Pastoral Counseling Issues

Pastoral Counseling Issues: Physical and Mental Health

  • Introduction to pastoral counseling.

  • Overview of common issues needing pastoral support.

Breadth of Issues

  • Variety of issues encountered in pastoral counseling:

    • Physical and mental health.

    • Impediments to spiritual growth.

    • Support with life skills (stress management, burnout guidance).

    • Crisis care and trauma.

    • Relationships.

Physical and Mental Health: The Pastor's Role

  • Pastor's role is likened to a shepherd: tending, gathering, carrying, and leading.

  • The pastor does not diagnose or provide medical treatment.

Biblical Understanding of Sickness

  • Sickness and physical illness are a universal part of the human condition due to the fallen world.

  • Sickness is not necessarily related to a person's level of faith or misconduct.

Old Testament Perspective:

  • Sickness as a direct result of sin (Hosea, Micah).

  • Sickness as a generational curse.

New Covenant Perspective:

  • Healing through Christ's stripes (Isaiah).

  • Sickness not necessarily related to sin.

  • Role of the pastor: help individuals understand and reconcile their understanding of sickness.

  • Reconciling God as healer when not experiencing healing.

John 9: Healing of the Blind Man

  • Disciples' question: Was the man's blindness due to his or his parents' sins?

  • Jesus' response: Neither. It was so that the power of God could be seen in him.

  • The role of the pastor: Help explore potential reasons for suffering and find glory to God.
    *Job's example of blamelessness and integrity despite suffering.

Practical Steps for Pastoral Care

  1. Reconcile the difference between "God the healer" and not receiving healing.

  2. Ensure proper medical assistance:

    • Guiding individuals to seek proper medical care.

    • Balancing supernatural belief with natural action.

    • Avoiding liability by not discouraging medical help.

  3. Know how sickness affects the individual:

    • Considering the physical, emotional, psychological, and spiritual impact.

    • Taking a holistic approach.

    • Examples: assistance with transportation or food support.

  4. Prayer:

    • Praying for supernatural change in the natural.

    • Lifting perspective and instilling hope via prayer.

  5. Follow-up:

    • Maintaining contact and support, especially during hospitalization.

    • Small acts: sending flowers, cards.

  6. Referral:

    • Knowing the pastor's role and boundaries.

    • Referring to doctors or counselors when needed.

    • Ensuring long-term health.

Mental Health in the Church

  • Importance of identifying and supporting mental health needs.

  • Continued growth of churches will lead to a greater proportion of members needing help.

Depression

  • Depression is referred to as the "common cold" of mental health due to its prevalence.

  • Statistics:

    • 1 in 4 Australians experience a significantly depressed mood at least once.

    • 50% experience a second relapse.

    • 90% of the 50% experience another relapse.
      Clinical depression is more than just feeling sad.

DSM-5 Criteria for Depression

  • Must experience depressed mood for most of the day and/or loss of previous pleasures.

  • Plus at least four of the following symptoms within a two-week period:

    • Disrupted sleep.

    • Disrupted appetite.

    • Fatigue.

    • Physical restlessness.

    • Feelings of worthlessness.

    • Suicidal ideation.

Behavioral Manifestations:

  • Withdrawal from activities and community.

  • Neglecting tasks and deadlines.

  • Obvious tiredness, excessive sleeping.

  • Poor personal hygiene.

  • Easily moved to tears.

*The listed must be experienced over a two-week period.

Grief vs. Depression

  • Distinguishing between normal grief and problematic grief/depression.

Indicators of higher depression risk in grief:

  • Intense and pervasive sense of guilt.

  • Thoughts of suicide, preoccupation with dying.

  • Feelings of hopelessness or worthlessness.

  • Seeing or hearing things that aren't there.

Practical Pastoral Support for Mental Health

Creating a Safe Space

  • Physical:

    • Selecting a time when the individual will be most attentive.

    • Choosing a quiet, private location where interruptions can be minimized.

  • Emotional:

    • Withholding judgments.

    • Biblical understanding of mental health.

    • Showing genuine concern.

    • Providing empathy.

    • Offering warmth.

    • Avoiding minimization of emotional concerns.

    • Allow them to initiate their opening up - dont’ force a conversation.

Adjusting Negative or Unbiblical Thinking

  • Addressing the "negative triad": negative thoughts about self, the world, and the future.

  • Instilling hope and a positive framing through scripture.

  • Encouraging them to see the truth of their potential.

Encouraging Referral and Professional Support

  • Recommending doctors or counselors.

  • Providing resources such as books, websites, and articles.

Building a Support Network and Managing the Environment

  • Guiding the individual to identify and rely on support structures outside of just the pastor.

  • Giving them power, giving them the sense of autonomy to be able to do what helps them.

Accountability to Action Plans

  • Checking in and encouraging adherence to recommendations (exercise, diet, etc.).

  • Considering the pastor to partake in the plan alongside to encourage and help.

Spiritual Support and Prayer

  • Praying for freedom from oppression and instilling hope.

  • Don't underestimate the power of prayer.

Anxiety

  • Anxiety becoming the emotion of our generation.

  • Distinguishing acceptable vs. problematic anxiety.

    • Elevated arousal (heart rate, pupil dilation, muscle tension, sweating).

  • Common Types of Anxiety:

    • Generalized anxiety disorder.

    • Social anxiety.

    • Panic disorder.

Symptoms of Anxiety

  • Physiological Response - Restlessness, hyperventilation, sweating.

  • It can be quite a stressful event - seek support.

Practical Pastoral Care for Anxiety

  • Similar approach to depression with slight changes:

    • Provide a safe space.

    • Withhold judgments.

    • Don't minimize emotional concerns.

