The Faithful Therapist

3/28/2024

One of the biggest blocks for spiritual people when attempting to find a therapist is, “what if this therapist doesn’t believe like I do?” This is such a valid concern! Especially when you know you’ll be sharing some of the most intimate details of your life with them. Whether you’re Catholic, Pentecostal, Unitarian, Buddhist, Pagan, Jewish, or New Age, I can guarantee that many of your everyday problems are just like everyone else’s issues; though they may be handled in congruence with your belief system. We all have massive life changes, we all have the capacity to experience anxiety, depression, relationship struggles, issues of confidence, addictive tendencies and we fail to see our blind spots.

Now, it’s important that you feel as close to completely comfortable with your therapist as possible. For example, an atheist might not want to go to a Christian Counselor. A devout Christian might not feel completely comfortable going to receive help from a metaphysician. Yet, a person of faith who knows their therapist is OPEN to spirituality is a win-win situation. Remember, we don’t pursue the therapeutic process to have our faith validated, to evangelize or to have church; although this may happen from time to time! We pursue the therapeutic process to seek out guidance, support, reflection and solutions. You may go to a doctor, a mechanic, a designer, an architect or a contractor that knows their craft better than most but, they may believe completely differently than you! Depending on the series of issues that are bringing you to therapy, you may desire to diligently seek out the therapist that will be open to working with you and your beliefs!

I have seen God move powerfully in my therapeutic process. I have seen God move in ways I would have never anticipated. I have seen men and women’s spirituality, faith and belief blossom, bloom and flourish. Do you know why? Because I carefully position myself to be open to seeing how God can slip through the crowded areas of my client’s lives without me getting hung up on verbiage, nuances and slight differences that have nothing to do with why we are truly sitting together. The Moravian code stated, “In the essentials unity, in the non-essentials liberty, and in all things love.” Remember, the best therapist will set everything aside, to see the gold in you and call out the very best in you. There once was a Man who did this with everyone He encountered.