1996, 2011; Taylor, 1994). Christian counseling, in fact, is in the center of the developing Fifth Force of reli- gious faith and spirituality in psychotherapy (Keltner & Haidt, 2003; Koenig, 2004; Sandhu, 2007), following the assent of the psychody- namic, behavioral, humanistic, and multicultural forces. Christian counseling has enjoyed more than half a century of robust and global development. Represented by the American Association of Christian Counselors, with membership that has pushed as high as 50,000 members in all 50 states and in more than 50 foreign countries, faithful professionals, ministers, and lay leaders make a vibrant public commitment to the faith and to Christian counseling (American Asso- ciation of Christian Counselors, 2009; Clinton & Ohlschlager, 2002). However, a distinct and distressing faith gap is growing between American citizens and America’s mental health professionals. More than 90% of Americans profess some form of belief in God, depending on how he is defined and how the faithful are counted (Gallup & Jones, 2000). As we saw in chapter 1, most Americans claim that belief in God gives their lives meaning and helps them cope with the pressures and stresses of life (Oman, Flinders, & Thoresen, 2008; Oman & Thoresen, 2003). In spite of this, less than half of the mental health professionals in America express similar belief in God (Clinton & Hawkins, 2011, p. 23). Moreover, psychology and psychiatry, the two leading mental health pro- fessions, have the least affinity for God. For example, Shafranske (2000) reports that only 33% of psychologists had any religious faith tradition, and 51% said that religion is not important to them. Against the backdrop of the unbelieving majority of mental health professionals in America, an assertive majority of Christians prefer coun- selors who actively use their faith in the practice of their craft. A Gallup poll on mental health delivery to believers found that more than 60% of those polled wanted to be able to choose a counselor with like-minded spiritual beliefs and values, and 80% wanted their own beliefs and val- ues respected, even assuming a central role in counseling (Bergin & Jen- sen, 1990; Gallup & Jones, 2000; Worthington, 1988). Dr. Gerald Corey, a respected clinician, teacher, ethicist, and writer, made this comment about the significance of spirituality in counseling. Spiritual and religious matters are therapeutically relevant, ethically appropriate, and potentially significant topics for the practice of counseling in secular settings. Counselors must be prepared to deal with their client’s issues of the human spirit. Religion and spirituality are often part of the client’s prob- lem, but can also be part of the client’s solution. Because spir- itual and religious values can play a major part in human life, spiritual values should be viewed as a potential resource in therapy rather than as something to be ignored (cited in Sher- man, 2009, p. 521). The size and stubborn endurance of this faith gap is the subject of clients’ complaints about members of the various counseling profes- sions who are unbelieving and even hostile to faith. It is no wonder that so many Christians—especially among evangelical and conserva- tive faiths—express so much distrust toward psychology and counsel- ing. Many believers are discouraged by this distrust and don’t seek help from competent, professional Christian counselors. The ethical obligations—the intersection of informed consent and religious diversity values—of all licensed clinicians and the organiza- tions supporting them must honor the call to therapist-client match- ing that also includes matching of religious beliefs. The record of many secular therapists and secular mental health associations is very spotty in this regard. Wisdom’s RevieW The Bible clearly communicates that neither moralism nor relativism is the path for Christian counselors and that the right path isn’t a del- icate balance between the two. Christian counselors are committed to a third way—devotion to both justice and mercy, grace and truth, and the necessity of responding to both the tender invitation of God and his demanding summons. He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God (Mic. 6:8). he God of the Bible requires that we who give counsel on his behalf exercise spiritual authority and wear the armor of God. His counselors do not drift to extremes, becoming right-wing fanatics who demand compliance with truth, or left-wing adherents who espouse love without cost or expectations. Counselors working in the context of the upside- down kingdom of Jesus hold tightly to justice and mercy while exercis- ing both with humility. We are as powerful and confident as soldiers in full battle armor but as devoted and humble as the lowest servants. We follow the example of Jesus in full devotion and submission to the Father and in willing sacrifice and service for others. The source of our commit- ment isn’t rules or vapid relativism. As the marvelous grace and truth of God’s presence fills our hearts, we want to honor him, and we do that best when we imitate Christ and serve as channels of his grace and truth in the lives of those around us. Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gen- tleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity (Col. 3:12-14). That’s our calling. That’s our challenge. That’s our privilege. References American Association of Christian Counselors. (2009). Letter from Pres- ident Tim Clinton to the worldwide membership of the AACC. For- est, VA: Author. 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Southern Medical Journal, 97, 1194–1200. Langberg, D. (2002). Profile of a shepherd-counselor: Lessons learned from the good shepherd. In T. Clinton & G. Ohlschlager (Eds.), Competent Christian counseling: Foundations and practice of compassionate soul care (pp. 712–724). Colorado Springs, CO: WaterBrook Press. Lawler, T. C. (1978). St. Augustine: Sermons for Christmas and Epiphany. Ancient Christian writers (Vol. 15). Mahwah, NJ: Paulist Press. Oman, D., Flinders, T., & Thoresen, C. E. (2008). Integrating spiritual modeling into education: A college course for stress management and spiritual growth. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 18(2), 79–107. doi:10.1080/10508610701879316 Oman, D., & Thoresen, C. E. (2003). Spiritual modeling: A key to spiri- tual and religious growth? The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 13, 149–165. Packer, J. I. (1995) Knowing Christianity. Wheaton, IL: Harold Shaw. Plante, T. G. (2009). Spiritual practices in psychotherapy. Washington DC: American Psychological Association. Riddlebarger, K. (2012, January 24). Basics of the Reformed faith: Jesus as prophet, priest, and king [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://wscal.edu/ blog/entry/basics-of-the-reformed-faith-jesus-as-prophet-priest-and- king Sandhu, D. S. (2007). Seven stages of spiritual development: A framework to solve psycho-spiritual problems. In O. J. Morgan (Ed.), Counseling and spirituality: Views from the profession (pp. 64–92). New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin. Shafranske,E.P.(2000).Religiousinvolvementandprofessionalpractices of psychiatrists and other mental health professionals. Psychiatric Annals, 30, 525–532. Sherman, J. (2009). Spirituality and counseling. In American Counseling Association, The ACA encyclopedia of counseling (pp. 520–521). Alexan- dria, VA: Author. Strong, S. R. (1968). Counseling: An interpersonal influence process. Jour- nal of Counseling Psychology, 15(3), 215–224. Tan, S.-Y. (1996). Religion in clinical practice: Implicit and explicit integra- tion. In E. Shafranske (Ed.), Religion and the clinical practice of psychology (pp. 365–387). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Tan, S.-Y. (2011). Counseling and psychotherapy: A Christian perspective (p. 368). Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books. Taylor, E. (1994). Desperately seeking spirituality. Psychology Today, 27(6), 54. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/articles/200910/ desperately-seeking-spirituality Worthington, E. L., Jr. (1988). Understanding the values of religious cli- ents: A model and its application to counseling. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 35, 166–174.

Chapter 7 Atmosphere and Alignment Advocating for Clarity on the Importance of Counselor Presence and Alignment for Building a Powerful Therapeutic Alliance

Communication, as we know, is far more than the words people say. Studies show that only 7% of meaning is found in the actual verbiage. The remaining 93% of meaning in verbal communication is found in the tone of voice, gestures, and body language. In our coun- seling offices, some clients are so emotionally numb, they don’t pick up on social cues from us. Many others are hypervigilant, reading every raised eyebrow, glance, and intonation. They suffer from radical inse- curity and the fear of being inconsequential. They desperately want to know they are loved and they matter to someone. They have come to us to receive assistance with moving forward with their lives. They come believing that we are trained and invested in helping them achieve an outcome they value. The old saying is a trusted adage because it is true: People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. At the heart of the biblical and transformational model of Christian counseling is a powerful partnership that facilitates genuine change and encourages clients to explain and explore their needs. Most clients—believers and unbelievers—come to our offices with secrets and high walls of self-protection (see Sexton & Whiston, 1994). These are some of the most common conditions: • Theclientiscomingfromaveryhurtingplace. • Theclientiscomingfromaveryunsafeplace. • Theclientiscomingfromaplaceofbrokenness,ofimpo- tence and failure. They will likely feel ashamed and reluctant to admit their failure to change or grow. The building of a working alliance requires counselor attention to the development of a positive therapeutic atmosphere. The client is coming to you—a person they may neither know nor initially trust—for help because their attempts at applying God’s grace and power to their prob- lem issues have not worked. Success in forming a collaborative engagement directed toward the achievement of goals that will be perceived as beneficial to the client depends on the counselor’s ability to create a particular kind of envi- ronment, or atmosphere. This environment is characterized by several valuable elements, including a commitment to positive presence and successful alignment with client preferences. We use the word atmo- sphere to describe the all-encompassing environment in which the inter- action between the counselor and the client takes place. It is the sum of the counseling processes as they unfold and in which the counselor- client relationship dynamics are contained. An atmosphere includes visible, physical aspects, such as the coun- seling office setting, and nonvisible aspects, such as the intellectual, spiritual, relational, and emotional context and tone of the counseling sessions. In this book, we advocate that the counselor pay strict atten- tion to the development of an atmosphere that is permeated with the presence of God, evidences a commitment to the faithful incarnation and communication of the loving heart of God, and generates hope in the heart and mind of the care seeker. The creation of such an atmo- sphere will contribute greatly toward the establishment of a safe place where clients can be intentionally vulnerable and take necessary risks for healing. Attending to alignment issues focuses the attention of the new Chris- tian counselor on the task of adapting to the particular preferences of the client as the challenges related to change and interaction are encoun- tered. Alignment requires attention to the preferred “firing order” of the client (Lazarus, 1981). The new Christian