Newsletter
March/April 2001
Margaret Bernhart, M.A., LMHC
Executive DirectorRMI Reaching Out to the City
A new year has brought a new look to our newsletter. We are hoping this new format will allow for more features you have requested and enhanced graphic images, while making the newsletter easier to read. We would love to hear from more of our readers on suggestions for the newsletter content and composition. You may e-mail me at rmi@reconciliationmin.org.
Over the holidays I encountered a formidable foe, in the guise of blood clots in four veins in my left leg. Though I enjoyed considerable bed rest and was waited on hand and foot, it was not the kind of rest one enjoys on a holiday. This experience had some extraordinary moments and some dark ones as well. Given the incredible opportunity to have surgery in Virginia to eradicate the clots coupled with significant surgical risk, made the successful outcome even sweeter. In the midst of this ordeal, many issues became clearer and priorities more focused. One of these that was illuminated for me was how I can more effectively use my time and finances to support the causes I deeply believe in.
Have you ever been around people who are constantly spewing anger over every conceivable issue? They bash the government for how their taxes are spent and the church for not doing its job. Though their observations may have some validity, you walk away feeling you know what they are against, but have no clue as to what they are for. It is much easier to be dogmatic than thoughtfully moving toward solving the problems we all grapple with. Dogmatism thrives on the illusion of a black and white reality and struggles to master control of life through a process of thought that is blind to seeing both sides of an issue. It's stiff and defensive, not open to reason, and engenders bigotry. We can be just as opinionated about theology and unwilling to read the biblical text as it is written, omitting the portions that contradict our position. The Bible, like life, cannot be reduced to a systematic formula, for God has instilled a measure of mystery in both to call forth humble dependency upon Him. He is a God who will not be put in a box..
We live in an unpredictable world and cannot escape the inevitable chaos and pain. It's mysterious and paradoxical that out of our pain is often birthed burdens, giftings and vocations. What if we took the energy behind our hatred of injustice--whether it's how our taxes are spent by the government or the fact that the number of homeless and hungry children are growing in the United States--and begin to make a difference by investing our time, talents and finances in causes close to our own hearts? We are one of the richest countries in the world. A family of four living on $16,000 is considered at poverty level, yet in other parts of the world, this income would be considered significant. I've begun to see a trend in myself and others which keeps waiting for our incomes to reach a certain level before we begin financially investing in causes that could make a difference. And yet, we have so much more than many in world today. I realize that it is difficult to find the extra money, if you are already tithing, and the government takes a fourth of your income. And even more so, if you are saving for your children's college tuition. Perhaps we could move out of our comfort zone and risk for others whether it is for future generations or present day. God has not distributed wealth equally and has given so that those who have can help meet the needs of those who have not.
The early church took care of their own and it was obvious. Rodney Stark observes in his book, The Rise of Christianity, "A little-known fact is that Christians in the ancient world had longer life expectancies than did their pagan neighbors. In fact, many pagans were attracted to the Christian faith because the church produced tangible (not only "spiritual") blessings for its adherents." One pagan observer, emperor Julian, noted that "the impious Galileans supported not only their poor, but ours as well." Practical expressions of care and kindness can open the door to the power of the Gospel. James, the brother of Jesus, instructs the Christians living outside Palestine, "Pure and lasting religion in the sight of God our Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles" (James 1:27). Jesus said, "When you refused to help the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were refusing to help me" (Matt. 25:45). If church members would extend themselves in caring for the 100,000 homeless children in the United States, instead of waiting for the government to do it, perhaps our churches would be overflowing as the world would see a difference.
Our dilemma as Christians in a postmodern world is that all spirituality is seen as equal. How do we show authentic Christianity to a hurting world? Recently, I was having a discussion with a friend about this very topic and he said, "for so long we have sent medical missionaries to third world countries to share the good news of the Gospel through spiritual and practical means and we have not focused on our own needs here in the States." Postmodernists today, like the pagans in the first century, are looking for people who live what they say. In the next newsletter you will be hearing about how RMI wants to make a difference in Tallahassee and some ways we are seeking to couple the good news with practical outreach.
Christian Education
Finding Someone to Trust
The Primary Goal of Christian Counseling Christianity Today talked with Dr. Larry Crabb--well known author and speaker--about Christian counseling.CT: What's the first thing you would suggest to Christians who want to become counselors?
CRABB: The first thing I'd suggest is that they ask themselves what they fundamentally believe about the root purpose of counseling. What are they trying to accomplish when they sit down with a client who is anorexic, in a bad marriage or whatever. What's their root thinking when trying to get a girl to start eating again or a marriage straightened out. All are worthy ambitions, but they must be secondary.
