What is the point of counseling?

With the fall of man, suffering entered into the world. Adam who was created in the image of God had now become an image of horror in the sight of God. Man was ill-equipped to deal with the universe now not because God made it so but Man through the abuse of his freewill made it so (Lewis, 1944). Though this event, separation occurred and loneliness was brought into the human existence.

According to Henri Nouwen (1975), loneliness is the primary cause of suffering the world today. With this in mind, it is the purpose of counseling to reduce suffering. It is impossible to eliminate all suffering. According to Revelation 21, the total elimination of suffering will only occur when God “wipes away every tear” (KJV).

Therefore, the point of counseling is to reduce the individual’s suffering by facilitating their ability to integrate their private self with their public self (Nouwen, 1975). The Bible illustrates three ways to bring this integration to the person. First, in Job 2, Job was isolated and lonely due to his sufferings. His three friends departed their homes to be with him and to listen to him. In Exodus 18, Jethro came to where Moses was and observed him. Having then seen his dilemma, Jethro offered Moses a practical solution to help him. Finally, Paul writes in Galatians 2 that when he observed Peter behaving in an inconsistence manner, he confronted Peter and brought it to his attention. This is the template for a counselor to follow.

Reference

Lewis, C. S. (1944). The Problem of Pain. New York, NY: McMillan. 6

Nouwen, Henri. (1975). Reaching Out: The Three Movements of the Spiritual Life. New York: Image Book.