Baylight Counseling: Compassionate Care and Hope for Healing

Dear Friends of the WTW blog,

It's with a certain amount of sadness that I announce the end of what has been a four-year run here at Waulk This Way. Yes, this blog, for better or for worse, is coming down.

(Applause)

But, I'm excited to announce the start of what is taking its place: the Baylight Counseling (BLC) blog.

(More applause)

BLC, although still very much in its infancy, is the result of several years of ongoing discussion between Christy and I. Biblical counseling has become a ministry passion for me. Meeting people where they are at a point of crisis, or in the course of overcoming some trauma was very much a part of my seventeen year law enforcement career. That season of life has helped to prepare me for this next chapter, and I look forward to seeing it unfold with increasing clarity.

My former life as a CHiPs superstar, though, isn't the only thing that God has done to prepare the way. An ongoing seminary education, with an emphasis in biblical counseling, coupled with my undergraduate training and service in bi-vocational ministry all join together to provide me with a strong  foundation for counseling service.

Did I fail to mention a Spirit-led desire for this particular type of ministry?

Counseling of any kind is often very misunderstood. When most of us think of counseling, we think of advice-giving. We think of sitting on a couch in the "shrink's" office. Or, we think about some person who doesn't really know us very well, talking non-stop for an hour, and giving us advice that seems incredibly theoretical and impractical.

Biblical counselors, though, have been blessed with the most practical resource for living known to man: The Inerrant, Infallible, All-Sufficient, and Authoritative Word of God (Heb. 4:12; 2 Tim. 3:16). It's this resource that I have the privilege of studying, and ever-learning how to apply to all of life for the peace and comfort of the afflicted and the sufferer as a clinically-informed biblical counselor.

Clinically-informed?

Biblical counselors don't deny the reality of the physical world in which we live, and more importantly, don't deny that a man is only human insofar as he is both body and soul. Both of these are essential components to humanity, and both have been utterly and profoundly touched by the fall of man (Gen. 3:7). 

The biblical counselor is not afraid of the discoveries of the mental health sciences, or of psychotropic medication. Instead, the biblical counselor stays informed concerning medical issues, works with medical doctors and therapists, while pointing the counselee toward the cross of Christ.

The biblical counselor appreciates the work of secular mental health practitioners, but remains steadfast in this: that the greatest need held by all men is the redemption afforded them by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

So, what does this excursus have to do with the end of the WTW blog?

That's the easy part. Very soon, this blog will come down, and the Baylight Counseling blog will spring up in its place! Here (or there), you'll find target-specific blogs on things that appeal to the how of our walks with Christ. How does the Bible speak to my: depression, anxiety, grief, sorrow, fear, broken relationship, addiction, PTSD, adoption issues, post-abortion depression, suicidal thoughts, etc.

There will also be plenty of information that will help you get in touch with me, should you desire or need a safe, compassionate outlet for understanding life's hurts through a biblical lens. You'll also find information concerning how you can get involved in supporting this donor-supported ministry.

The vision of BLC is to provide compassionate, biblical care and hope for healing for those in need, without concern for the person's economic condition. There will be no fees for counseling at BLC. This will only be possible as those who take part or interest in the ministry give to this much needed work.

I'm trusting God for what's needed to make BLC a trusted resource for individuals, couples, and churches in the Tampa Bay area. We have much work to do. Opportunities are emerging, and people are beginning to give generously to BLC. I'm not at liberty to speak of these opportunities at this time, but I'm looking forward to "spilling the beans" very soon.

In the meantime, here's how you can begin getting involved in the launch of BLC:

1. Pray (No, really, please pray.)
2. Contact me if you would like to schedule a biblical counseling appointment.
3. Tell others about BLC by sharing this post, "liking" us on Facebook and Twitter, or simply sharing the news with those in your network, including your pastor.
4.  Support this ministry financially by sending a tax-deductible check to:

• Light 4 Life, NFP: 2171 Belmar Drive, Belleair Bluffs, FL. 33770 Memo: BLC

Light 4 Life is the parent organization of BLC, and is a Christian 501(C)(3) non-profit entity.

Thanks for all of your patience in reading this lengthy post. There's a much longer back-story that I spared all of you from, so, you can say thank you by sending BLC a one-time or recurring gift so that someone else might receive the help they need. I'm half-kidding, of course. But, that means I'm half-not kidding. BLC and the people we will help need your participation---today!