Our highest purpose as human beings isn't to try to make this life work. It's to reflect the character of God--of our Creator, Savior and Lord--in the middle of a life that doesn't work. About the first thing Cain did after God judged him and told him he was going to wander around the rest of his life was to build a city. The implication was--forget this wandering stuff, I'm going to build myself a city and make my life work. God says in Hebrews that he's ashamed to be called the God of a people who are looking for a better city than the one they'll ultimately have in heaven.
CT: Is it wrong for Christian counselors to ask God to take away the pain in their clients' lives?
CRABB: The Bible says our primary focus is to glorify God. If you have any compassion at all for your fellow man, of course you want to relieve the pain. But there's a danger that god will become someone to be used rather than Someone to worship. He becomes useful for putting your life together--the way you want it. The tricky thing is, there's nothing wrong with wanting your life put together. There's nothing wrong with wanting a good marriage, enjoying your kids and managing your money in a faithful way.
But contemporary Christians seem to have the assumption that the Bible reveals an orderliness to this world that you can tap into to make things happen the way you want. That's not true. There was order in the world God created--and then we sinned. We turned from the order God created to a chaos of our own making. There is chaos in the world now. And in the midst of the chaos, you have to look for Somebody to trust--not somebody to manage.
CT: So the primary goal of Christian counselors should be to point people to God Himself?
CRABB: Yes. Counseling is ultimately nothing more than one facet of sanctification--so counseling theory needs to be rooted in a biblical theology of sanctification. And the purpose of sanctification is not to get over your problems, but to reflect God in the middle of them.
CT: With the goal of learning to identify with people in their pain and redirect them to the Lord, what should a graduate student look for in a plan of study?
CRABB: A broad category comes to mind--one that deals with the "doctrine of man." What does it mean to bear the image of God? And what has gone wrong? There are essentially three positions to choose from. The first says that fundamentally people just need to be loved. That’s because we've all been raised in dysfunctional backgrounds, we're chained and the real problem behind all our current difficulties is a bad self-image. In this way of thinking, a counselor is all about affirming--and Jesus becomes just a richer opportunity for affirmation. I think this is disastrous. It leads to narcissism.
The other extreme is legalistic and fundamentalistic. This says that what's wrong with people is that they don't do the right things. It says just do what God tells you to do and you’ll be free of the things that hold you back It seems to me that in this scenario one of two things happens. Either you get successful and proud or you get defeated and discouraged. Neither of these options will land you on holy ground.
The middle ground is to recognize that sin is the root problem--not shame or wounds or hurt or damage. But sin is nor merely its behavioral manifestations. Rather it's something we find in the human personality which makes us long for temporal solutions more than we long for our Maker, the eternal God. So it is our passions that have gotten all mixed up. Oswald Chambers said it well. He said the root of all sin is the suspicion that God isn't good. That's my theology about what's wrong with people. We have lost confidence in God's goodness and as a result have tried to take over our own lives. We have a passion against God and a passion for control.
CT: What else would you look for in a candidate for a counseling program?
CRABB: Three things. Personal integrity--a commitment to pretend about nothing. I'm not going to pretend I'm more than I am. I'm not looking for bad things, I'm just open to what is true." Openness--tempered with wisdom. We aren't talking about indiscriminate openness, but some commitment to a community of fellow strugglers is crucial to becoming a good counselor. Verbal ability--the gift of being able to talk to others in a way they can hear. I would hold up these three qualities as yardsticks for myself before I went into the field.
CT: How strong is the burn-out factor in counseling?
CRABB: Not many people last as counselors full-time for a lifetime--a thirty-year career of thirty clients a week. Most diversify after some years. Stress is a significant hazard of the job. When you counsel the way the Lord would want us to, you are passionately involved with people--it's not just clinical thing. You are addressing issues in other people's souls that have not been addressed in your own. Life has to be thought of as one big story. When I'm talking to someone about his or her story, it is parallel to mine in a deep way. The result is that I'm forced to look at my own story all the time. It's not that I am a healer who fixes people--rather I'm a fellow struggler hoping to join others in the pursuit of God. When you are able to do this, you can grow and last in the people ministry of professional counseling.
Dr. Lawrence J. Crabb has been a licensed psychologist for 27 years. He is currently professor in graduate biblical counseling and Distinguished Scholar in Residence at Colorado Christian University. Larry has authored over fourteen books, including The Marriage Builder, Basic Principals of Biblical Counseling, Understanding People, and Connecting: A Radical New Vision.
Used with permission from Christianity Today, 1993
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