#2 Myth about Mental Health Coaching – Mental Health Coaching #6 - Purity 1348

To see today's photo, go to mt4christ.com or follow me, M.t. Clark, on Facebook or Twitter. Good morning! Today's photo of the kitchen window view of my side yard, a prominent tree in my neighbor's yard, and the blue expanse of the Skodak Creek leading into the Hudson River in the distance comes to us from yours truly as I am cleaning out the closet of my phone's photo gallery, and I came across this memory from September 11, 2020. A lot has changed since the first year in my house down by the river, and while my neighbor's tree is featured in the logo of the M.t. for Christ 247 podcast, it no longer stands. Uh, it got taken out by a storm at least a year ago, showing us that something we thought would be a permanent fixture in our lives can be taken away. Likewise, as I stood taking this photo back in 2020, I was most likely weighing in at 250 pounds, maybe 240, because that's what I thought as "my weight," as my struggles with food addictions never really allowed me to get below 235 for an extended period of time. I thought my weight and my struggles with food were permanent. But today I weigh in at 203 pounds after being motivated to flip the script of my weight story and went to war with my food addiction and renewed my mind to change my relationship with food. Uh, if you've been reading the blog over the last year, you know that it's been an ongoing battle, but I am confident it's a battle that I'm winning. Because although somewhere in my mind I thought I would always be overweight and out of shape, currently I am in the best physical shape of my life at age 51, and I have left the neighborhood of 250 pounds with the intention of never returning again. For all my adult life, my shirt sizes were at least extra large. Now I wear large, showing that even concepts like "my size" can be a lie. That we can be free from. Well, it's Friday, thank God, and as I rejoice over the victory and freedom that the Lord has given me, I want to point out that a major factor in achieving freedom is believing you can have it and in renewing your mind to change the way you think. Increasing self-awareness, presenting alternative solutions, encouraging thinking outside of the box and helping others to redirect their thoughts into productive, positive streams are strategies that mental health coaches use to help their clients manage their symptoms and increase the quality of their lives. And that brings us to our current series on mental health coaching as we pick up from where we left off yesterday by reviewing some of the common misconceptions about this alternative form of mental health treatment. We are sharing from Matthew Boone's 2023 blog post where he presented the second mental health coaching myth as Myth #2: Mental health coaches aren't highly trained. Boone writes, many, many mental health coaches are rigorously trained. For example, the mental health coaches in Lyra's Network undergo extensive vetting, credentialing, and training to be considered as a prospective Lyra Coach, a candidate must be— have graduated from a program accredited by the ICF, one of the most renowned professional coaching organizations worldwide. Only the most highly trained candidates are accepted. In fact, Lyra accepts just 2% of all applicants to its mental health coaching program. Our mental health coaches complete a comprehensive 4-month orientation program designed to over— and overseen by a team of clinicians that focuses on CBT principles and techniques. All coaches are given opportunities to practice this approach before meeting with clients, and just like therapists, coaches are trained to maintain professional boundaries and confidentiality in their relationships with clients. Uh, if you couldn't guess, and that was all from Matthew Boone, blog post. And if you couldn't guess, Boone's blog is actually Lyra Health's blog. So if you— it may be a little self-promoting, but I applaud their mission all the same because there is definitely a need for mental health coaches, and their company provides those in need with the access to mental health services they wouldn't receive otherwise. I admittedly only found this company by researching material on mental health coaching. So I will shy away from endorsing them completely, if at all. Many secular counseling programs and psychological theories in general hold an atheistic, humanistic, or pagan/Eastern mysticism worldview. And if the focus is on the superiority of these theories and the power of the self, a subtle form of worship, idol worship, and believing you can be like God, you have to realize that they may be leading you to to health and wellness that is only temporary, most likely fleeting, and ultimately lost in eternity. I am a Christian life coach, after all, and so I would prescribe a mental health coach that would be just as concerned with saving your soul as saving your peace of mind. Despite all this, though, Boone's Lyra commercial does a good job of debunking the myth that mental health coaches aren't highly trained. Case, even though I haven't been, been Lyra approved— I haven't applied and don't plan to— I have been highly trained as well. Most recently, I've completed Light University certification programs for mental health coaching and professional life coaching. These certifications prepare me, prepared me as a coach, but prior to that, I had a bachelor's degree in psychology, one in biblical studies, and a master's degree in Christian counseling. Although I am not a licensed counselor, I also have work experience in the field of mental health as a residential counselor for 2 years full-time, a few years as per diem support in various residential settings in my youth, and more recently as a psychiatric technician