Counselling: Providing Biblical Hope and Practical Help Essay -- Bibli

1. Background Information & Gathering data Theresa is 50 years old and is in good health. She has been happily married for the last 20 years and lives with her husband Ron, who due to a disability no longer works. They have two school going daughters, whose ages are 14 & 12. Theresa grew up in a well to do family; she is regularly in touch with her 3 siblings, 2 brothers and a sister. Her family is important to her and she shares a close relationship with her husband. She did a Masters in accounting studies, is a qualified Chartered Accountant and has been very successful in her career. She and her family are Christians; they attend church regularly and Theresa has been an active member of the congregation for the last 15 years. The words which describe Theresa are active, ambitious, anxious, self-confident, hardworking, impatient and excitable. She tends to get worried easily and react to situations fairly quickly. Theresa has never been to any psychotherapy or counselling. Recently she was made redundant from the position of a Finance manager, for one of America’s leading defense companies. This highly paid executive role was part of the leadership team, involved with strategic decision making and she also handled a 9 member team. This serious financial pressure is creating major stress for her and the family, as she is the only earning member. In addition, she is not coping well with the stresses and is struggling with the loss of significance suffered in the redundancy. At fifty years of age, her hope for another equally paid level of employment seems gone. At the session Theresa looked anxious, fidgety and had a dejected tone. Some of the things Theresa shared at the session were: â€Å"I feel my future is hopeless and... ...rd game etc. (Ongoing) 5. Keep a journal, so every time she felt like going into negative thoughts about rejection, tracking it and countering it by mediating on one of the scripture verses. Also tracking the weekly activities and time spent with family.( Ongoing) So at the beginning of the weekly counselling session, we would review the previous growth goals and along with ongoing ones, set new goals, for the following week. In conclusion, it is not an easy path for Theresa to change her thinking, however with God’s grace it is a journey of patience, perseverance and hope. Works Cited 1. MacArthur, John F. & The Master’s College Faculty (2005) Counselling: How to Counsel Biblically: Thomas Nelson. 2. Hunt, June (2008) Counseling through your Bible Handbook: Providing Biblical Hope and Practical Help for Everyday Problems. Harvest House Publishers.