I agreed and will elaborate on your statement “If that individual has a particular
worldview that is not working for them or has been faltering, then they may be in
need of a Christian realignment, to set them back on track to reach their goals
(Hathaway et al., 2021, 13) As soon as someone changes their mindset and
approach to a cumbersome situation, they can start to build themselves back up
and heal. If people are struggling with an existing worldview, it may be up to the
psychologist to suggest that they embrace values in line with Christian ideology”.
Twelve-step facilitation (TSF) book’s goal is to help clinicians better engage and
support clients who have co-occurring or primary alcohol or drug problems
through use of 12-step programs to improve treatment results and recovery (Ries
et al., 2008). TSF is a valuable method readily available to practicing mental
health providers. The chapters are consolidated with a few unique adaptations for
therapeutic practice. As therapists there are instances where we must use faith-
based empiricism theories such as the Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) 12 Steps.
Alcoholics Anonymous was developed on the Oxford Group, after traditional
Christianity. The 12 steps include prayer and meditation, prayers mentioning God,
occasionally requiring members to read the Bible, and calling for prayer as part of
the service. Alcoholics Anonymous (2021) 12 Steps are:
1. I Can’t
2. God Can
3. Let God
4. Look Within
5. Admit Wrongs
6. Prepare For Change
7. Seek God’s Help
8. Become Willing
9. Make Amends
10. Daily Inventory
11. Pray and Meditate
12. Give It To God
In AA healing from alcohol addiction heavily relies on having complete confidence,
belief, and faith in God; it grows when we act and see the evidence of faith in
action all around us. The Bible speaks about Sin to include alcoholism which
drags us down, weighs on our hearts, and crushes our spirit. Through the Holy
Spirit, we trust in God's forgiveness through Jesus Christ the scripture that
confirms this is Psalm 34:18 “The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves
those who are crushed in spirit” (King James Bible, 2017). The Bible also speaks
of over-indulgence leading to drunkenness is sinful. Addiction forces a person to
surrender their thoughts, actions, relationships to their alcohol addiction. AA 12
Step number three 3. “Let God” calls for giving oneself to God which helps a
person complete AA’s third step.
I like how you ended it with the values being aligned and staying true to scripture.
You are right. I am someone who is very practical and it helps me when things
are really explained. I liked how you mentioned to remember when the Old
Testament was written. I am a devout Christian and the bible is my guide, but I
have learned a lot through science that is in alignment with the word of God. For
someone who is focusing on Trauma Psychology I feel that both the Christianity
view and scientific view is important to understand together as the bible doesn't
cover everything, but is the bigger picture.
I understand that not all science is rooted in God's word and as you said
psychology and Christianity's goal is to help improve a person and is align with
ones values. When I was seeking counseling, there were some advice from
counselors that was not in align with my values. I think it is important to be
rooted in that as you seek the truth in science.
Non-Christians can be skeptical on where Christians find their truth as Sproul's
book states that there are, “skeptics being cautious about drawing conclusions
from sense of perception because senses are so easily deceived, (Sproul, 2010, p.
54).
Christians can rely on the holy spirit, "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you
into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will
speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come (English Standard Version
Bible, 2001, John 16:13)."
References
English Standard Version Bible. (2001). ESV Online
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+16%3A13&version=ESV
Links to an external site.
Sproul, R. C. The Consequences of Ideas: Understanding the Concepts That Shaped Our
World. Crossway Books, 2020.
