Beyond the Clinical Hour (eBook)

How Counselors Can Partner with the Church to Address the Mental Health Crisis

James N. Sells, Amy Trout, Heather C. Sells (Autoren)

eBook Download: EPUB

2024 | 1. Auflage
264 Seiten
IVP Academic (Verlag)
978-1-5140-0105-9 (ISBN)

Infos

The global mental health crisis is growing faster than our existing mental health care system can address. To meet the scope of human need, we need new models of care. The good news is that there is an institution uniquely positioned with the resources and the heart to help: the church. Psychologists James Sells and Amy Trout and journalist Heather Sells know firsthand the urgency of the situation-but they have also witnessed creative partnerships between churches and mental health professionals springing up across the United States. In this book, they call clinicians, students, and educators to collaborate with churches and lay leaders to envision and then create innovative solutions in their own communities. Challenging the dominance of the traditional 'clinical hour' as a one-size-has-to-fit-all model, Sells, Trout, and Sells give concrete guidance on how mental health professionals can work with churches to provide consultation, train lay leaders, and develop and evaluate programs to expand a continuum of care. They also explore the skills, theological foundations, and research-based knowledge that both Christian counselors and church leaders need to integrate their spheres of expertise. Both a call to action and an encouraging roadmap, this book charts the way forward for combining the science of the mental health discipline with the service of Christian ministry. Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.

James N. Sells (Ph.D., University of Southern California) is professor of counseling and director of the Ph.D. program in counselor education and supervision at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia, where he has taught since 2005. He is also a licensed psychologist and coauthored Family Therapies with Mark Yarhouse.

Autor

Heather C. Sells (MA, University of Illinois-Springfield) is managing editor for CBN News. Amy Trout (PsyD, Wheaton College) is founder and director of a private practice, Cornerstone Consultants, and chief education officer at Counterpoise (a subsidiary of The Burrell Group). James N. Sells (PhD, University of Southern California) is Rosemary S. Hughes Professor of Christian Thought and Mental Health and codirector of the Charis Institute at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Textauszug

INTRODUCTION

A Sign Tells a Story

A SIMPLE SIGN CAN TELL A VERY BIG STORY. The marquee in front of a small church on a state highway in Anderson County, South Carolina, communicated just three words: “FAMILY COUNSEL AVAILABLE.”

It is common to see a marquee in front of churches of all kinds. These signs share the most essential information in just a few words, things such as “Jesus Saves!,” “Prayer Meeting: 6:00 Wednesday,” or “Softball game Friday at 7:15.” Signs are supposed to communicate the purpose, priorities, or proclivities of the church: “God loves you . . . Have a nice day!” But on that country road, at that church, the message shared was that families could get help there and that the type of help offered was something called “counsel.” Three words meant to connect with parents and spouses who suffered, letting them know that hope could be found here in this country church. Family. Counsel. Available.

That small sign in front of that small church located in that small rural area is a very big deal. The sign suggests that change is happening in how and where mental health is delivered. As professors walking close to both the mental health profession and the church, we see a momentum shift that has the potential to affect churches and people everywhere. This church and thousands of others are responding to the needs within their communities and congregations. People hurt. We can help.

We have written this book with a vision toward human care and what the mental health profession can become given the pervasive need and current trends in our world. Our primary audience is the Christian counselor, the mental health student, and the professors who train them. We also want to reach pastors and church lay leaders who seek to partner with those in the mental health field toward effective and affordable care.

Think Big

A paradigm shift occurs when the ways we have understood certain ideas, contexts, or experiences no longer explain the current realities we’re seeing.

There are many events, ideas, and creations that have sparked major shifts in human culture. Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech changed how society viewed racial restoration. Likewise, the Ten Commandments transformed Israel’s understanding of God. The gospel was the ultimate paradigm shift; Jesus declaring “A new commandment I give you” (Jn 13:34) changed everything. Paradigm shifts are not just words, however. They can be inventions like the cell phone or new ways to meet needs—like getting counseling at your church. We believe the mental health care paradigm must change to meet overwhelming demand, and we invite Christian counselors, educators and pastors to collaborate in that process. We will explain the demand, cast a vision for new collaboration between counselors and churches, and provide specific recommendations.

Part one makes the case that despite advancements in science and practice, we have not been successful in adequately reducing mental health needs. In fact, mental health demands continue to increase despite our effective medical and psychological interventions. This section offers an alternative path, utilizing the church, and describes how the path might be implemented.

Part two offers a new perspective on the relationship between the church and the clinic, emphasizing the importance of integration. We describe the historic tension between faith and mental health practice and suggest innovative solutions using the term “faith articulation.”

Part three provides recommendations for training future Christian mental health professionals in four essential areas: biblical scholarship and theology, supervision, consultation, and organizational development and evaluation. This section underscores the need for these skills to effectively bring mental health care into the church.