for Columbia Green's mobile crisis assessment team a couple of years ago, all with the orientations and trainings that qualified me to work with the full spectrum of mental health services. From chronic cases and maintenance to crisis management and intake assessments. So, I am confident that my credentials and experience also debunk the myth that mental health coaches aren't highly trained. Most of us are, I would think, but it's not a bad idea to ask about your provider's education, training, and experience. For me, I have decided to throw my hat in the ring as a Christian life coach and act as a mental health coach because I wanted to do something more to help others to experience the abundant life that is available through Jesus. And I know there— that there are not many, uh, quote-unquote providers out there that provide the life-changing coaching and wisdom that comes through a Christian world— a Christian biblical worldview and a deep relationship with God. That's why I don't work for a mental health agency and why I won't be applying to Lyra. They don't know what I know in terms of of the power of living by faith and the power of the Holy Spirit. And they don't know who I know in terms of God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. And even if they did, they're not really allowed to talk about him in any degree of depth or meaning. So mental health coaches can be highly trained, but I would suggest that you seek a Christian mental health coach. One not in name only would be nice. Because they have wisdom and power, the wisdom and power of God at their disposal, and they won't be shy in sharing it with you. So that's it for today. We will continue with the next myth about mental health coaching tomorrow. Until then, keep walking and talking with God. Today's Bible verse, verse is, come to us from the Quick Scripture Reference for Counseling by John G. Cruis. The This morning's meditation verses come from the section on death and eternal life. And today's scriptures come from 1 Corinthians 15:12-23 from the New Living Translation. The word of God says, But tell me this: Since we preach that Christ rose from the dead, why are some of you saying there will be no resurrection of the dead? For if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised either. And if Christ has not been raised, then all our preaching is useless and your faith is useless. And we apostles would all be lying about God, for we have said that God raised Christ from the grave. But that can't be true if there is no resurrection of the dead. And if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then your faith is useless and you are still guilty of your your sins. In that case, all you have died— all who have died believing in Christ are lost. And if our hope in Christ is only for this life, we are more to be pitied than anyone in the world. But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead. He is the first of a great harvest of all who have died. So you see, just as death came into the world through one man, Now the resurrection of the dead has been— has begun through another man. Just as everyone dies because we all belong to Adam, everyone who belongs to Christ will be given new life. But there is an order to this resurrection. Christ was raised as the first of the harvest, and all who belong to Christ will be raised when he comes back. Today's verses fall under the 27th point of our Counseling Reference Guide's resource section on death and eternal life. That 27th point is Jesus's resurrection guarantees ours. Today's verses show us the order and meaning of the resurrection. Christ was the first to be raised from the dead, proving that he was who he said he was— the Son of God and God the Son. Not just a good teacher or some demigod, Jesus is fully God and fully man. And the order of the resurrection is Jesus first, and His followers follow after. And as Jesus said in John 11:25-26, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live, and whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?" I do believe this, and I have put my faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior, and thus I believe that although I die, I will live, and when Jesus returns to the earth to reclaim it, if I die before then, I will be resurrected and return with him. The resurrection is the proof of Jesus as God and is our hope for the future and all eternity. As always, I invite all to go to mtforchrist.com where I always share insights from prominent Christian theologians and counselors to assist my brothers and sisters in Christ with their walk. Today we continue sharing from According to Your Word: Morning and Evening Through the New Testament by Stephen F. Alford. And, uh, in Alford's devotionals, he directs us to read a chapter of scripture in the morning and the evening. And today's chapter is Acts 19. And from Acts 19, he shares a portion of verse 11, which says, God worked unusual miracles by the hands of Paul. And Stephen Alford writes, What a powerful man Paul became for God. So surrendered was he that God could use him unusually. The King James Version translates it special miracles. It is the greatest honor possible to be used at all, but to be unusually or specially used before God is the privilege of only those who surrender themselves to God for his service. Service. The character of the powers or miracles which he performed was previously unheard of. Paul had every reason to be puffed up, yet he could say he was less than the least of all the saints, indeed the chief among sinners. And Alfred ends his devotion by praying, Lord, reveal to me the whole secret of this man's life, that I may be used for your glory. Amen. Amen. Yeah, it would be great to be like Paul. Paul, you know, gave out handkerchiefs and