Therapy and The God Design – Part 2 of 3

By Ivory Bustin, MA, Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor

This is Part 2 of a three-part series. Start with Part 1.

Psychology is not spooky – simply put, it’s the study of the mind, emotions, behavior, and the relationship between these things as we relate to ourselves, others, and the world around us. It’s also not magic; psychological principles will not work unless they’re actually applied and practiced.

Many fields highlight the importance of our mindset and perspective: the fields of sales, marketing, and even sports recognize the importance of mindset in goal setting and accomplishment. We need not be afraid of the mind, and in fact, we do ourselves a disservice when we don’t understand how it works and how it impacts our lives.

Understanding the relational dynamics between the mind, emotions, and behavior can illuminate patterns that we wouldn’t know existed otherwise. Through an intentional focus on the psychology behind our patterns, we become observers of automatic connections that we reenact repeatedly. Our reactivity, how we think about things, and the way we relate to others happen on autopilot unconsciously unless we become aware of what’s happening.

Mental Health professionals are trained observers and pattern recognizers. Through study, attunement, curiosity, and inquisitiveness, they insightfully identify connections and dynamics that contribute to dysfunctional patterns of relating and engaging with ourselves and others, bringing those patterns to our attention. Once we become informed and aware, we are now empowered to make an important decision – do we continue to do what we’ve always done, or do we choose to do something different to create new healthier patterns?

The soul, where the mind sits, is an interfacing component between God and our physical bodies. Where do we engage with Yahweh if not through the soul as mediator and interpreter of the Spirit? It is within this internal mechanism that our union with Him is discerned and experienced. However, if our internal world is a shared space (with HIm, our mind, will, emotions, and intent) – the purity of Truth can get distorted when filtered through false beliefs, broken mindsets, and untamed emotions – and everyone has them.Therefore, we must conclude that psychology is critical to getting equipped with tools to dismantle false beliefs, reorder patterns of thinking, and subdue the unpredictability of our emotions.This is a process of Divine alignment, bringing these things in subjection under Christ (1 Corinthians 15:27).

Unfortunately, many Christians make the mistake that psychology is a fill-in-the-blank negative thing to stay away from, and it costs many believers a greater price than they know. We cannot dismantle that which we don’t know or believe exists, or are too afraid to confront. If the misaligned soul is left unaddressed, and therefore unhealed, we will remain enslaved to a lower dimension of experienced reality than that to which the torn veil of His flesh has given us access.

The Kingdom is not just at hand (Mark 1:15), but within (Luke 17:21), and yet the Greater Reality within can be impeded by the unhealed wounds of the soul. When we willfully enter a healing process to address these wounds, there we can encounter the One who brings Order to usher in the ever-increasing expansion of His government of Peace within us (Isaiah 9:7).

Find out more in my next article: Therapy and The God Design – Part 3 of 3