The purpose of this book can be succinctly encapsulated: as the existing mental health framework falls short of addressing humanity’s profound needs, it’s imperative for the church to join forces with Christian mental health experts to tackle the escalating crisis. This collaboration necessitates a transformative approach in the delivery of care, the training and understanding of Christian mental health professionals, and the church’s recognition of its divine mandate in ministry. Culminating its insights, the book exhorts readers to forge ahead with audacity, sagacity, innovation, and empathy to usher in a redefined paradigm of mental health care, amalgamating the strengths of both the church and the profession. The symbiosis between these institutions is paramount to counter the mounting challenges in our communities. The call to action is immediate, and this book stands as a beacon for visionaries eager to envision and actuate a more holistic path forward.

“I Want You to Come to This Bible Study”

Travis was falling through the cracks, and he knew it. For years, he had used what he describes as the positive traits of his schizoaffective disorder, along with a substance abuse addiction, to build a lucrative career in commercial real estate. Working 100- to 120-hour weeks was not unusual. “In a confused state, I could do anything,” he recalls. “I made a lot of money, and all I cared about was making money because I needed more money to fuel my addictions.”

It all caught up to him in the San Diego hotel room where his brother and sister found him. “I was in bad shape, and they got me to rehab. That stopped the downward spiral, but when I got back from rehab I still wasn’t really well.” Travis’s body had been detoxified from his physical dependence on the alcohol that had fueled him in part but his mind wasn’t well, and his life was chaotic.

For the next month, Travis didn’t leave the house—or his bed. Then his pastor Joe called and asked if a friend, Kyle, could reach out. Kyle called and asked to meet. When Travis reluctantly agreed and the two got together, Kyle shared that he had lost a profitable family business because of his addictions and challenged Travis. “I want you to come to this Bible study; it’s full of guys like you,” he said.

Travis refused but Kyle persisted. The night he finally attended, the study simply featured a Bible study video with a teaching on Philippians. Still, it got Travis thinking, and he watched the video repeatedly later at home.

“I started going to AA because you know what—step 2 is admitting that there’s a God who is able to help me with my addiction and I was able to do step 2 because I started to believe again.”

“I started going to the Sunday school class that my pastor taught, and everything started making sense to me. Slowly I started to actively pursue recovery,” he recalled.

Today, Travis credits his pastor, Kyle, and his church with helping him get out of his pit—and staying out. “I spent so many years trying to prove to myself that there was no God for the sole purpose of removing the guilt and shame associated with the things that I was doing,” he said. “So, I really needed to unlock that lie and exchange it for the truth, and once I did that it unlocked recovery for me.”

For Travis, a big key to staying healthy is his involvement running his church’s coffee bar and overseeing its kitchen for special events. He finds that remaining connected with the volunteers keeps him emotionally healthy. “Some days, that’s the action that makes me take action toward my own recovery. So, the church has been integral. They were there for me when I had nothing and needed everything and now they give me a place to help other people, which is a huge part of my recovery today.”

As mental health professionals, we believe that our unique training is essential in working with the complicated nuances of mental disease and relational disorder. And we believe that we must prepare the church, collaborate with it, consult, and be a resource as its frontline role of mental health ministry expands to address the need. To accomplish this, those who train Christian mental health professionals must expand beyond the current emphasis on clinical diagnosis and treatment. Educators must also prepare mental health students to be supervisors of lay counselors, consultants to pastors, and triage clinicians who can refer when necessary and attend to the direct and immediate need as individuals, couples, and families come to their door.

The ideas in this book may seem radical, as that is how paradigm shifts are supposed to feel. Not an unrealistic radicalism that would have no possibility of influencing change but an idea that serves as a response to a real and recognized need. Most in the mental health field know that the system is broken, meaning the needs continue to increase at very scary rates of growth, despite our efforts to educate, inform, and intervene. Our means of informing the public and our medicines are better, and there are more educated and licensed mental health professionals than ever before. Still, with all that we are doing to address the crisis, the problem grows worse.

In this book we highlight a small sample of the professionals who are already working with churches to address human suffering. They are among the hundreds of church/mental health partnerships emerging in communities around the country. These stories serve as models for others who feel called in the name of God and as ambassadors and stewards of his kingdom to...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 19.3.2024
• Reihe/Serie: Christian Association for Psychological Studies Books
• Reihe/Serie: Christian Association for Psychological Studies Books
• Vorwort: Ed Stetzer
• Zusatzinfo: 4 figures
• Verlagsort: Lisle
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Kirchengeschichte
• Themenwelt: Religion / Theologie ► Christentum ► Pastoraltheologie
• Themenwelt: Medizin / Pharmazie ► Medizinische Fachgebiete ► Psychiatrie / Psychotherapie
• Schlagworte: Caps • Christian Association for Psychological Studies • Christian counseling • christian counselor • Christianity and Psychology • Christian therapist • church mental health care • Counseling • Pastoral counseling • psychologist • Psychology • psychotherapy • therapy
• ISBN-10: 1-5140-0105-5 / 1514001055
• ISBN-13: 978-1-5140-0105-9 / 9781514001059