counselor appreciates the value of attending to client modal preferences in order to efficiently and effectively join with the client to establish a working alliance. Alignment requires that the counselor first assess the modalities through which this specific client prefers to engage the challenges he is facing. This alignment with modal preferences is critical to successfully join- ing with the client to establish a therapeutic alliance. Some prefer to be approached with attention to thoughts, others with attention to feelings, others with attention to behaviors, others with attention to spirituality, and still others with attention to management of relational issues. These preferences or commitments to certain styles of problem management and information processing require that as counselors we engage with clients cautiously and with due attention to alignment with their modal preferences. Equally important to the success of the counseling encoun- ter is the counselor’s appreciation for the necessity of ordering the explo- ration of client modalities at a pace and in keeping with the prioritization established by the client. To ignore these necessities is to abandon the spirit of collaboration that is essential for effective intervention and to create an environment that feels unsafe for the client. This attention to alignment does much to develop mutual under- standing and trust, which are at the heart of a powerful therapeutic alli- ance. When this happens, the impossible becomes possible. When it doesn’t happen, the counseling dynamic is significantly hindered. This level of human connection invites clients to feel and respond honestly to the brokenness, confusion, loss, abuse, and failure in their lives. Beyond empathy, the authentic presence of a caring counselor allows an authen- tic trust to be built so the client believes, “My counselor really under- stands me and listens to me without judgment. For this reason, I’m going to take the risk of revealing more of my heart.” Counselors who fail to establish this kind of relationship with clients suffer a consistent pattern of premature terminations, failed appointments, and adversarial rela- tionships with clients. Unique Resources Available to the Christian Counselor That Contribute to the Development of a Therapeutic Atmosphere The new Christian counselor is humbled by the triadic nature of the counseling and healing process. She believes that the Creator God who has revealed himself in Christ desires to be fully present in the counsel- ing event. Additionally, she is convinced that the God who has revealed himself in the person of Jesus Christ is more concerned and invested in the welfare and healing of the client than she can ever be. God’s pri- mary posture as he interacts with humanity is as the Healer attempting and God’s passion to connect with those who bear God’s image. The Christian counselor serves as conduit of words wrapped in a disposition that incarnates God’s glory, love, and grace. The counselor becomes in the encounter with the client the outshining of the glory of God. The grace and truth incarnated in a unique way in Christ are incarnated again in the moment of meeting between two minds and hearts for the pur- pose of healing and personal transformation. In this setting, God often shows up, and we see his grace and truth in the life, eyes, and words of the Christian caregiver. This revelation of God’s grace and truth is uniquely present in a heart-to-heart encoun- ter under the umbrella of the divine presence. Illustration 2 helps iden- tify some of the unique resources that are present in the encounter that takes place between helper and care seeker and that contribute to the reshaping of the elements that in turn contribute to the reshaping of the soul. The Unique Resource of God’s Unfailing Love and Passion for Connecting With Fallen Image Bearers Foremost in the mind and heart of God is the unveiling of his per- sistent love for those who, though fallen away from him, bear his divine image. We see this persistent commitment to loving in the works and words of Christ. When we read of God’s love in the book of Hosea, we gain insight into what this love looks like when it is incarnated in the life and work of the counselor. God calls the prophet Hosea into service when Israel has forgotten God, has ceased obeying the Lord, has played the harlot against their God and has joined herself to idols and asks counsel from them (Hos. 2:13; 4:12,17; 8:14). Israel is away from God in what the NKJV calls a backslidden condition (11:7). God’s faithfulness to Israel had resulted in the building of a wealthy and prosperous nation—a nation that God had chosen to bless all the nations of the world and reveal His glory (Gen. 12:1-3). Israel became the luxuriant vine God foretold, but then God observed, Israel “brings forth fruit for himself,” and “their heart is divided.” He says to Israel, “You trusted in your own way” (Hos. 10:1-2,13 nkjv). This raises an issue of great importance to the Christian counselor and client: Where is God’s heart in all of this? How engaged is God in help- ing us achieve healthy outcomes in our sessions? How does he respond in his heart to a people chosen for his glory and purposes who have pros- tituted his gifts and abandoned their appointed mission? Some will find the answer to this question shocking. The sovereign Creator God of the Old and New Testaments is in agony. He is troubled. How can I give you up, Ephraim? How can I hand you over, Israel? How can I make you like Admah? How can I set you like Zeboiim? My heart churns within Me; My sympathy is stirred. I will not execute the fierceness of My anger; I will not again destroy Ephraim. For I am God, and not man, The Holy One in your midst; And I will not come with terror (Hos. 11:8-9 nkjv). Hosea speaks of a God whose love for those who bear his image is relentless; it is a love that refuses to surrender its object. This is the same loving God who refused to surrender Adam and who, motivated by love, cried out, “Adam, where are you?” We see the full blossoming of God’s passion for intimate connection in the incarnation of Jesus Christ. Jesus is the supreme witness to this undying love, and in him, God demonstrates the extent to which his unfathomable and unparalleled love will go to reconcile those who are away in idolatry and who have forgotten their God and Creator. This is the standard for the kind of love to which the new Christian coun- selor is called to bear witness and incarnate in the sacred event we call counseling. Not a love of our own invention, but a love we have expe- rienced and attempt to pass on in our broken and faltering humanity. This incarnated love, delivered in the context of encouragement and accountability, when received, opens a door of hope in in the midst of the most profound human suffering (Eccl. 4; Hos. 4; Eph. 4:28-30; Heb. 10:24-25). I (Ron) remember so well my first encounter with a person who com- municated love to me and the power of that encounter. I was 17, had left an abusive, alcohol-saturated environment in my family of origin, and had started attending a small, rural church. I had great respect for my pastor. One night after an evening service, we had a conversation that became very personal. He spoke to me of the love of God, but I remem- ber remonstrating, “No one loves me.” His reply was believable and transformational for me: “You’re wrong, Ron. God loves you, and I do too.” I heard the God part, but I felt the “I do too” part. That rocked me to the very core. Something inside me broke, and I could feel tears well- ing up. I was deeply embarrassed and quickly went out into the night. I was now weeping uncontrollably. A person loved me and spoke to me of a God who loved. I wept for what seemed like forever, and with the tears I could feel a process of transformation beginning in me that would change the entire orientation of my inner world and change forever the story of my life. In my interaction with Glenn that night, I not only experienced love, but at the same time I experienced grace. I don’t know if Glenn under- stood the power of what he said to me, but his words spoke to the deep- est need of my life. I needed to know that a man for whom I had respect could actually value me and love me. I needed to know that I was lov- able for me. Glenn not only loved me that night, he also graced me. Grace is operative when a person who has what I need determines to know me well enough to discover my need and then willfully commits the use of his resources to meet that need. Love is the motivation behind the action, but grace is the volitional commitment to bless another. Love and grace are companions. God so loved that he gave. To love is to give. To grace is to give with laser focus to the deepest need of the heart next to yours. Such deep knowing is possible only when we are under the umbrella of a wisdom that opens our minds to the truth about ourselves and oth- ers. This wisdom is given freely by God to all who seek it. Through the development of the counselor’s personal relationship with God and her personal pursuit of the truth revealed in Scripture, the counselor finds her acquaintance with the ways of wisdom expanding across the trajec- tory of her personal story. he Holy Spirit was present and involved in inspiring the conversa- tion between Glenn and me all those many years ago. Glenn may not have known of the presence of the Spirit in that moment, and I surely did not. However, as I experienced the melting down of strongholds of anger and fear in my inner world and a strange witness to a new kind of faith, hope, and love, I was experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit to change and transform my inner world and, to my surprise, my relation- ships with others as well. As Christian counselors, we listen carefully and lovingly to the sto- ries of those who come to us for assistance. We listen carefully, praying for wisdom to know what cannot be seen but is nonetheless controlling the inner world of the person before us. We want to know where grace must touch down or be tucked in if healing is to begin, and wisdom can point us with laser-like focus to the area in need of grace. We listen with dependence, knowing that what wisdom informs can be transformed only by the presence and power of the Holy Spirit and by a decision on the part of the client to partner with the one giving counsel and with the Spirit directing that counsel. The Unique Resource of God’s Grace Evidenced in Counselor Presence and Commitment to a Grace-Based Relationship With the Client Grace is another resource that is uniquely present in a counseling encounter anchored in Christian theology. Grace is love focused and com- mitted in laser-like fashion on the meeting of a need discovered in the life of a person (Eph. 2:8-9). Grace provided the covering of skin to address Adam’s and Eve’s shame in the garden. Grace provided for humanity’s redemption in the one who, in his sacrificial atonement, positioned him- self as the sole mediator between man and God. Encouragement and edification are provided to the discouraged person through the minis- try of words that convey grace and healing (Eph. 4:28-30). This ministry of grace through carefully chosen words addresses real human needs as opposed to wounding with callously delivered words. As a result, hurting peers in the body of Christ are encouraged and edified. Love motivated God in his pursuit of fallen man, but God in his grace provided Hosea, Jesus, and helpers as messengers of that love and equipped us with words and plans for the deliverance of the offender. Grace is love with feet and hands working for the deliverance and enrichment of people living in an upside-down world where the number of things wrong is so great they cannot be added up and the crooked cannot be made straight (Eccl. 1:15). The Unique Resource of the Holy Spirit for Empowering Trans- formation in the Core Self The Holy Spirit is the third person of the biblical