Discipline and a good Christian upbringing for children is difficult in this secular society.  Christian parents must work hard to preserve the faith and also raise good, moral, and respectful children.  Discipline is important

The article, “Christian parents, you’re not alone in discipling your kids” by Lyndsey Koh states,

“In America’s post-Christian society, it can be daunting to make sure your kids have a strong foundation of faith. Today’s Generation Z kids tend to be less religious and more relativistic than the generations before them.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Please also review our Christian Counseling Certification and see if it matches your academic and professional needs.

Suicide is a very stigmatizing act.  Fortunately, it is being more and more seen from a pastoral way than a condemning way.  While it can contain elements of the sin of despair, modern psychology is showing more than not, it is a mental issue revolving around a deep depression.  In essence, it is a sickness.

The article, “What does the Bible say about suicide?” by Jim Denison takes a closer and theological look at the sinful history and nature it can have but also its inherent relation to pathological state of mind.  In this, Christianity is less harsh on this “unforgivable” sin as maybe in the past.  This is not only good news for the deceased but also for the state of the mind of the family who endures this horrible cross.  The article states,

“More people die from suicide than from homicide in America. Suicide is the third leading cause of death for those aged fifteen to twenty-four and is most common among those aged sixty-five and older. Suicide rates among the elderly are highest for those who are divorced or widowed. In the last half-century, the suicide rate among adolescents and young adults has nearly tripled.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Hence a theological as well as a pastoral standard are needed when dealing with suicide and the family.  Grief Counseling, Crisis Counseling, as well as Christian Counseling are all important disciplines in helping those facing suicide or families who have been hurt by the act itself

Please also review our Christian Counseling Certification

Lent is a time of renewal and rebirth.  We enter into the desert with Christ for forty days and hope to re-emerge stronger and ready.   We die with Christ in hopes of resurrecting with him.

Part of this rebirth is fasting and prayer.  Prayer is the first step because it directs our fasting and begs for the graces to fulfill the tasks of Lent.   We commit acts of goodness and self sacrifice during Lent to strengthen our souls in our reshaping of our spiritual lives.

Fasting helps one to curb inclinations and passions.  Fasting that is self imposed has benefits in this but the greatest fasting is from above.  This is why the Church provides general fasting and days of abstinence.   The first day of Lent is a full day of fasting, while Friday, in the West, and Wednesday and Friday in the East are days of abstinence throughout the Lenten calendar.

It is critical when targeting vices in our spiritual life to utilize prayer and fasting as a way to overcome our human weaknesses.  Prayer and fasting strengthens the soul against the inclinations of the flesh and reinforces spiritual discipline.   Both personal and social fasting is key.  This is why we not only observe the Church’s Lenten rules, but also offer our own small sacrifices during Lent.

Ultimately our sacrifices are not just for the sole purpose of spiritual rebirth but also as an offering to Christ.  Christ gave us his life as an example of how to live the good life in a fallen world.  Lent helps us to show Christ our love and thankfulness in emulating and imitating his ways.  Through the grace of the Holy Spirit through prayer, we are able to fulfill our Lenten goals.  We must remember, our own works are fruitless before the Lord, unless done in His name and through His grace.

Please have a blessed Lent and find strength and growth in Christ through the Holy Spirit.  May this Lent also bring us not only closer to Christ, but also to our other Christian brothers and sisters through the variety of Lenten services.

Please also remember to review our Christian Counseling Certification to see if it matches your academic and professional goals.  The online program is best for counselors and clergy who wish to utilize Christ in their counseling.

Good article on sin.  Obviously we are all generally broken by sin, but just because we sin does not mean we are terrible people.  We sin, we fail, but that does not mean we are utterly disgusting to God.  We are simply existing as we were born, with the stain of Original Sin.  Through Christ, we are again made beautiful and we are able to find merit before God through Christ.  Hence, yes we will fall from time to time, but through Christ, we overcome all brokenness.  Please also review our Christian Counseling Certification

The article, I’m not ‘broken’, thanks – I’m just an ordinary sinner, by Mark Woods states,

“Every so often something catches your eye on social media and makes you think, ‘I wonder.’