people were healed. Paul raised somebody from the dead, you know, basically. Of course, his teaching, you know, sort of knocked him out the window, um, you know, that caused his death. But he did, he did resurrect him, or, you know, through Paul, that God resurrected, we should say. Um, but yeah, that would be amazing. It is a blessing to be used by God, and thus that's why I threw my hat in the ring going from blogger and podcast to, you know, developing an LLC to become a Christian life coach professionally. Why? Because I know there's great value in what I've experienced through my life. All the suffering wasn't for nothing. It is to encourage others and to help them to discover their freedom in Christ and to overcome their hurts, habits, hang-ups, or mental health conditions whatever it is. I don't perform miracles, but I introduce you to the person who can, and that person is God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. And that's why we do the blog and the podcast. Before, it was just a, you know, big encouragement, you know, hey guys, you know, I invite you to check it out for yourselves. Well, I'm not inviting you to just check it out for yourselves anymore. I'm inviting you to jump on in and enlist me as your coach to show you the way, to give you faith. I can't give you faith though. The results are not guaranteed. You have to do your work. I'm going to be there to, like a coach, blow the whistle and tell you which way to go. And I'll tell you how to walk and, you know, stuff like that. The Lord is faithful to bless it because he blessed me in it. So, um, you know, we launched yesterday in, in earnest by sending out an email blast telling everyone we were open for business. I'm happy to report, you know, somebody actually made an appointment to speak to me, um, you know, initial consultation, but it'll probably just be a conversation because I know the person from the past. Um, but I invited them to check in, you you know, to make an appointment with me just to talk, you know, basically. And if he wants, you know, to walk with me in a coaching relationship, I'd be more than willing to help him. So the invitation is open to that person, although I don't think he listens to the blog. But, you know, sometimes you need just someone to talk to, and that's sort of what the mental health coaching thing is. We'll listen and we'll try to encourage and point in the right direction to deal with the anxiety, the depression, or whatever it is you're facing mental health-wise. But as a Christian, I would say, you know, we don't just deal with positive affirmations. We deal with the truth, and that's all in the Word of God. So that's the focus there, you know, because otherwise, like, "You really are a good person." Well, the Word doesn't really say that. But it tells us that God is good and that we're made righteous through, through our forgiveness and our new life in Christ. That's the difference. Being a good person, that's not a thing, uh, theologically. We're all desperately wicked before we come to Christ. You know, we can't clean up ourselves, so we have to have a relationship with God. Otherwise, it's all just posturing, and you're living independently of God and God will give you a heads up later. Um, yeah, you thought you were good, but you had no relationship with me. I'm the one who created you. I'm the one who wrote, you know, sent people to tell you what holiness was, and I sent Jesus to, to save you, and you refused it. Um, will allow you to go the way you were going by yourself into eternity and separated from the Lord. So You know, when we dismiss the supernatural, when we dismiss God, we do ourself damage. And, you know, the end there, unfortunately, if it was just a neutral thing, that'd be one thing. But there's the spiritual forces of darkness that delight in your choosing to live without the Lord. Why? Because they're heading for destruction, and they want to bring as many people with them as possible. Like a mass murderer, they want to take people out before they go out. And, uh, that's, that's Satan and his emissaries in this kingdom, the kingdom of darkness. Um, these are spiritual realities that can impact your mental health, and thus a Christian life coach, a Christian mental health coach, is the one you need because spiritual warfare could be part of the problem. And you don't have any solutions from just thinking good thoughts. We have to draw on the power and the authority of God that comes through Jesus Christ to be free of some things. And, uh, that's what we offer here at mt4christ.com. Anyway, uh, I'm running out of time. I do have a day job. I haven't jumped into the ring that much, uh, to, you know, forsake the, uh, the pay and benefits that I get from my technological telecommunications job. But someday. Um, anyway, until then, let's pray. Lord God, Heavenly Father, thank you for another day in your kingdom. Lord, we thank you so much for all that you've done for me. Lord, we pray for anyone who's listening today, that they'd be encouraged and that you'd bless them. Um, come alongside them and their prayer requests, Lord, and help them to walk in the way you would have them walk. And if they need help, Lord, send them my way. Um, I'll do my best to encourage and coach them to, to know you more. And, uh, Lord, we need you to bless me, um, too. Um, all I want to do is represent you here on the earth and help others, but I need your help in doing that. I can't do anything in my own strength. I need your power and your wisdom and love to flow through me, and that's what I'm asking for today. So open my eyes to the things you want me to see and lead me in the way I should go. Ah, Lord, we thank you, we praise you, we love you, and we pray all these things in the mighty name of Jesus. Amen.