Godhead. His pres- ence in the counseling encounter is of special significance because of the unique power for change and transformation of persons that is his alone to provide. This is the Holy Spirit who brought order out of chaos (Gen. 1), life into the valley of dry bones (Ez. 37), and Jesus out of the tomb of his death. The Spirit bestows power for the new birth promised to all who believe in Jesus Christ ( Jn. 3). The Holy Spirit, in his indwell- ing of the believing sinner, brings the power to make all things new. He brings the power to restore the damaged image of God in the core self. The Spirit works to form Christ’s character in the core self so that the regenerated Christian across time looks and sounds more and more like Jesus. He brings in his indwelling presence the power to make all things new and enables the believer to live a life filled with good fruit that holds great power for the restoration and enrichment of human relationships (Gal. 5:16-26; Eph. 4–6). The Unique Resource of Scriptural Wisdom and Truth Another resource unique to the Christian counseling encounter is the guidance received through Scripture regarding the way of wisdom and truth. This resource, when properly engaged, does much to lead us to the experience of inner peace and profit in the life we are designed by the Creator God to live out in time and eternity. God, who created humans for intimate relationship with himself and one another, has provided a road map for our achievement of meaning and peace in this world and the world to come. That road map is found in the wisdom and truth revealed in the Bible. The apostle Paul bears witness to the Bible’s unique authority and power to guide when he writes, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God” (2 Tim. 3:16 nkjv). Scripture is God’s gift for us to place us in con- nection with a wisdom grounded in him, a wisdom designed to point us to the way of lasting profit in a world where the number of things that are broken are so great they cannot be added up (Eccl. 1:15). In this world of brokenness, the Scriptures provide counselors and clients with a sure or certain word from our Creator God that says, “This is the way; walk in it” (Isa. 30:21; see also Ps. 119:105). This special revelation of his wis- dom and truth is profitable for instruction on all the critical issues per- taining to living well in this world and in the kingdom of God that is to come. The new Christian counselor believes that when the Holy Spirit, who resides in the core of the regenerated Christian, is provided with the Word of God in the mind of the child of God, the stage is set for the commencement of a journey into personal transformation directed at the imitation of the Christ. Summary Thoughts on Resources Unique to Christian Counselors In summary, illustration 2 (p. 205) has pictured for us the reality that the Christian counselor is blessed with a unique arsenal of power- ful resources as he engages in the ministry of soul care. We are carried along in the arms of the powerful, life-giving Holy Spirit of God. We possess great peace and confidence as we struggle for the souls and hearts of the broken of this world because the Holy Spirit is present, reviving and assisting us in every moment of our work. As counselors we are anchored. Our feet are firmly planted in the Scriptures. In that body of revealed truth we have discovered the God who never leaves us or for- sakes us. We can count on him for guidance, and we can count on him to do things in our lives and the lives of those we seek to help that are beyond the means of mere humans. We move forward in our words and manner consistently under the influence of his grace and love. Truth never precedes grace, and truth is not spoken until grace has given permission. Then, when truth is spoken, it is spoken softly and with unbending confidence that the truth of God has an inherent power and that the word of truth given in the Word of Scripture never returns void, but always accomplishes the purpose God has for it. As disciples of the risen Christ, we believe that! We are there- fore, of all counselors, filled with a sense of expectancy that through him, human problems are solvable. People can and have overcome every addiction and malady known to mankind through faith in Christ, sub- mission to the Word of God, dependence on the Spirit of God, and sub- mission to accountability coupled with encouragement received from the family of God. Christian counselors have an additional motivation for being hopeful in all they do with clients. God is alive. Easter is not just a historical event, but is occurring every day in the life of someone somewhere because the God who is the same yesterday, today, and forever is at work in our world in every minute of every day. This faith gives rise to a spirit of hopefulness that permeates every encounter the Christian counselor has. Counselor Behaviors That Add to the Counselor Presence and Development of a Positive Therapeutic Environment Attending demonstrated through nonverbals. SOLER is an acronym that defines a group of nonverbal behaviors that communicate to the cli- ent your interest and readiness to help. • Squaringuptofacetheclientdirectly(attentionelsewhereis disrespectful). • MaintaininganOpenposture(aclosedandrigidposture shuts down communication). • Leaningtowardyourclientoccasionally(toomuchdistance makes relationships cold). • MaintainingEyecontact(lackofeyecontactmeanslackof emotional contact). • StayingRelaxed(arigidanduptightdemeanorisoff-putting to the client) (Egan, 2010). Attending demonstrated through facilitative responsiveness. We are look- ing to create an atmosphere in which clients feel safe and sense that they can trust us. Counselors must be committed to facilitative respon- siveness—a delicate attunement with our clients that facilitates further exploration and the development of goal-directed behaviors. Clients must be able to say to themselves, “I trust this person. They under- stand me and know what they are doing. They are leading me to some answers that have escaped me.” Kottler and Brown (1992, p. 69) have summarized the research of others to list counselor behaviors that either facilitate or inhibit this essential challenge of safety and trustworthiness. Attending demonstrated through the use of empathy. To empathize means to “feel with” or “be with” another at both an intellectual and emotional level. From the broader perspective of emotional intelligence, empathy is the ability to deeply understand another person by getting into the other’s emotional state (Hughes, Patterson, & Terrell, 2005) and communicating or reflecting back that emotion to the person experienc- ing it (Burns, 2008; Egan, 2010). Counselors are called to come along- side clients who come from unsafe places where they have experienced pain and shame. Accurate empathy creates in the mind of the client the idea that “I am in a safe place with someone I can trust to lead me to a better place even when I have unpacked all my darkest secrets.” Empathy that facilitates client change contains three essential forms of being. • Beingin.Thisistheabilitytogetintotheclient’sworld,to understand it emotionally, cognitively, and behaviorally, and to clearly communicate that understanding back to the client. • Beingwith.Thisconnotestheabilitytounderstandyourcli- ent at a deeper emotional level while also maintaining your perspective as a therapist. This level of empathy involves being intimate with your client with clear boundaries and without client enmeshment. • Beingfor.Likethevalueoflove,thisreferstotheabilityto communicate to the client that you are unconditionally for that person even when you are challenging sin and misper- ceptions in their life (Moustakas, 1997). This is the ability to give grace to the client and is useful in communicating your respect and validation of the person. Empathy as the emotional glue of counseling. Empathy facilitates the building of an emotional bond between counselor and client (Tryon, 2002). It assists the client with overcoming their fears and embracing the challenge of significant life change—it is the foundation that facilitates ongoing exploration of alignment with client and counselor adaptation. Empathy is also important in overcoming resistance to change at any point in the ongoing counseling process. A client will manifest reluc- tance for change or lack of motivation, largely because change is scary (Egan, 2010). Especially when clients are defensive, accurate empathy is one of the most potent skills that challenge clients to drop their defen- siveness and resistance (Burns, 2008). Grace is unveiled differently in the life of each of the members of the Trinity. The gracious Father provides the safety and gives warm encour- agement. The gracious Savior provides redemption and forgiveness. The gracious Spirit provides empowerment and keeps regenerating hope. Building a Positive Environment for Counseling Through Alignment Successful counselor alignment with clients is an additional skill that when paired with empathy will contribute significantly to the efficiency and effectiveness of the interventions created for a specific client. The ability to align with the client’s preferred firing order is crucial to advanc- ing the core mission of transformational change. It is not enough to merely empathize with your clients—to feel and respond as they do to the loss, abuse, and failure in their lives. The new Christian counselor understands clients’ need for a counselor who can demonstrate that she is paying attention to the patterns they feel most comfortable with for communication and the management of behaviors. Lazarus uses the acrostic BASIC ID to summarize this view on the pillars of human tem- perament and personality (Lazarus, 2008). Lazarus charges counselors to bridge to clients’ preferred modality before gently moving them into other channels. We have outlined the modalities we believe will require attention from the new Christian counselor in illustration 3 (page 240). The careful assessment of client firing order, or an appreciation and ability to assess what modalities the client feels most comfortable func- tioning in as they tell their story and envision a new beginning, is abso- lutely critical to the establishment of a working alliance with a client. For example, a client who is highly cognitive will not do well with a coun- selor who insists on a feeling- or action-oriented path toward change. The new Christian counselor will be sensitive to the need for discerning these preferences and their critical importance to the development of an initial therapeutic alliance and ongoing best-fit intervention strategies for collaboratively assisting clients with the initiation and continuance of action plans leading to a preferred future. Hutchins accomplished the goal of creating alignment by calling counselors to adapt to client preferences for thinking, feeling, and acting utilizing the TFA/Matrix System (Hutchins, 1982). By limiting behav- ioral preferences to thinking, feeling, and acting, Hutchins could assess a client’s preferences by using his Hutchins Behavior Inventory and then tailor his interventions to fit the client preferences. This strategy also assists with joining clients and fostering a strong therapeutic alliance. In simple terms, if a client prefers feeling over thinking and the counselor is committed to using cognitive strategies for joining and designing inter- ventions, the chances of effective joining and intervention are dramati- cally reduced. Arnold Lazarus created his BASIC ID strategy for assessing client preferences and guiding counselor approaches to clients. We agree with him that this strategy can facilitate successful joining and management of client-specific interventions. Lazarus insists, “Multimodal therapy is personalized and individualistic....Clinical effectiveness is predicated on the therapist’s flexibility, versatility, and technical eclecticism” (Lazarus, 2008, p. 369). The