Today it was the word ‘brokenness’. I’m not sure it was occurring more frequently than usual, but I Googled it. It’s almost always used in Christian circles, and always approvingly.”

To read the entire article, please click here

Semantically misusing broken can cause misunderstandings with our relation with God.  Please also review our Christian Counseling Certification

Good article on spiritual discernment. Pope Francis as a Jesuit has a unique Ignatian training on discernment that can help many understand their role and how to interpret things in their spiritual life. Please also review our Christian Counseling Certification

The article, Pope Francis teaches discernment for coping with spiritual battles, by Thomas Reese states,

“For Francis, the devil is not a mythical figure but real. “It is precisely the conviction that this malign power is present in our midst that enables us to understand how evil can at times have so much destructive force,” he writes. “We should not think of the devil as a myth, a representation, a symbol, a figure of speech or an idea. This mistake would lead us to let down our guard, to grow careless and end up more vulnerable.”

To read the entire article, please click here

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Christian Counseling Certification: The Ascension of Christ and How Christians Perceive it

For the longest time, Christians believed Christ would return soon.  After his departure, the perscutions of Rome waged on without mercy.  Christ did not come.  Then the fall of Rome and the barbarian invasions which led to the dark ages in the West befell Christendom, still Christ did not come.   Famous dates have come and gone, still Christ has not returned.  What does the Ascension mean to us as we await his return?  How should Christian Counseling address it when someone is always talking about the future instead of focusing on the present?

Does it mean we are to continually await doomsday prophesies of supposed “prophets” like in the recent year?  How many actually feared the date 2012 or felt our Lord would return?  Christ was quite clear that only the Father knows the day and hour.

When Christ gloriously ascended into heaven, body and soul, he left the pilgrim Church with leadership and on Pentacost, the Holy Spirit.  The last two-thousand years have not been about Christ rescuing us from the world but teaching us patience to exist in it.

The patriarchs of old waited eras for the Messiah to come, so shall many of us await his return.  Whether it is tomorrow or another thousand years, we as Christians know he will return, but in the meantime, we must live our faith and care for the issues that plague us today instead of window watching in a hope of his return that we may not see in this life time.

Ultimately let us take consolation in the Ascension, for Christ has given us a chance to mend his garden and expects us to show great returns–for the day the master returns to it, he will expect great things.  Will we have great things to show him?

If yoyu are interested in Christian Counseling Certification, then please review the program.  By taking the required courses, you can become eligible for the Christian Counseling Certification.

Christian Counseling Certification: What is a Petrine Relationship?

In Christian Counseling, do ever notice different types of Christians who possess different characteristics in their relationship with the Lord?  One relationship to view is Peter. When we look at Peter and our Lord, we see a definite relationship that was special beyond the other apostles.  It contained certain qualities of leadership, inspiration and a deep bond.  This unique relationship played itself out from the very first time Christ and Peter went aboard his fishing boat to Peter’s ultimate end and martyrdom in Rome.

Peter as a Leader

Peter is seen as the leader of the apostles.  Christ chose him among the first to follow him.  He also challenged Peter more than any other because he saw the seed of leadership in him.  On one occasion, Peter is the first to proclaim Christ Lord.  On other occasions, we see the faith of Peter explode as he jumped out of the boat to walk to our Lord on the water.   While the other apostles remain hesitant, Peter stood out and led.  Later in Peter’s life, Christ will tell Peter that he will be the rock of the church and to feed his sheep.

Peter as a Fallen Human

Yet with all this expectation, we still find in Peter a true person.  A human much like ourselves.  Peter is filled with love for God but is so imperfect on so many occasions.  Even when Peter walked upon the water to our Lord, he lost concentration of Christ and began to drown.  In other stories, we see Peter’s insistence to never deny our Lord and even in the garden, he raised his sword to defend his master, yet hours later, he denied his Lord three times.

