So many times we make New Year Resolutions or goals for our life and before we know it we are right back to our old habits. It is often hard to make real and lasting change in our lives. So many times we keep trying harder but fail to get the results we set out to achieve. When we continuously seek to change areas of our life and nothing changes, it may be important to see that we cannot achieve our resolutions or goals for the new year on our own. Many times people would rather keep trying and suffering on their own rather than ask for help. A great question to ask is: Do I want to continue on this same path for the rest of my life or do I actually want change? If you do want change and have not been able to get there on your own, counseling is a great place to start. There may be an area of your life that needs to be healed or examined before change can take place. Once that obstacle is removed it may be easier to move forward. While the idea of asking for help may be scary, the benefits certainly make it worthwhile.
Amy Brooten, MA, LAPC Hello blog world, the reluctant blogger is back! Last time I wrote about God’s design for human sexuality. God’s design is not what most folks typically think about when sex is mentioned. Although our culture is sexually saturated, many folks have difficulty talking about sex. When I tell people that I am a Christian sex therapist, often the conversation is suddenly awkward. As a sex therapist, I have specific training to help people deal with the sexual part of their lives and relationships such as problems related to sexual desire, pain during or after sex, erectile difficulties, ejaculation problems, or difficulty reaching orgasm. I also help people recover from sexual abuse/trauma, sexual addiction, or with questions regarding their sexual attractions or sexual orientation. It is a privilege to walk along side people and help them heal and find redemption in the sexual part of their lives. It takes a lot of courage to seek help for sexual issues. God is able to restore the sexual part of our lives. Until next time, Phyllis.
It's something we all need, to know and be known. It’s not just knowing about someone but it’s knowing that person in an experiential way - to be close and personal. It’s to be loved, understood and accepted. It’s being mutually vulnerable and transparent. It’s often something we fear but when we have it, it brings great security and confidence.
Our daughter was recently married in Nashville, Tennessee and I had the great joy of marrying she and her husband. My wife and I and our family, our extended family and all our friends shared in the moment when Erin and Michael read their vows to one another and became husband wife. The vows they committed to each other that day were full of the passion they felt for each other. They spoke of what they already knew about each other and their desire to know and be known by the other person. They were speaking about their hopes of sharing a lifetime of experiencing intimacy together. Like Erin and Michael, in those first blissful moments of marriage, we need intimacy in our human relationships. But ultimately our lives are incomplete without intimacy with God; without knowing and being known intimately by our Creator. Intimacy with God brings freedom and strength. It brings us great comfort when we are hurting and feel alone. I believe Intimacy with God is at the very heart of what we need to function and live healthy lives. We understand intimacy with God as experiencing forgiveness and are made right or righteous by Him. That is only possible as we trust in His love and provision for our sin through the person and work of Christ. Col 2:13,14 "He (Jesus) has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness if sins." 2 Cor. 5:21 "God made Him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in Him we might become the righteousness if God." Through both the Person and work of Jesus our sin has been dealt with so that now we can be in a right and intimate relationship with God. This intimate relationship with Himself is a gift He offers us because He loves us and wants us to know Him and be close to Him. This intimacy is the foundation of all I am and have and in turn frees me to be intimate with others. Joe Bucha, MA, LPC jbucha@stonegatecounsel.com |