Ministry of Counseling and Community Life part 2

In the film, “Phenomenon” my favorite scene is when George knows he is near death and  his friend Nate asks for some wisdom.   George says that everything we need is already in us.  “We just have to clear out the crud that it is buried under. Love is buried under fear, compassion under greed, and partnership under competitiveness”    I like to think of counseling as a means of clearing out the crud.

Occasionally people express curiosity about my work.  Of course, ethically I cannot divulge any information about my counselees, but I can talk about some of the issues and objectives they bring to the process.  (The specifics I mention are not those of members of this church.)  Having worked in psychiatric hospitals, I’ve had a lot of experience with treating depression, grief, and post-traumatic-stress-disorder.  So, the way the universe works, I keep getting people with these issues.  An attorney refers people who have been in terrible accidents or been assaulted.  I continue to be amazed at the resilience of the human spirit - even in clients who were raised in the most awful circumstances with delinquent and irresponsible parents.  They are committed to making a good life for themselves and giving something to the world.  One, having served in the Peace Corps, is now in a doctoral program in another state and calls me every so often for help with a decision.  Another gave up a bartending job and an alcohol habit and was top salesperson in the state for a large corporation last year.  All they needed was someone to count on and a little guidance from someone with expertise, experience and caring.  I have also become a therapist’s therapist.  These men and women work on their personal issues and also sometimes ask for supervision on some of their client’s issues.  (I am an approved supervisor for the licensing board.)  I’ve had the joy of bringing couples back together who were ready to call it quits, and twice I have been able to help a father get partial custody of his children, where his ex-wife was denying him any access to them at all.  A situation I felt good about, in view of the values of this church, was when the State of Texas asked me to investigate a man who was about to lose his teaching certification because of false accusations.  His ethnicity was not the norm for the neighborhood.  After interviewing a number of his colleagues, I was able to get justice for him.  Of course a lot of counseling is just being with people where they are, and never really knowing how much good is done.  I am currently working mostly with young people.

We offer a sliding scale so that people can have counseling, who couldn’t otherwise afford it.  It runs from $35 to $100 and I am seeing a couple of students for $10, so the counseling fund is much appreciated.  The percentage of clients from our congregation or their families has varied from about 25% to 50%. I prefer a caseload of 15 to 20 persons or families so that I have time to do research and other things that are often requested because of my position.  For example, I recently co-led a funeral of a friend from my former church – MDPC.  I helped students from HBU and Purdue with assignments.  I’m lending support and guidance to a trans-gendered woman who hopes to become a Commissioned Minister.  People come to me to get advice about adoption, because I’ve had a lot of experience with special-needs adoptive families.  Sometimes I think just being available should be in my job description.  The greatest thing about this job is the privilege of being trusted to be with people when they are most truly themselves.