Later after Christ’s resurrection, Christ asked Peter three times if he loved him.  Many contend that Peter was given a chance to renounce each of his previous denial through this.  While I believe this is true, it is also true that each time Christ asked Peter if he loved him, he asked for a certain type of love.  A type of love that is lost in the English translation from the Greek.  Christ three times kept asking Peter for the ultimate love of self denial and total giving.  Yet Peter’s response was always a lower type of love of intense emotion and friendship.  Yet, Christ still saw the potential in Peter and asked for a lesser love in his final declaration, but forewarned Peter that one day he would feed his sheep and die for him because of his intense love.

Even in Peter’s later days, among the intense persecution in Rome, legend has that as Peter fled the city he was met by the glorified Lord, who was returning to Rome.  Legend states that Christ warned Peter if he would not stay with his flock that Christ himself would die again with his people.  While legend, -or maybe not, it does point to Peter’s spiritual evolution of finally accepting his cross and showing his ultimate love for his master.

Peter the Final Product

So from this simple fisherman came the first leader of the Christian Church.  A simple Jewish man who would take the reigns from Christ and guide the church, through his leadership and inspired writings.  This final product was a soul that willingly died for Christ and found himself unjust to die as his master, hence insisting upside down crucifixion.  This amazing transformation was due to a consistent commitment to Christ despite any pitfalls or failures.  It relied on hope from the Holy Spirit to guide him and allow him to constantly return to Christ with even more fire than before.  Yes, Peter always had that fire, but it needed fed and refueled.

Do We Have A Petrine Relationship?

Most of us do have a  Petrine relationship with Christ. !  We have a fire for Christ.  We love him and say we will do anything–and probably mean it at the time of saying it!  But it is so difficult to carry through.  Our broken human nature, our fears and the temptations of the world sometimes push us away and we lose focus–much like Peter did when he stood before our Lord on the water.   However, unlike others who despaired, like Judas, Peter never gave up.  Even after denial, he wept bitterly and became a better man and Christian.   How many times do we see this same pattern in our own life?   While many of us would like to see ourselves like John, steadfast and devout, most of us are more like Peter.  We have a strong love for the Lord but sometimes fail.

I feel Christ has a special love for “Peter” types.  Maybe its because I feel I fit into this group as well!  Those who have a Petrine relationship with Christ are almost paralled to Christ the way a loving father is to his son.  The father sees the good intent of his child and the potential of his child to be the very best son no matter his current short comings.  Peter was this type.   And ultimately, the finished product of his soul was something we should all hope to emulate.

If you are interested in learning more about Christianity, or counseling, then please click Christian Counseling Certification

Mark Moran, MA

Christian Counseling Certification : Not Worthy That You Should Come Under My Roof

The faith of the centurion was the greatest faith that Christ had witnessed in all of Israel.  Upon meeting our Lord and begging for a cure of his servant, his faith  was illuminated by the mere words, “merely say the word”.   He did not require that our Lord should come to his home, nor grace his unworthiness by entering his lowly home, but his faith only required Our Lord’s word of healing.   His humility and faith earned him the cure he so desperately sought for his servant.
Christian Counselors should try to cultivate such faith in their spiritual children.  Our faith in God’s love for us should be so strong that it does not require visions, heavenly visits or spiritual favors.  The words of Our Lord should be enough, as they were for the centurion.

Liturgical Application of the Centurian’s Faith

In Catholicism and maybe some denominations of Protestantism, the centurion’s faith is memorialized before communion, when the faithful recite, “Lord I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof, but only say the word, and my soul shall be healed”.  This phrase reiterates one’s faith and humility before reception of the Eucharist.  It acknowledges one’s unworthiness but also one’s faith that Christ can spiritually and physically heal our weaknesses.
While all who are baptized are infused with the gift of faith, we still must cultivate it on this earth.  This supernatural virtue will cease to exist in the next life when our faith is realized, but in the meantime, we need to strengthen it with ferventacts of faith, as the centurion did.
If you are interested in Christian Counseling Courses, please review the program.  Our Christian Counseling Certification is granted to qualified professionals who complete the required course work.

Mark Moran, MA