Today marked the beginning of a 2 day training for my internship. Everyone gathered was somehow involved in the mental health field. We had the pleasure of participating in a training put on by Scott D Miller, a psychologist not to be confused with the musician Scott Miller.
I feel very fortunate to have been a part of this because #1 he seems to know what he's talking about and is going against what everyone else is saying and #2 he was hilarious! This guy made the time fly by because he was animated and it was like if you hired a stand-up comedian to do your training. It wasn't humor at the expense of learning, which I think really is a gift.
So what am I getting at? (I know you're wondering how this can be titled "Healing" and be related to a psychologist.) It happened so fast, Scott Miller said it and then it was gone, but it really stuck with me and I couldn't stop thinking about it.
Here's a guy, very secular, and by his own admission, not religious. Oddly enough, psychology and social work are quite secular fields as well--you know, the whole science and religion thing. Anyway, he was talking about his approach to therapy and what has been shown to work. His whole theme is about meeting the client where they are and finding what works for them. He calls this "alliance", and this goes against what we call evidence based practice and selecting a certain style of therapy based on diagnosis.
And this is what he said that got me going. He said that you do not build alliance. He said that you need to be with the the client. He said that is what it means to "heal" in therapy. Then, "Christ healed the sick. Healing means to be near. He went to be near those that nobody would get close to."
He said it so fast and just like that it was gone. But it was like all kinds of light bulbs were flashing and bells dinging like when you when on a gameshow. I couldn't believe how profound and deep this little statement was. And it came, not from a preacher, or a religious author but from a non religious psychologist.
Something that fascinated me was that he stated it like FACT, like it was plain truth that this is what Christ did, no question about it! Quite some faith for someone that says he has no part in religion. For a moment I thought I was in church!
How powerful the implications are! To life and ministry. Think about it, what if our focus was not on programs, funding, taking classes, being a part of a particular church or mission, but on simply being near. Being near to those in need. Being near to the broken hearted. Being near to the sick.
Being near.
Think about it for a minute. It's so simple. It's so beautiful. It's what Jesus did.
A touching truth. Made so clear by someone who probably doesn't even realize it. Interesting how God works and speaks sometimes.
What are your thoughts on this? What do you think, does God ever use the unsaved to speak His truths to us? Thoughts on being near?
1 comment:
God has definitely opened my eyes to new things through people who don't claim to believe in Him.
It's interesting to talk to people who are involved in social justice issues and hear where their values and beliefs come from... when their heart is the same as God's there tend to be many parallels.. a good place for discussion.
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