question of what works best for this particular per- son at this particular time should always be uppermost on the mind of the counselor. Lazarus believes “by assessing clients across the BASIC ID, one is less apt to overlook subtle but important problems that call for correction, and the overall problem identification process is signif- icantly expedited” (Lazarus, 2011, p. 474). We advance in this book a model similar to the BASIC ID but with the important difference that our metamodel makes explicit additional elements in the human per- sona that are of great importance to a biblical and theological view of the etiology and resolution of human challenges. Central to Lazarus’s multimodal model are two other concepts: bridg- ing and tracking. Bridging refers to the fact that clients have modalities they feel more comfortable operating in. These preferences differ from client to client. Managing the therapeutic process well demands that the therapist pay attention to these preferences and style their interaction with clients in a manner that is congruent with clients’ preferences. For example, a client who is highly cognitive or looking for an action plan will not do well with a therapist who is simply reflecting feelings. The cli- ent wants and needs a therapist who is alongside or bridging to the cli- ent across the cognitive domain to build action plans. “The term tracking refers to a careful examination of the ‘firing order’ of the different modalities” (Lazarus, 2008, p. 371) for a particular cli- ent facing a specific situation. For example, a specific client might start with cognition and then move to action, then to feeling, then to sensa- tion, then to body, and so on. Other clients start with feeling, go to sen- sation, then to body, then to thought, etc. The new Christian counselor is grateful for these contributions from Lazarus and sees them as help- ful in creating the therapeutic alliance, developing best-fit strategies for change, and developing long-term maintenance strategies. In practical terms, I like to think of alignment as a skill that is required of any successful quarterback. A good quarterback of a successful foot- ball team has a series of plays that he calls against the opposition. These plays have a proven record of success for him with this particular team. However, he will occasionally come to the line ready to follow through with a strategy that was agreed on in the huddle, but based on his expe- rience, he sees that the defense is structured in such a manner that if he goes with the play he had planned, the end will be disastrous. He there- fore calls an audible at the line of scrimmage. He changes the plan based on the feedback he received by a careful examination of the defense and his perception of the needed response. Good counselors do this all the time. They might have their favor- ite approaches to clients, and their approaches and strategies may work most of the time. But the new Christian counselor’s commitment to collaborating with clients and recognition of the clients’ right to self- determination creates the awareness that staying alongside this client in this moment requires a change in approach. The client who usually oper- ates from cognition has shifted his ground and wants to operate from the action side of his soul. Like the successful quarterback, the success- ful counselor is highly empathic, intuitive, and analytical. She is ready to change the play and fit interactions and interventions with client modal preferences. The new Christian counselor is client-centered, flexible, and highly adaptive. Alignment Demonstrated in the Interaction of the Father and Son With People In the ultimate example of alignment, “God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” ( Jn. 3:16 nkjv). God is love, and he chose to move near to humanity. But we humans can’t receive his love because we are in bondage to self and sin, and like Adam, we are hid- ing. In a great mystery, God made a decision to meet man’s need. God chooses alignment with human need and gives his Son. The decision is rooted in both the response of God and the need of humanity. God’s pas- sion for connection drives him to align, and his decision to align makes it possible for humanity to experience his love and receive his grace. Align- ment is a decision and an action rooted in concern and garbed in grace. God’s decision to align creates a grace environment that provides the necessary conditions for the human person to participate in a collab- orative process of change. Two conditions are provided for that change: God’s commitment and provision, and human self-determination—a mystery anchored in collaboration. Jesus Christ is the incarnation of God’s commitment to alignment and adaptation. God’s passion for connection and intimacy is embed- ded in his character. The God of Christianity is a triune God. He exists in the mystery of an intimacy of persons we call the Trinity. This com- mitment to intimacy extends from the persons in the Godhead to the relationship between God and the humans he created in his image. This commitment is revealed in the covering of Adam and Eve with animal skins, the incarnation of Jesus Christ, and the redemption that is made possible through the death and resurrection of Christ. Everything about Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit is centered in the willingness of the God of the Bible to adapt to human need. his adaptation to human need is at the core of the biblical defini- tion of grace. Grace is God flexing to wrap himself around human needs without the compromise of his character. God so loved the fallen human family that he gave his only Son to meet man’s need for redemption and reconciliation. This is God moving in grace toward humans. Paul will therefore say, “For...by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8). The new Christian counselor is humbled by the reality that God has called her to share in his troubled heart, to participate in real suffer- ing related to real-life situations. This calling is as real for us as it was for Hosea and exposes us to great personal suffering. The troubling of God results in the issuing of a call to us to share in that troubling and to faithfully position ourselves in the life of clients as channels through whom God’s love can freely flow. God in His love is ever the pursuer of the wounded and fallen. We are called to nothing less than the incarna- tion of his love in our witness and presence alongside the clients we serve. Alignment Demonstrated in the Ministry of the Apostle Paul The apostle Paul models the spirit of alignment in his work and witness. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not hav- ing the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some (1 Cor. 9:20-22). Paul demonstrated this commitment to adaptation in the strategy he used to connect with the Athenians. He wisely chose to honor the Athe- nians’ preference for intellectual discussion, and he bridged to their ori- entation to a cognitive platform. Luke reports, “All the Athenians...spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas” (Acts 17:21). Paul is adaptive in his approach to the Athenians because he wants to successfully engage them. He starts where they are by saying, “As I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, To the Unknown God” (verse 23 kjv). Paul then con- tinues to honor their preference for the cognitive modality by engaging them through their poetic literature. He uses their love for communicat- ing cognitively, and he attempts to engage them in meaningful discus- sion that he hopes will lead them to change. We find another example of the Pauline concern for adaptation and alignment in the advice he gave to the Thessalonian elders in 1 Thess. 5:14. Paul is greatly concerned that these elders appreciate the need for approaching different types of church members with different strategies. One approach does not fit all! In this passage Paul cites three different types of persons who will need to be cared for in the church and who will require highly divergent approaches to the care of their souls. There are the little-souled persons, the unruly, and the weak. The little-souled are the timid (NLT), or disheartened (NIV). These are persons who operate out of a preference for feeling and have a dif- ficult time moving forward on the basis of facts, truth, and rationality. Paul advises engaging the little-souled person with a heavy emphasis on encouragement and support designed to generate an environment filled with strong positive affect. In 2 Timothy, Paul illustrates this commit- ment to adaptation in his interaction with Timothy. Paul approaches him as a loving father dealing with his son and is consistently attentive to Timothy’s feelings as he moves Timothy toward truths or realities that are chosen for their power to encourage the timid disciple. Paul employs and advises a different approach when dealing with an unruly person. The unruly person is one who has little respect for self- discipline and conformity with laws and governance. The thoughts of the unruly are dominated by their self-designed intellectual constructs of reality and truth, and they are committed to them to the exclusion of input from others. They are right in their reasoning, and all others are wrong. These persons need to be warned, and the truth must be spoken and presented in a reasonable manner that is permeated with grace but designed to undo the pride that has taken possession of their souls. This pride is dangerous and will lead a person to ruin in his relationship with God and with all who are around him and are the victims of his love affair with his own cognitions. Paul models this approach in his relation- ship and interaction with the Corinthians. In 2 Cor. 10:8 and 13:9-10, Paul illustrates the challenging use of authority in the counseling context, referring to “the authority the Lord gave us for building you up rather than tearing you down....Our prayer is that you may be fully restored.” Adaptation and alignment with the prideful demand a confrontive style permeated with grace in the service of edification, not destruction. When dealing with a person who is weak, Paul advises yet another approach. The weak are persons struggling with a life-dominating sin, such as an addiction. These are persons in bondage to some form of idol- atry that has wrapped them up in its chains. Paul advises that we come alongside such persons with a commitment to providing the necessary interventions and supports for the long haul that will be required to set them free. Some persons will be set free miraculously by the power of the Holy Spirit and the interventions of believing and prayerful counselors. Others—and their number is large—will find themselves in a struggle across time that will eventually result, through the support of others, in their being made free. Support implies getting under them with a rein- forcement system similar to the pillars or arches under a bridge. Support requires that we patiently surround them with ongoing accountabil- ity and encouragement from faithful believers who will stay with them throughout their unique journey. In these verses, Paul mentions one last requirement for people help- ing. Christian counselors are required to be adaptive while dealing with different types of clients. But one attribute must always characterize the counselor who is faithful to the Pauline witness. Christian counselors must exercise “humility and gentleness” (2 Cor. 10:1) and be “patient with everyone” (1 Thess. 