CCC 28-2_LR

CLINICAL PRACTICE

Permission to Heal: Why Christians Can Embrace Christian Psychology Without Compromise from the Society for Christian Psychology CHRISTIAN PSYCH NOTES Amy Oberg, Ph.D.

m Many Christians feel hesitant, or even guilty, about engag ing with psychology. Somewhere along the way, we picked up the idea that therapy meant we did not trust God enough, or that psychology was just a secular substitute for the Holy Spirit. However, what if we have misunderstood? What if psychology—when grounded in a Christian worl dview—can be one way to live out faith and participate in God’s healing work in the world? In 2020, I was a women’s pastor on fire for Jesus, wanting to rescue hearts and see redemptive healing. The world had shut down, the Church had become one-on one counseling sessions, and I kept bumping into peo ple’s mental health. One day, a suicidal girl came to my office, the next a 62-year-old hoarder, and the week after, a 24-year-old woman who had just been diagnosed with

bipolar II schizoaffective disorder—she was looking to her pastor for help. Unfortunately, a Bible degree does not include the study of abnormal psychology. I was at the top of my giftings with a four-year degree in biblical studies, but was officially inadequate. I understood Jesus needed to be at the center of treatment, but there is no way to pray away or ignore abnormal psychology. I needed tools and education, which led to a master’s degree in psychology as a way to understand the body and brain connection as it relates to the spirit. The approach here is no different from sharing the good news with someone hungry or na ked—we feed the hungry and clothe the naked, and then share the Gospel with them. In turn, we do not step over people’s mental health to give them Jesus—we meet them where they are and walk with them as Jesus would.

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