For more information concerning biblical counseling, please check out the following sites: CCEF, ABC, and BCC.

Blessings to you all. 

I look forward to keeping you informed of our progress, and of all that God is doing.

For His glory,

Josh

One of These Is Not Like the Other

I had our route perfectly planned out in my mind. I was excited and looking forward to my time in the water with Karis at her very first swim lesson, ever. Once we made it to the main road, the one that our local YMCA calls home, I felt relief, because I knew we were right on schedule. But, as I drove north, something caught my eye, and my day hasn’t been the same since.

Bread and Roses.

That was the name on the sign. It was welcoming, warm, and friendly. It communicated safety, and serenity. But, the high PVC fencing surrounding the property communicated something entirely different. It looked like a compound, rather than a refuge. The fine print on the sign made this one thing clear: appearances can be deceiving.

Death and Destruction.

That’s what should have been plastered upon the sign facing the roadway. This “Well Woman’s Center,” strategically located in a neighborhood, just across the street from a grocery store, was actually a place where mothers intentionally bring their unborn children to die horrific deaths.

It’s one thing to know that these dungeons of inhumanity exist “out there.” It’s another thing entirely to watch as a young black man walks a young black woman behind a fence, and into a place where they will pay money to murder that one, unique thing that God has created in His own image, namely, a precious human life (Gen. 1:27).

I cannot describe the anger and heartache I feel as I watch, in real time, as Margaret Sanger’s wickedly racist dream come’s yet one sweet baby closer to becoming a reality in America. And, it happens with the full knowledge and support of not just the government of these United States, but real, flesh and blood people.

People like our first black President, Barak Obama, who just days ago celebrated abortion, and pronounced God’s blessing upon these workers of iniquity. These workers, whose culture of death in his own black community has made the work of organizations such as the Ku Klux Klan look sophomoric and disorganized, are praised by the very ones whose progeny they've come to kill.

It’s been 40 years since a panel of some of the most brilliant minds in America convened over a court case that led to the legalization of child sacrifice in this nation. They tell us that the tide has turned, or is turning. But, if the relatively full parking lot at Bread and Roses this morning is any indication, there are still plenty of customers available.

That means there is still plenty of work for the church to do in proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus Christ in both word and deed.

The church must fulfill its prophetic duty in proclaiming the soon-to-come justice of God on those who partake in evil of all kinds, including abortion. This means doctors of death, secretaries who schedule appointments for infanticide, and mothers and fathers who can’t be inconvenienced because of their promiscuity or their child’s Downs Syndrome. All these, and all of us, must hear the message (Luke 19:27; Rev.19:15-16; Matt. 13:41-42).

At the same time, the church must be about the business of proclaiming Good News to the captive, mercy and forgiveness to the repentant, and hope for the despairing (Luke 4:17-19; John 3:16). The church must stand ready to adopt the fatherless, and to protect the widow. This type of religion is pure and undefiled (James 1:27).

Facebook memes that call attention to the wickedness of abortion are often nice in helping to bring awareness of the facts to our spiritually dead culture, but they are at all times insufficient to the task at hand. The church must get involved in the lives of those who would otherwise consider abortion an acceptable response to their own sin or the sins of others.

As I make the drive home from swim lessons, in reverse order, the irony of the situation strikes me, and I think of a game we play with our children. To one of these places, mommies and daddies bring their children to swim lessons, and to learn how to play and love life. To the other place, mommies and daddies bring their children for destruction, and to lose life.

One of these is not like the other. 

When Black and White Appear Gray

When the Bible is silent on a particular choice you're wrestling with, do you find yourself frustrated, or do you secretly rejoice at the appearance of ambiguity? It may be that over time you've experienced both! In the former, you can't seem to find the definitive answers you're seeking. In the latter, you're glad that God has apparently left you as the final arbiter of right and wrong.

In either case, there is a substantive disconnect that prevents us from making choices that properly reflect the Gospel at work in our lives.

Many of us have seen the acrostic "B.I.B.L.E.: Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth." Sadly, this is an accurate description of our culture's predominant approach to God's written word. Given to us by God as special revelation of Himself, it's more popular to approach Scripture with the mind of a legalist. 

Instead of seeking to understand what He has done, we're too often in search of what we might do.

Can I drink?

Can I get a tattoo?

Can I get a divorce?

Can I...(fill in the blank)?