5:14). Christian counselors are always and for- ever living vessels through whom God purposes first and foremost to share his unwavering love and patience for the wounded and broken in our profoundly fallen world. Alignment and Atmosphere Boiled Down to Counselor Presence Belief in and ultimate reliance on the unique resources available to us as Christian counselors contributes to a presence in the counseling context that holds great promise for healing in the life of our clients. I remember listening to a chaplain who was presenting his final paper for his doctor of ministry degree. His paper was entitled, “The Role of Pres- ence in the Ministry of the Chaplain.” He shared with us an experience he had with a group of soldiers he was accompanying into a dangerous area. One of the soldiers said, “I like it when you travel with us, Chap- lain. I always feel safer.” As counselors, we need to remember that some- times just being there with a person matters. However, we need to actually be there. We need to be fully engaged, fully for the client, and fully bringing on line all our training, unique resources, and experiences for this person as needed in this moment, because he deserves that from us. As Christian counselors we are uniquely resourced for the work of soul care, but the full power of our resources can be experienced only by those who find us fully present and expe- rience us as fully open, available, and prepared to step into their world as partners with them or support for them in their quest for healing and shalom. Counselors who are fully present with their clients demon- strate that presence in a number of ways but chiefly through skillfully attending to their client’s adaption preference and thus building an envi- ronment that is rich in its potential for producing the change desired. Counselors demonstrate presence through the practice of good attend- ing behaviors. The Personal Cost of Christian Counseling There is a price to be paid for this work—it can be frustrating and exhausting. Attending to others, listening to them, and caring for them are often thankless tasks, and then we go home to a host of other needs, demands, and pressures. If we don’t replenish our drained emotional tanks, our passion for our profession can evaporate and our energies can become depleted. Many counselors face the specter of burnout. Jesus knew the price of serving others. One day he was in a crowd of people serving and teaching them. A woman with an issue of blood touched him, and he said, “Who touched me?...I know that power has gone out from me.” Jesus knew the exhaustion and fatigue that accompanied serv- ing people. Counselor burnout is one of the dirty little secrets of the counsel- ing profession. The pressures are enormous. Daily and hourly, we face problems most people avoid at all costs. We try to maintain professional distance, but we are deeply concerned for people who suffer a marriage gone awry, a prodigal’s suicide, a drug addiction, the hundredth relapse, financial ruin, the debilitating impact of chronic depression, and a host of other crushing problems. It’s difficult to close the door at the end of the day and leave those problems at the office. We may be unable to free ourselves from the emotional triggers. The burden grows, and soon, exhaustion overrides resilience. We become touchy and sullen, we lose sleep, we don’t have any energy left for boundary maintenance, and we can’t turn the switches off. To stay centered and healthy, we need to drink deeply of spiritual waters. We need regular, daily soul care, and we need periods of pro- longed relaxation. It’s not wrong to get tired in doing good work for God and for people, but we drift into pathology when we can’t stop and take care of ourselves. Wisdom’s RevieW Alignment is a valued skill we find in the psychological literature and also in the Scriptures. Alignment must be practiced to be well-developed. If God and his servants were not deeply invested in aligning themselves with human need, we would be left in our sin and human misery. Part of our relationship with Christ rests on the reality that he is uniquely aligned with our life, our story—that he is “touched with the feeling of our infirmities” (Heb. 4:15 kjv). He understands our tempta- tion and knows our brokenness and our loss. We have a High Priest who was tested in every way, just as we are, yet without sin. He is uniquely aligned with us. This High Priest is the preeminent practitioner of para- kaleo in all its forms and variations. He is our faithful High Priest, who has established a grace place in heaven and bids us to seek him out andbring our needs to him. He is still approachable and tenderhearted with those who come to him in openness and humility. Jesus often went beyond what was customary in order to align with individualsandmeettheirneeds.Totouchaleperwasunthinkable,but he touched and healed a leper (Mt. 8:3; Mk. 1:40-42). He held a con- versation with a Samaritan woman at the well (Jn. 4:4-30). He inter- fered with the attempt to stone a woman found in the act of adultery (Jn. 8:1-11). The atmosphere around Jesus was charged with love, com- passion, and the willingness to adapt to whatever situation and person he found in front of him. He could be confrontive with the truth, and he could weep at the death of his friend. He could feed thousands when his disciples wanted to send them away hungry. In every way, Jesus was the incarnation of God’s willingness to stretch himself over the raw human need around him. We are called to imitate this tenderhearted truth teller. What About You? Jesus displayed the entire range of alignment to the need of the moment, whether he was angry and thunderous at the corruption of the world, or tender and caring at the death of a friend. Do you natu- rally tend toward confrontation and challenge? If so, imitate him so that you do that well, yet wrap the truth in gentleness when the situation demands it. Are you gentle and caring? If you are, imitate him so you can be at your best when comfort is needed and so you can challenge sin and confront lies when that is needed. References Burns, D. (2008). Feeling good together: The secret to making troubled rela- tionships work. New York, NY: Crown Publishing. Egan, G. (2010). The skilled helper: A problem-management and opportunity- development approach to helping. (9th ed.). Belmont, CA: Books/Cole. Hughes, M., Patterson, B. L., & Terrell, J. B. (2005). Emotional intelligence in action: Training and coaching activities for leaders and managers. San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer. Hutchins, D. E. (1982). Ranking major counseling strategies with the TFA/ Matrix system. Personnel & Guidance Journal, 60(7), 427. Kottler, K. B., & Brown, R. W. (1992). Introduction to therapeutic counsel- ing. Belmont, CA: Books/Cole. Lazarus, A. A. (1981). The practice of multimodal therapy: Systematic, compre- hensive and effective psychotherapy. New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. Lazarus, A. A. (2008). Multimodal therapy. In R. Corsini, & D. Wedding (Eds.), Current psychotherapies (8th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole. Lazarus, A. A. (2011). Multimodal therapy. In T. Clinton & R. Hawkins (Eds.), The popular encyclopedia of Christian counseling. Eugene, OR: Harvest House. Moustakas, C. E. (1997). Phenomenological research methods. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications. Sexton, T. L., & Whiston, S. C. (1994). The status of the counseling rela- tionship: An empirical review, theoretical implications, and research directions. The Counseling Psychologist, 22(1), 6–78. Tryon, G. S. (2002). Counseling based on process research: Applying what we know. Needham Heights, MA: Allyn and Bacon.

Chapter 8 Analysis and Assessment We have offered a definition for Christian counseling that places the emphasis on a collaborative undertaking involving a caregiver and care seeker working together to establish possession of modalities contributing to the shaping of the soul. The goal in soul possession is the achievement of higher levels of emotional, psychological, and spiritual health for the care seeker. What distinguishes the new Christian coun- selor from his peers in the secular arena is that the process envisioned is carried out under the authority of the Word of God, empowered and enabled by the Holy Spirit of God within a community of accountabil- ity and encouragement we call the church, with the overarching purpose of forward movement in the imitation of the Christ. While guiding the exploration of the modalities outlined in chapter 3 (“Anthropology and Identity”), the new Christian counselor places high value on client self-determination, collaboration, right to informed con- sent regarding the values and theoretical orientation of the counselor, and assurance of confidentiality. These are a few of the rights of clients that are essential elements in our approach to Christian counseling. Collabora- tion between counselor and client is a critical necessity for the defining and cementing of a counseling relationship. The absence of a commitment to collaboration is not only a violation of the ethics of our profession but also the negation of all that should be most valued in the counseling relation- ship. The attempt to push the care seeker into a commitment to a course of action he does not perceive to be freely chosen will never contribute to the long-term attainment of shalom for the care seeker. Only when the value of an action is believed to be helpful for the attainment of a goal freely owned by the client is it reasonable to assume that it will have a chance of mak- ing a contribution to change owned as a value added by the client. Beyond the issue of ethics, clients simply will not continue to implement plans for change unless they are fully owned and unless they have an investment in the collaborative creation of the desired outcome. Collaboration is closely tied to client self-determination. Only when the client is free to truly col- laborate in the counseling process is the client free to determine the course of action most highly valued by himself. Counselors must be up-front with their values and their commitments to particular theoretical orientations. Informed consent instruments should be signed by the client before the beginning of the counseling process so that any potential value conflicts can be dealt with. When appropriate, these conflicts may require a referral. Clinical Analysis The new Christian counselor appreciates the significance of the term analysis for the process we call counseling. Counseling is not simply a didactic process in which a healthier person tells a fellow struggler how to perform in a manner that will make him healthier. Counseling is an interactive, collaborative process in which a caregiver and a care seeker establish a relationship focused on exploration and resolution of issues of importance in the life of the care seeker. These are generally issues that have in some way compromised his perceived ability to manage in a sat- isfying manner elements of the personal self or the self in relationships. The caregiver is expected to be in possession of a skill set that will enable him to create an environment in which the client feels safe sharing his issues. The counselor is a nonintimidating listener who is skilled in drawing the story from the client. We will delineate some of the elements that contribute to that skill set shortly. Additionally, the new Christian counselor functions at his best when he has a plan for organizing the elements of the client’s story in a manner that will allow for an efficient analysis of the critical dimensions of the problem. This efficient analysis will also contribute to the counselor’s ability to tease out the relationship between the various modalities contributing to the distress being expe- rienced by the care seeker. Additionally, the analysis will contribute to the counselor’s ability to specify the modal preferences of the client for addressing the dis-ease and suggest a “firing order” for bringing on line the remaining modalities to achieve an optimal working environment filled with the greatest potential for a successful outcome. This approach to analysis and assessment is critical for the development of a strategy for change that will be owned by the client and will allow the counselor to achieve the level of efficiency and