Biblical Counseling Clearly Answers the Question, “So what Should I do?” for Challenges Related to Spiritual Health
I have several years of experience in providing counseling, but I also have experience as someone who has received counseling myself. I had a counselor, Crystal, who was really helpful to me throughout several difficult times in my life. I am definitely grateful to her and her support. The type of counseling that she provided was Christian counseling, but I wouldn’t describe it as being biblical counseling. I started counseling with the hopes of reducing my anxiety. I tend to get pretty anxious when I am faced with stressors. We focused a lot on my emotions related to situations and relationships. We also focused on trying to change my thoughts and behaviors and hopefully that having a good impact on my emotional health. She shared bible verses with me and reinforced my faith.
If there was anything that could have been different about my experience, I would have wanted the counseling to provide more education about the Bible and how to apply the Bible to my life. I loved when she would share scripture. I would have wanted more of that! When I am struggling, I find that someone speaking God’s truth to me helps me and has a profound positive impact on my emotions in that moment. I think that my goal of having less anxiety was not the most helpful goal. When we set goals that are focused on experiencing less or more of a certain emotion, it reinforces the idea that growing is about us and for us. A goal of glorifying God in my relationships is much different than the goal of experiencing less anxiety.
In my own opinion there is nothing really wrong about wanting to be less anxious, but a better goal would be one that focuses more on fulfilling my duties as a Christ-follower and as a wife, friend, and family member. I personally still struggle with experiencing higher levels of anxiety than some other people may experience. Some of this is due to sin, for sure. In some of these moments, I am not trusting God as much as I know I should. We are all imperfect and all sin. We all need Christ. I also believe that some of it can be physical, as we know that hormones and other bodily chemicals and functions can impact our brains and behavior. There are multiple reasons why we can experience ongoing anxiety or depression, but much of it can certainly be positively impacted by growing in our relationship with Jesus.
It is so important that we receive wise counsel from other believers. A wise biblical counselor/fellow believer will point us towards the Bible and towards Christ. This is what is missing from most counseling, even Christian counseling. Instead of teaching self-reliance, a biblical counselor points us towards Christ and reminds us that we are not sufficient to make changes in our lives on our own. In my own counseling experience, I would have benefited more from focusing less on what action steps I can take to improve my own experience and more on what the Bible says about how I can improve my relationships and how I can be a better wife, friend, and family member.
Christian counseling often combines faith-based counseling with secular counseling theories. It often still promotes a great degree of self-sufficiency and aims to help people get themselves out of certain negative emotional and behavioral patterns. On the other hand, biblical counseling teaches us how to apply God’s word to improve our lives and live out God’s will. When it comes to spiritual concerns, secular counseling usually doesn’t offer any direct and clear advice, whereas biblical counseling gives us the answer to the question, “So what should I do?”. In short, biblical counseling is the most ideal form of counseling for Christians who are struggling spiritually. It helps encourage spiritual growth and helps us understand what God wants for our lives.