Adjusting Unhelpful/Irrational Thinking

  • Addressing irrational thinking and the "what if" mentality.

  • Focusing on the present moment and rational responses.
    *Assessing triggers- what it causing such anxiety.

Encouraging Referral and Support

*Refer to professional such as counsellors or doctors, or even resources.

Accountability to Action Plans

*Encourage consistency and diligence to what we know is the right way forward.

Spiritual Support

  • Referring back to scripture (Philippians), prayer.

Resources on Anxiety

  • Collections of people, websites, and books.
    *Have all the above up you sleevesso that when you're assisting someone in state like this we actually know how to point them in the right direction and how to provide the best type of help.

Spiritual Growth

Pastoral support differs in this aspect.

Sin

Biblical Understanding of Sin

(Needs strong understanding to guide and counsel those from lifestyle change, and guidance in living without impact of sinful life.)

  • Universality: All have fallen short (Romans 3)(\text{Romans 3}).

    • Know that sin applies to everyone, and that therefore you dont come from state of judgement.
      *No Age, culture, gender - from the fall has every fallen short.
      If *we claim to have no sin, we are lying* - 1 John 1:8 - make sure dealt with own sin.

  • Default: Sin is our default because of the fall

    • It takes effort for Christian - not to surender life and give for the purpose of Agape Love
      Grace, Truth and Time - The true ingredients for growth, that god demostrates to us so beautifully.
      *Ingredients for growth - 1) Grace, 2) True, 3) Time.

  • Sin is more than what appears

    • The heart is deceitful. - help them is about changing behaviour but hart to.

  • Independence for God - Is the root of Sin: - Its actually surendering for and giving to Him (Lord & Savior.

Taking a STRONG Stance To Sin -

  • To Love the Sinner. But to Hate the Sin!!!!

Justifications for Sin

1) Doesn't Matter if i sin -Grace will cover that sin.

My Struggle with SINS been passed down to me.

Again, understand covenant and know the Jesus Price died! and that now stepped into, in taking chargethe life is living.

This SIN not as bad as THAT SIN.

Yes and no tricky Q:
-Forgivability

  • Impact - consequences are varying what you're doing.

As long as i live in this body - Bound to Sin!!

Again, New Creation - step into the authoriy and take over.

Guilt

Objective - Version of Guilt.
(legal Guil , broke laws.) - when dont feel guilty.

SUBJECTIVE guilt occurs,
(feeling of regret happening)
The appropriate comes into as
Guilt Vs Shame!!
Guilt - I did something bad.
SHAME - I AM bad !!!!

  • GOD Has Moved Us AS Far as the East is from West.

  • CONviCTED of our RIGHTOURSNESS: This Where we help people feel the guilt that is'nt , its about lumping it more onuseles, because what can lead to live accoridng the law (so that god will do it or somthing??!!

To alleviate those feelings - is through confession,.
-> FORWARDS 28:13 God, we can experience a release , the forgiveness… Confess To God!!! Bring to the Light, shining light is when trunly experinece our freedom, get the our kneees to confess.
-> Confess to Others, who been effected, to recorncile.

How you work to principle:
Encouarege as paster, to whither you have the the convrstaion, guide to that.

Justifications- I USE Guilt to KEEP me From Sinning !!

How to then apply a level of grace to understand that be convicted of our righoursness not fear.
So helping that what the Jesus price did on cross. Step of that - Taking charge and the living.

Repentance

Is REQUIRED to experience the fruit of Gods Forgiveness.

What's True Heart Change!!
Remorse VS Repentance::

KEY repentance PRODUCES Fruit!
How they changing the living and to leading the life of desctuion.

Forgiveness Is Essential!

  • To Recieve Forgiveness when we are all, Recieve forgivness when we are all, receivel the some judugment that we that aply them you!!!- recevied in 1 way !!!!!!
    Forgivness = Not For-git-ful-ness.
    If forgive person, open you self agin? Nope .
    Forviness is about the Past
    BUT, need behaviour, havent seen ropnenranee, you to implement bounradies!! to PROTECT!
    SO Forgivness for then past - with Bounteries we Protect the Future.!
    10/90: It's a process, to have along with them, its not what you do its some thing you get into.
    The Biiiiig Contenpion, is because what god has done… You can move Along !!!
    So many resource out there , we can help direct the the. Help them on that journey !!!! Help to give a light!
    But we Been Forgiven MUCH! SO therofre so do help a. ellow!.

Multi cultural differeince of emotions and of being pastioral guided.
(What we going here.
WHAT!!!

  1. The Guilt Innocence Culture.
    This is mostly the waster world, morality, doing righ keep inicent , Doing Wrong, makes on guilty!!
    what drive is that they the people look for retribuintion, consqnuec - You not you dont need, but what to say, for do wrong needs to know in his behaviour.

  2. Shame HonourCulture
    Coming in Easte cult, India South American, lot of Poly nation countires.!! The driven that not do but if I dom going give Shame but not juts to me byt my fmaily

  • Then theres a lot wont that to move and they go to Hiding , to what can dont , to move and what done, what come. Reinstaremtn someone of hgiher stause .
    So not, not the same now we that
    But is taken hight status
    el Jesus. Chris to that ! to to bbring it on
    Oh oh on !
    reinteation put the to is for is god the to hlep the, is
    Then there in the, now and
    3)Fear power cultures
    African Triable Nations -Sub aharran type countries , there no the inocent or the
    A lianc of the What happening in the super natural super natural, in this in these is moralty
    Please Super Natural Works!
    Again , is it in the, So If What It Is So Super Natrial!How Can That Can Happen. Combative language to war the supernatural. What working! through here, how to get fight oppressors force you right now.
    thru
    So, for support structures is in mentla, Physical, with Bbe more prayer!!!