effectiveness that is of great importance in short-term therapy. We believe that a planful approach to analysis and assessment, such as the one we suggest in this chapter, when combined with good listening and collaboration, does much to increase client con- fidence and trust in the counseling relationship. Counselors must be skilled analysts. To analyze well is to be able to take apart the various threads of the story and arrange the parts in a way that produces a coherent story. The coherent story can then be arranged in a manner that places matters of importance into connection with each other in ways that may not be readily apparent to the client. The coun- selor performs this process as a guide by the side of the client rather than a sage on a stage. Sometimes the ability to see relationships between dissem- bled parts is the result of years of counseling experience, and sometimes it is the outcome of training and learning. At other times it is the product of the application of a wisdom that has been received as a gift from God. The counselor’s ability to work intraceptively, moving the client from a lack of clarity over the disconnected elements of the story to an understanding of the complex interplay of modalities shaping particular behaviors, does much to strengthen the client’s confidence and trust in the caregiver. This trust forms the nexus for the development of a strong working alliance that bodes well for moving to other elements that are central to the counseling process. These include such elements as hope for the development of a better future and commitment to accountabil- ity for fulfilling the commitments to a plan of action that is necessary for moving the client from the unsatisfactory present to a valued future. There are many words that take on special significance for the Chris- tian counselor during the initial phase of the counseling process. Words like listening, connecting, encouraging, empathizing, modeling, self- disclosing, aligning, teaching, and a host of others are important for coun- selors to value as they move through the initial encounter with the client. In this day of managed care, it is imperative that we never lose sight of the important meanings behind these terms. Counseling is first and fore- most always about a relationship. However, it is also about efficiency and effectiveness. The counselor needs a plan that moves from initial encoun- ter to accountability for ongoing implementation of changes valued by the client that actually hold significance for heightened effectiveness in the management of the personal self and the self in relationships. Over the decades we have trained literally thousands of counselors. As a generalization, most of them were scared to death when it came to sitting down with a real client and owning a measure of responsibility for the success or failure of the counseling encounter. We applaud that anxiety. What we came to realize was that the majority of the anxiety was attributable to the lack of a well-conceived plan for conducting the counseling process. Here we offer a plan for guiding the counseling pro- cess from beginning to end. Our plan is both original to us and not original to us. We are indebted to many for helping us to structure our concentric circles (illustration 2, p. 205) as well as our analysis grid, to which we now call your attention (illustration 3, p. 240). We remind you here that we have no desire to contribute to the development of a wooden approach to the counseling process. The template we have designed is an effective tool only when it is in the heart and mind of a person who appreciates the primacy of pres- ence and a heart that is open to and inclined in the direction of the story teller. However, to listen with no strategy for the collection of data mak- ing up the stories and analysis of the complex interplay of the modali- ties requiring attention is not, in our view, the best way to proceed. The development of an intervention plan can be a frightening experience for beginning counselors. Following a template like the one presented here can help to reduce anxiety, assure the collection of all the relevant infor- mation, and greatly enhance the potential for developing a plan of inter- vention that will hold greater attractiveness for the client. Like Arnold Lazarus, we believe it is highly beneficial when the coun- selor has come to a clear commitment to the articulation of the modali- ties that contribute to the defining and shaping of human personalities and behaviors. This articulation allows the counselor to construct a framework into which elements of the story can be placed and reflected upon. The reflection leads the counselor to heightened understanding regarding the origins of the client’s problem, the relationship or order- ing of the priority given to modalities by this particular client, and the ordering of priority in modalities that must trump any preferences the counselor may have that would not be given the same value by the client. he collaborative engagement of the client requires that the Christian counselor learn to accurately obtain and evaluate both the readily avail- able and less available elements in the client’s story. Lazarus’s BASIC ID, which forms the heart of his multimodal approach to counseling, is of great value for the beginning as well as the experienced counselor. As you examine our development of anthropol- ogy in chapter 3, you see that like Lazarus, we believe that it is of criti- cal importance that we spell out our assumptions with regard to what defines and contributes to the shaping of persons and other behaviors. Our model differs at some crucial points from that of Lazarus because we believe in the primacy of Scripture for defining these modalities. In chap- ter 3, we specified these modalities and developed the importance of each modality for defining and shaping the human personality. We attempted to explain the power of each of the modalities for the creation of strengths and weaknesses in the lives of persons. Understanding that clients place differing values on these modalities for ordering their personal behav- iors is of critical importance for the new Christian counselor. Absent that understanding and assessment, the counselor’s strategies for producing change with this particular client at this particular time in this particular context are not likely to be accepted and embraced by the client. Let’s turn now to the template in illustration 3 (p. 240). We have set up a column on the left side of the template that lays out vertically each of the modalities that we believe contributes to the defining and shaping of the soul. Jesus has commanded us to take possession of these modal- ities. Jesus was speaking with a high degree of psychological and spiri- tual sophistication as he spoke these words to his disciples. The context reveals that his disciples are to experience a great deal of oppression after his departure. In the midst of that suffering, they are to take responsi- bility for cultivating a relationship with patience that will allow them to manage their thoughts, emotions, wills, sin, bodies, and relationships at a level that is frankly extraordinary. his self-management, I believe, is in the service of heightening their ability to fulfill the first and greatest commandment in the New Testa- ment, which is that humans are to love the Lord our God with all our minds, souls, hearts, and strength and our neighbor as ourselves. For those under the authority of the Word of God, therein lies the overarching goal for all counseling. Men and women whose value and dignity reside in the reality that they have been created in the image of the divine Creator and Lord of the universe are to pursue a commonly defined purpose in their lives. They live to love God, love others, and love themselves. In that order. The left column of our analysis template (illustration 3, p. 240) con- tains the elements and modalities that must be taken possession of in the attempt to fulfill the directive issued by Jesus for the overarching purpose of achieving the love of God, neighbor, and the self. The counselor dis- covers in each of these modalities content that both serves and detracts from the individual client’s ability to live out that love and freedom that Jesus envisions for the image bearer. The new Christian counselor listens to the client narrative with an ear attuned to hearing how the elements in the story fit into each of the modalities we have specified. The coun- selor segments the unfolding story with its positives and negatives, plac- ing the various elements of the story into the appropriate modality. The counselor works diligently to organize the client’s perception of his/her present story into a cohesive narrative, linking past experiences to the present challenges the client is facing where that is helpful. While listening to the client’s story, the counselor seeks to ascertain and align with the client’s modal preferences for engagement. The coun- selor utilizes the structure provided by the vertical listing of the modali- ties in the “Alignment” column to record elements revealed in the client’s story that contribute to understanding the challenges the client is fac- ing. These notes can be placed in the appropriate P1 boxes. Attention to the ordering of the elements of the client story, assigning importance to them, and noting relationships between them is the important first step in the collaborative engagement of the client for the construction of P2. In this phase, the counselor and care seeker collaborate to envision a preferred future. This includes preferred ways of thinking, feeling, act- ing, and so on. When P2 has been constructed, the counselor will work with the client on the development of a plan of action (P3) that possesses potential for the building of the better and preferred future. This better future is more open to the love of God, neighbor, and the self. Paul sees the pursuit of this goal as the pursuit of the imitation of the Christ, who was the only person who ever loved God, neighbor, and the self in per- fect balance (Eph. 5:1). These are the modalities in the vertical column with a brief explanation of each: • Spiritualcore,containingthehumanspirit,theimageofGod, and the Holy Spirit in the regenerated soul • Thinkinginmultipledimensions,suchasimagination,metacog- nitions, conscience as ally or enemy, and conscious thought • Decisioning—humanwillinitsfreedomtoactorinbondage to something restricting the client’s freedom to choose positive action • Feelingsasindicatorsandmotivatorsforhealthorun-health • Sinasallyincontructingbehaviorsdamagingtheselfand relationships • Body—appetitesresidinginthebodymanagedwelloroutof control • Temporalsystems—relationalpatternsinlifecontributingtoor detracting from overall physical, social, or spiritual health • Supernaturalsystems—relationshipwithGodandsupernatu- ral evil contributing to or detracting from overall well-being Clarity on the role and importance of each of the above modalities is vital for the new Christian counselor. The need for this clarity drives us to study all available literature (regardless of its source) that speaks to the processes connected to the human soul. The ability to work effectively in each modality and move from modality to modality, mindful of fir- ing order and the relative strength of each modality for contributing to an action plan leading to heightened levels of well-being, is a matter of great importance to the new Christian counselor. We have carefully specified all modalities contributing to the defin- ing and shaping of the soul because what is not specified is in danger of getting little or no consideration in the counseling process. I call this the danger of the parenthesis. Once you have specified matters of impor- tance in your chosen theory, you tend to ignore other “unimportant” modalities. For instance, let’s say that our model is Hutchins’s TFA/ Matrix system. We examine carefully thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. However, body, social systems, or spirituality may or may not get much attention since they are not specified in our model. Lazarus is committed to the evaluation of many of the components in the model we advance, but he does not focus on spirituality or sin. They are not critical in his theoretical orientation, and he is fiercely non-eclectic when it comes to the construction of his theory. We insist that if a modality is not explicit in our model, we cannot simply say that it is implicit. Hence we have attempted the development of a model that makes explicit all modali- ties that are critical for the love of God, neighbor, and the self. We believe only then will these elements, which from a biblical frame of reference contribute significantly to the defining and shaping of the soul, receive the attention they deserve. These modalities are set in the larger template, which is designed for collection of data in a manner similar to the one established by Gerard Egan in his problem-management model. Efficiency in the Management of the Counseling Process Gerard Egan (2013) has long described counseling as a process sim- ilar to drama, to literature, and to storytelling. All of these are inher- ently three-stage sequential processes with a beginning, a middle, and an end. We advocate a model expanding and adapting his three stages with a specification of the modalities we believe require strategic assess- ment and expanding to a fourth scenario of community for encourage- ment and accountability. Egan’s adapted stages with the addition of our fourth stage looks like this: • Phase1—analysisandassessmentofrealitiescontributingto the present story across specified modalities contributing to the defining and shaping of the soul • Phase2—shapingpreferences/collaborativelydevelopinga better story anchored in truth and in the service of higher lev- els of psychological and spiritual health • Phase3—collaborativelystructuringbest-fitactionplans directed at the production of higher levels of psychological and spiritual health • Phase4—securingcommitmenttoacommunityofaccount- ability that will be encouraging, affirming, and confrontive for the reinforcement of habituation and dehabituation action plans leading to higher levels of psychological and spiritual health Phase 1 (P1): Analysis and Assessment of Realities Contrib- uting to the Present Story We believe the approach presented by Egan advances when we spec- ify the modalities that we proposed in chapter 2, add a fourth scenario, and embed the counseling analysis in the seven A’s (anthropological assumptions, atmosphere, authority, adaptaion, alignment, action, and accountability). Like Lazarus, we believe that stating our assumptions regarding the modalities critical to personal and relational health can only serve to bring greater clarity, effectiveness, and efficiency to the counseling process. We also believe that what is not stated as an explicit assumption may well be ignored in the counseling process. Hence we have given a prominent place in our enumeration of the modalities to such elements as spirituality, supernatural systems, and sin. These modal- ities are often ignored in contemporary counseling theories even though issues of faith figure largely in the present and past stories of religious cli- ents from all traditions. We envision that in phase 1 (P1—exploring the present story of the client), the counselor will use the grid provided in illustration 3 to guide the taking of notes as the client tells his story. The notes will focus pri- marily on what the client is saying regarding the present status of the cli- ent’s spiritual life, cognitive life, decisional life, emotional life, somatic life, experience with sin, and relational life in both the temporal and supernatural spheres (the modalities specified in illustration 3 in the column at the left and in illustration 2, p. 205). The counselor must remind herself that as she moves through the four phases, she must also pay attention to the client’s affect and nonverbal communication. While supporting affect and building the working alliance, the counselor is lis- tening analytically, gathering information on the client’s modal behav- iors, adapting to the preferred modalities of the client, carefully crafting her responses in support of strengthening the therapeutic alliance, chan- neling grace through verbal and nonverbal communication, testing the client’s narrative against the standard of truth and rationality, and assessing best-fit strategies for bringing on line collaboratively agreed- on action plans. All of these counselor activities are in play to ultimately discern changes desired by both the client and the counselor. Looking beyond the commitment to action, the counselor is able to connect the client with a community of persons for purposes of accountability and encouragement. Our goal in the P1 stage is to create an environment in which the cli- ent feels safe to story his past and present, his struggles, and his dreams and aspirations for a better future. We have discussed at length the con- ditions that facilitate client self-exploration in chapter 7 (“Atmosphere and Alignment”). Using the analysis grid, we can gather the elements in the story that are relevant for painting a picture of the client’s percep- tion of himself, his relationships, his God, and his world. As the client’s story unfolds, we can use the modalities to trace the important elements in the story and determine their firing order as well as the best modality to utilize in bridging to the client for the establishing of connection and building of a therapeutic alliance. Before we move deeper into an exploration of P2, P3, and P4 in our suggested grid for analysis, we want to consider in greater detail the topic of assessment, its contribution to the counseling process, and some strat- egies for carrying out good assessment as a component of the counsel- ing process. Clinical Assessment Counseling, like medicine, begins with accurate assessment. Assess- ment that is part of a refined sense of clinical judgment is invaluable because you can’t treat what you don’t see, and can’t treat properly what you don’t see accurately. Furthermore, the work done to create a thera- peutic alliance between counselor and client—to align with the client so he/she believes that you understand them and are for them—is not an end in itself. Like a good doctor-patient relationship in medicine, the purpose of a good assessment strategy is to... • facilitateanaccurateandcomprehensiveevaluationofthe problem(s) and the resources available in each modality to “cure” or manage it properly. • deviseaneffectivetreatmentplanthatisunderstood,owned, and doable by this client. The plan will build on client strengths, past successes, and collaboratively identified best- fit strategies for moving the client forward in the accomplish- ment of valued goals. • assisttheclientwiththeidentificationandengagementofa community of persons where accountability and encourage- ment may be united to assist the client with the maintenance of newly acquired behaviors. More to the point, clinical assessment is done in order to accomplish these six things in counseling: • identify and understand the client’s complaints and problem issues • gather data on and understand the client’s world and way of seeing things • learn about family history, developmental events, and rela- tionship issues • identify client strengths and weaknesses across the bio-psycho- social-spiritual spectrum • begin the process that leads to goal definition and treatment planning • determine what social systems are present to support the cli- ent in the accomplishment of his desired change Subjective and Objective Assessment On a broad scale, clinical assessment is divided into objective and subjective forms. Subjective assessment is the process of making evalua- tive inferences—educated hunches based on experience. This subjective assessment is based on interview and observational data about the cli- ent gathered in P1 and P2. The new Christian counselor appreciates that someone else is at work with her, guiding the birthing of these subjective hunches. Training is very important, but the Holy Spirit is an empower- ing presence in the Christian counselor’s view of the counseling encounter. The Holy Spirit provides insight and ability beyond the natural to discern the right time and procedure for moving forward (Eccl. 7:12). The words that a counselor uses and the timing for the use of those words can be directed by the Holy Spirit through the gift of wisdom that comes from God alone. The issues of timing and strategies to be employed, which are so central to the counseling process, can also be sharpened and executed to greater client benefit under the direction of the Holy Spirit. The new Christian counselor sees the counseling process through a triadic prism. God in the person of the Holy Spirit is present to provide wisdom and direction to all who are humble enough to recognize the need for such an anointing. The Holy Spirit is present to provide and cre- ate in counselor and client alike the patience and power required for the collaborative creation of a plan of action owned by the client and filled with the potential for meaningful change. Objective assessment is a more formal process that usually involves standardized tests. All counselors use subjective methods of assess- ments—especially direct interviewing procedures—but not all use more objective and standardized tests and measures. The competent clinician usually has a variety of assessment tools and uses many of them with each client to get a more complete and individually unique portrait of the cli- ent. This specificity can serve to strengthen subjective hunches and pro- vide meaningful data and means for interpreting various patterns of soul behavior that are healthy or unhealthy for the client. Objective assess- ment can strengthen the counselor’s confidence when offering explana- tions of client strengths and weaknesses. Test results must be accepted with caution. We must balance their power to reveal with the knowledge that tests do not always reveal a complete or consistently accurate picture of a person. The AACC Christian Counseling Code of Ethics (2014) states this regarding assessment and testing: ES3-200: Testing, Assessment, and Clinical Evaluation 3-210: General Parameters Christian counselors conduct clinical evaluations only in the context of professional relations, in the best interests of clients, and with the proper training and supervision. Christian counselors avoid: (1) incom- petent and inaccurate evaluations; (2) clinically unnecessary and exces- sively expensive testing; and (3) unauthorized practice of testing and evaluation that is the province of another clinical or counseling disci- pline. Referral and consultation are used when evaluation is desired or necessary beyond the competence and/or role of the counselor. 3-210-a: Use of Appropriate Assessments Christian counselors use tests and assessment techniques that are appropriate to the needs, resources, capabilities, and understanding of the client. They...apply tests skillfully, administer tests properly and safely and substantiate findings with knowledge of the reliability, valid- ity, outcome results, and limits of the tests used. They avoid both the misuse of testing procedures and the creation of confusion or misun- derstanding by clients about testing purposes, procedures, and findings. 