To be sure, the Bible does speak to our morality and ethics. But, God's approach to these things is not always as black and white as we'd like. Sometimes, God's will for us seems to be more like varying shades of gray, leaving us to wonder what His desires for us in a given situation might be.

Let me suggest that this apparent ambiguity is not reflective of a deficiency in the Bible, but in us. If God is indeed the omniscient and omnipotent Creator of the universe (and, He is), then His apparent silence on this issue, or that issue is no lack of forethought on His part, but is quite intentional.

You might recall Jesus' teaching about not judging "according to outward appearances" (John 7:24). There is a connection to be made here, between our dilemma, which ultimately finds its roots in our sinful hearts, and the purposes of God, which always have His glory in view. The lesson to be learned is that sometimes, if we're honest, our hearts are not motivated by the purposes of God, but our own.

Much to our dismay, our hearts can be so manipulative, that we would actually seek an answer to a given dilemma that outwardly fits into a biblical rubric, but underneath, in the secret place, fulfills an idolatrous pursuit.

The place for us to begin resolving our ethical dilemmas then, is not always, "Did God say...?" The reason this is so, is because, as we already know, there are issues we face in life on which there is no, "Thus sayeth the Lord" command. Even still, in His grace, He has given us biblical principles that provide the wisdom and discernment that we need in order to please Him, and guide our hearts in Christ-likeness.

Here are three biblical principles that might provide some relief when faced with those difficult decisions for which there is no clear biblical command, prescription, or prohibition:

1) A decision may reflect a heart that desires to honor God when it has been bathed in much prayer (Phil. 4:6-7).

2) A decision may reflect a heart that desires to honor God when our overwhelming burden is to please Him, and not ourselves (Prov. 3:5-6).

3) A decision may reflect a heart that desires to honor God when the decision is made and acted upon in faith (Rom. 14:23; Heb. 11:6).

What decisions are you struggling with today, into which God's word is actually speaking?

Bad Things, Good People, and The Sovereignty of God

If you make good choices, good things will happen; but, if you make bad choices, bad things will happen.

This is an axiom that I have been teaching my now 11-year-old son for as long as I can remember. I call it an axiom because the relationship between choices and outcomes in life is so often apparent, that it cannot be denied.

But, I’m on the verge now of having to burst his bubble. For his own good, I will soon have to start adding a bit of biblical wisdom to this idea that what we put into a thing necessarily determines what comes out of it. In essence, I’m going to have to begin teaching my son that life in a fallen world is not always “fair.”

I’ve been reading that relatively short, but often confounding Old Testament book of Ecclesiastes. This morning, I came across a brief passage in the middle of chapter 10 that’s constructed by two related proverbs. Verses 8-9 say this:

The one who digs a pit may fall into it, and the one who breaks through a wall may be bitten by a snake.

The one who quarries stones may be hurt by them; the one who splits trees may be endangered by them. (HCSB)

Here’s King Solomon’s point. In his day, to “dig a pit” or “break through a wall” was to engage in criminal activity. That activity brought inherent risk, and would sometimes lead to the criminal’s harm. Bad choices equal bad things, right?

Solomon wasn’t finished with his thought. He knew, in wisdom, that sometimes the one who engages in honest labor gets hurt, too. To “quarry stone” or “split trees” was to put in an honest day’s work. Still, the honest laborer, sometimes, finds himself injured. In this case, good choices do not necessarily equal the good results we expect.

Life in a world marred by human sin is often times “unfair,” and suffering abounds.

If you’ve lived beyond age 11, you intuitively know this already. But, that doesn’t make the fact any easier to accept. The dilemma inevitably leads us to ask questions like, why do “bad things” happen to “good people.” Conversely, we may ask, why do “good things” happen to “bad people.”

Solomon wrestled with these and related issues throughout Ecclesiastes, and his Holy Spirit-inspired wisdom are both challenging and formative. He expressed what we often times feel when we experience the undesirable consequences of life in a world gone mad. What we’re left with are answers that feel unfulfilling at times, but reassuring at others.

So, how should we respond when life’s output doesn’t seem to be in concert with our input?

1) Recognize and accept the truth of the matter: “good” things do not always follow “good” choices.

2) While “bad” output following “good” input is not a desirable result, these circumstances are entirely under the rule of our sovereign God (see the stories of Joseph and Job, for example).

