Edward T. Welch, M.Div., Ph.D. is a counselor and faculty member at CCEF. He earned a Ph.D. in counseling (neuropsychology) from the University of Utah and has a Master of Divinity degree from Biblical Theological Seminary. Ed has been counseling for over 30 years and has written extensively on the topics of depression, fear, and addictions. His books include: When People Are Big and God is Small; Addictions: A Banquet in the Grave; Blame it on the Brain; Depression—A Stubborn Darkness; Running Scared; Crossroads: A Step-by-Step Guide Away From Addiction; and When I Am Afraid: A Step-by-Step Guide Away from Fear and Anxiety.
A friend sent me a copy of Jon Ronson’s book, The Psychopath Test: A Journey through the Madness Industry. He just wanted my opinion of the book, I think. (But it did remind me of another friend who gave me a six-pack of Tic-Tacs for my birthday.)
Dreams are among the great oddities of human experience. They are bizarre juxtapositions of events of the day, personal anxieties, divine intrusions, side effects of medication, and random neuronal firings triggered by a late evening meal. We can rightly interpret them as either profound or meaningless, though it is hard to distinguish between the two.
Like most people, I dream whether I know it or not. A few I remember for a moment when I wake up in the middle of the night, others stay with me longer.
Resistance seems like an odd thing: someone asks for counsel but then doesn’t listen to it. It sounds like a straightforward case of hard-heartedness. But there may be other reasons why counselees don’t listen.
Parenting so often can feel confusing and overwhelming. We want Biblical wisdom and yet we are not sure where to turn. This bundle contains refreshing, honest and wise counsel directly from Scripture on how to approach our children with God’s agenda and not our own.
I will never forget the first time suicide came close to me. I met with a young woman who was leaving her mission work in Eastern Europe. She was haunted by an experience but could not even talk about it—my guess was that she was burdened by an inappropriate relationship with a young man who lived there.
Counselors have opportunities to see patterns that emerge among people. Here, I think, is a pattern among men—not all men, but more than you might think.
“When my wife talks about our relationship—or anything else—and goes on for very long, I want to listen, but I go on overload pretty quick and soon don’t understand a word she is saying.”
I saw a billboard on the way to the airport that read: Thou shalt not commit adultery. It advertised a website that specialized in extra-marital sexual connections for those interested in a little cheating.
I am speechless.
Perhaps I am a prudish, self-righteous Bible thumper mired in some version of an old Christian America that is fading away. So I will let someone else speak.
The problems that afflict us can be grouped into two categories: suffering and sin. Both are approached with humility and love. Sufferers hear comfort; sinners hear warnings, with comfort waiting on the far side of confession. Yet the author of Hebrews prefers to make the boundary between sin and suffering more permeable. He cautions sufferers about hardening their hearts, warning that it is a backdoor path to sin.
Say “yes” to an invitation and you have been robbed of your freedom. All other options for that evening have been ripped away. What if a better invitation comes along? Too bad, you are beholden to something else. Decisions, indeed, exclude.