3-210-b: Reporting and Interpreting Assessment Results Christian counselors report testing results in a fair, understandable, and objective manner. Counselors avoid undue testing bias and honor the limits of test results, ensuring verifiable means to substantiate con- clusions and recommendations. They recognize the limits of test inter- pretation, and avoid exaggeration and absolute statements about the certainty of client diagnoses, behavior predictions, clinical judgments, and recommendations. Due regard is given to the unique history, val- ues, family dynamics, sociocultural influences, economic realities, and spiritual maturity of the client. Counselors also state any and all res- ervations about the validity of test results and present reports and rec- ommendations in tentative language and with alternative possibilities. Testing abuse. Maybe you or someone you know has been a victim of testing abuse. You have seen someone discriminated against because of their IQ score or a personality profile. Christian counselors should never confuse the person in front of them with their test score. Tests can reveal important clues about personality, giftings, and preferred rela- tional styles, but they can never fully reveal an accurate composite of the entire person. So watch out for... labeling others assuming the absolute accuracy of any test racial, ethnic, and gender bias the “tunneling” effect of testing violations of client privacy (Clinton & Ohlschlager, 2002, p. 313) Some Types of Assessment Clinical interview. The baseline assessment tool used by nearly all counselors with all clients is the clinical interview. Whether done in a for- mal office setting or over a cup of coffee, the interview is “a conversation with a purpose” (Shaeffer, 1991). Clinical interviewing involves asking a logical train of systematic questions designed to elicit as much infor- mation about the client as possible. Our proposed guide for analysis can help counselors structure the clinical interview in P1 by moving through a series of questions designed to address each of the modalities that con- tribute to the client’s present story. We believe attending to the modali- ties specified in P1 will prove highly valuable for a systematic structuring of these questions and for moving through the hearing of the story with a sharpened ability to garner the information vital to understanding the story. Observing what modalities the client has utilized most frequently in the telling of the story, and what his professional firing order is, the counselor is better prepared to collaborate with the client on the creation of a preferred healing path and a plan of action to achieve success. Client observation. This is an ongoing clinical process whereby the counselor observes and assesses client behavior in context. Most often this is in context of the client’s own storytelling behavior—both verbal and nonverbal cues—but it is also observing the client interpersonally. Sometimes what a counselor sees in context is quite different from what the client describes in session about that context. Secondhand reports. These are useful corollaries to client observation. They are the reports about the client given by those closest to the client— family, friends, employers, and colleagues. These reports can provide valuable insights about the client’s behavior and confirm or disconfirm client reports. Self-assessment. This is done by teaching your client to journal, write autobiographies and self-coding reports, fill out self-report question- naires, and create narrative reports. The key difference between self- assessed descriptions and client reports gained by interview is that in self-assessment the client is trained to write down events and self- evaluations soon after they take place. The client is trained to maintain a log of their life experience around problem events or people in a way that produces insights and resources for change that aren’t often recalled in an interview. Self-monitoring is a critical part of this type of assessment. Acted-out and expressive tools. Some clients are so angry, so withdrawn, so regressed and afraid, or so young and nonverbal that you will not get good data using verbal and sit-down assessments. The best way to con- nect with these clients is to have them draw pictures, paint with hand and brush, play in a sand tray, use the house-tree-person assessment, play with toys, run through a ropes and obstacle course, or use a variety of other active modes of expression. These assessment methods are often preferred courses of interaction with many children and adolescents, with highly regressed and fearful trauma victims, and with certain psychotic patients. Checklists and questionnaires. These are nonstandardized question- and-answer tools that can give quick and often useful information about a client in a particular area. Genograms. These are family-systems assessment tools that indicate the interactive web of family relations and indicate the strengths and weaknesses of those interactions and the person being studied. Multimodal inventories. These are global assessment inventories that reflect a comprehensive and technical eclecticism, such as the BASIC ID meta-model that Arnold Lazarus developed for multimodal therapy. Standardized psychological tests. These are considered the cream of assessment tools because they have been refined to measure behavior, aptitude, ability, or personality with a high degree of objectivity and con- sistency (Anastasi & Urbina, 1997). Objective assessment inventories are valuable in that they provide windows into the soul of the client. No one instrument should be viewed as the window. When used collectively, the various objective and sub- jective assessment strategies we have listed above can provide valuable insight into the strengths and weaknesses that the client brings to life and the counseling process. Armed with these insights, the counselor is better able to generate strategies for change building on the strengths of the client. Phase 2 (P2): The Preferred Scenario In P2, the counselor moves with the client from the present, with its trouble and its pain, to a prepared future, where pain and trouble are less- ened (but used to motivate the client to action in P3). During the pre- ferred scenario, the counselor works with the client to develop preferred ways of experiencing life and relationships. In P2,the counselor begins an assessment of the client’s motivation to do the work necessary for the construction of a better future. Tools for Determining with the Client a Preferred or Better Future These are two strategies that have been used successfully to assist cli- ents with the development of a better path or preferred future: The miracle question, or dream walking. Forms of the miracle ques- tion are as follows: • Ifyoucouldsnapyourfingersandchangeyourworldinto the ideal you would love to live in, what would that world look like? • Ifyouhadagenieinabottlewhowouldgrantyouonewish, what would you ask for? • Doyoudaydreamoflifeinadifferentworld?Ifyoudo,what is the content of those dreams? To ask clients to answer the miracle question is to push them imme- diately into defining what the preferred future or better path looks like for them. The content of their answers, their nonverbal communication, and your further guiding questions will help to clarify... • thedirectiontheclientwantstogo • howrealisticorhowfantasizedandimpossibleitistoachieve their dream • whethertheclientusessuchdreamingtoescapethesuffering of the present • whattheyhavedonerecentlyorinthepasttoachievesucha dream • howmuchhope(andhopelessness)theclienthasaboutcre- ating a better future • whattheclientmustdotostartpursuingtheirdream Flipping the language upside down. Translating problems into goals, at its simplest, involves flipping problem statements upside down and translating them into goal statements. Phase 3 (P3): The Action Plan Phase of the Analysis Grid The action phase of counseling begins when we have finished P2, agreed on some goals that must be met to achieve the envisioned bet- ter future, and collaborated on the specification of steps that must be taken to achieve the goals. In P3, the counseling process hones in on what specific goals the client wants to commit to achieving. Once the goals have been committed to, collaboration focuses on what strategies will most likely bring the client to the successful attainment of the goal. Discussions in P2 reveal what the client has done in the past to address their challenges, what didn’t work, and what worked partially. They may need to return to those past actions and reengage them with your help and support in developing a treatment plan or a plan of action. In chap- ter 9, “Action and Adaptation,” we will look more closely at the action phase of our analysis grid. In P2 and P3, our job is to help clients cre- ate a preferred future, generate specific goals, and segment the goals to create a plan of action with manageable steps—challenging enough to motivate directed action but simple enough so the client does not feel overwhelmed. Many clients know exactly where they want to go but have failed in their attempts to get there. The best counsel we can give to the clients is to help develop an attainable plan and focus on the build- ing of the resources for its accomplishment. Wisdom’s RevieW Counselors frequently encounter and embrace fundamental mis- understandings about the wisdom of God. True wisdom isn’t inside information about why events happened or revelations from a crystal ball about what will happen. Authentic, biblical wisdom is the hum- ble acknowledgment that only God knows and that he cares deeply. J. I. Packer (1973, p. 97) concludes a chapter on God’s wisdom with these insights: The effect of his gift of wisdom is to make us more humble, more joyful, more godly, more quick-sighted as to his will, more resolute in the doing of it and less troubled (not less sen- sitive, but less bewildered) than we were at the dark and pain- ful things of which our life in this fallen world is full. The New Testament tells us that the fruit of wisdom is Christlikeness— peace, and humility, and love ( Jas 3:17)—and the root of it is faith in Christ (1 Cor 3:18; 1 Tim 3:15) as the manifested wis- dom of God (1 Cor 1:24,30). Thus, the kind of wisdom that God waits to give to those who ask him is a wisdom that will bind us to himself, a wis- dom that will find expression in a spirit of faith and a life of faithfulness. he goal and responsibility of Christian counselors is to pursue this kind of wisdom with all our hearts. It leads us where God wants us to go: to love him with all our hearts, souls, and strength, and to love oth- ers, including our clients, as ourselves. Responsible living before God is much more than following the dic- tates of a propositional formula or code of ethics. Ultimately, it is an invi- tation to a relationship. True, heartfelt obedience is the only reasonable response to the extravagant love of a living God. David wrote, “Blessed are those who keep his statutes and seek him with all their heart” (Ps. 119:2). The truly wise are not just oriented to keeping God’s law; they delight in him, and their delight spills over into the lives of those they touch. Jesus is full of love, truth, and beauty. Through his grace, we enjoy the generosity of God, his compassion and care for the smallest details of our lives, his humility, and his deep love, demonstrated by his willing sacrifice on the cross. People who are growing in God’s wisdom have a deep understand- ing of human evil—not only in others but also in their own hearts. For this reason, they value close friendships and godly counsel. With the sup- port and encouragement of trusted allies, wise counselors can say with the psalmist, “He will make your righteous reward shine like the dawn, your vindication like the noonday sun” (Ps. 37:6). As we grow in our faith, we bring our deepening wisdom to the assess- ment process with our clients. We have a balance of concerns for the inte- rior and exterior—issues of the heart and close relationships, the person’s thought life and behavior. As we impart wisdom to our clients, we can expect the same kind of responses Jesus experienced. Some clients will gladly accept God’s grace and truth, and their lives will be transformed. Some walk away in confusion. And some resist and even attack. Jesus knew what was in every heart (Jn. 2:25). 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