3) As God is sovereign, and always in pursuit of His own glory and the ultimate good of His people, we can trust that He will use even the most negative of circumstances for these purposes (Romans 8:28).

Are you experiencing this dilemma today?

If so, how are you responding, and in what or Who are you trusting?

The Nations Are Coming

As I make the short trip up the driveway, toward the front door where she’s sitting, a smile breaks out across her face as she waves. It’s immediately clear that she’s glad to see us, and that we’re welcomed guests at her new home, where she lives with her husband and their children.

“As-salam alaykum!” are her words to me.

I do my best to return the courtesy, but the truth is, I just learned this Arabic greeting (peace be upon you), and I’ve never said it above a whisper to myself. She doesn’t care. I tried. And, that’s all that matters to her. She and her entire family are some of my newest friends. They’re not expecting me to have mastered their language already.

My Latino brother-in-the-Lord, Carlos, who is our church’s director of Hispanic ministries, is with me. We’re there to continue building a relational bridge with this family that just arrived in these great United States from their native Iraq under a United Nations relocation program.

War is hell. People will leave their homelands behind to escape it. I understand. Half of my family fled Castro’s murderous and communist revolution in Cuba in 1959. They lost everything, but their lives and each other.

For the first generation, hope is fading that in their lifetimes they’ll see a free, democratic Cuba. But, better than that, is the Holy-Spirit-driven church planting movement that is sweeping across the island now. The Cuban government is learning that while you can ward off democracy, you can’t ward of Christ. You can read more about this HERE.

Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases (Ps. 115:3).

Back to our new friends from the Middle East, who I can’t identify in any way, because of the risk of persecution for their loved ones back home. You know them from Fox News as a frightening bunch. The wife wears a beautiful hijab that flows down over her shoulders. The husband greets you with a hug (and a kiss if you're so culturally inclined).

She doesn’t look or act much like a terrorist. She and her husband smile too much. They’re not too concerned about enacting Sharia law in the U.S. They’re far more concerned about the rent which is now past due. And learning English. And learning how to drive. And finding stable employment. And their children's education.

Sound familiar?

They’re not really asking for much. They’re very willing to live humble lives in one of Pinellas County’s worst neighborhoods—Highpoint. The same neighborhood that LifeBridge Church calls home.

Missiologist J.D.Payne writes in his book “Strangers Next Door,” that people are frequently the most receptive to the Gospel in times of stress and transition. The fact that our new Muslim friends have been attending worship services (including an Easter service that came complete with multiple baptisms) at our Christian church that’s within walking distance of their home begins to strike me not as a freak thing, but as a Holy Spirit-inspired act of divine providence.

God is on the move all over the globe, and He’s on the move in Highpoint.

Carlos and I spend the next hour sitting in the home of our Muslim friends, along with a Palestinian-born Christian pastor who traveled all the way from Orlando to translate for us. It’s quite the scene—a Cuban, a Puerto Rican, a Palestinian, and some Iraqis all sitting around a table, enjoying each other’s company. 

They insist that we enjoy some Arabic coffee or tea—some of the finest from the country of Jordan. They want to know if we’re too hot or too cold. They treat us as if we’re ambassadors of a King, or something. The truth is, they know who we are, and they know we’re not merely concerned about helping them stabilize in their new home.

We’ve shared the Gospel with them, with the help of our Palestinian pastor-friend. We’ve delivered Arabic bibles to them. We’ve walked with them. Now we’re drinking their coffee, and advocating for them to various support agencies so that they don’t fall through the cracks in this land that is not their home.

I suspect that these are the reasons why they've come, kept coming, and have even brought other Muslim-immigrant families with them to LifeBridge Church. Could it be that Jesus meant what He said--that they would know we're Christians by our love--not just for one another, but for our neighbor, as well?

In the middle of it all, in the quiet of my heart, I’m moved to spiritual tears because I recognize that what we’re doing is the legacy left behind for us by the Apostle Paul, missionary to the Gentiles. I’m moved to tears because I’m witnessing a manifestation of the multi-cultural, multi-ethnic, multi-lingual Kingdom of God, instead of the ethno-centric, Tea Party variety that demands that these people speak English.

I’m privileged beyond measure to be here. Geographically, Highpoint is a small, obscure neighborhood where we live. But, God is bringing the nations to us. I hope He continues to do so. As the church in America has declined, so has her sending capacity. Fortunately, God's bringing capacity is as infinite as it ever was. 

The question is, how will we respond?