Why Should Christians Care About Mental Health?

Soul Care is rooted in Christian tradition.

Have you ever shown an interest in mental health only to be told, “Christians don’t need modern-day psychology,” or “I don’t go to counseling because the Bible has all I need!” There have been stigmas around mental health treatment both in the church and society at large for a long time. It’s not uncommon for these myths to persist even today. And even though those stigmas are slowly changing, some people with a faith background may still feel uneasy seeking mental health resources.

While the Bible is our most reliable source for understanding the human condition, and a treasury of wisdom to address every kind of suffering, applying specific verses to real-life situations can be challenging. Everything that we experience spiritually and mentally is also in some way connected to the body in which we live because we are embodied creatures. Accessing and caring for the soul requires the cooperation of our body, because the layers of our personhood are connected and each one affects the other. For holistic healing to occur, it means that our mental, emotional, psychological, physiological, and spiritual health should not be separated, and must be understood as a whole.

For holistic healing to occur, it means that our mental, emotional, psychological, physiological, and spiritual health cannot be separated, and must be understood as a whole.

Most people have no problem receiving treatment for a physical injury or illness – we seek healing for the body all the time! There is no moral stigma against treating your physical health. And yet mental health problems are like a broken leg in the brain. They may not be as obvious or identifiable, but until the proper treatment is applied, you may be limping along, trying your best to get through life with significant issues that affect your well-being and relationships.

Counseling operates on the neurobiological principle that our brains are most profoundly impacted (for good or ill) through face-to-face relationships. When you are distressed, you need someone who can listen intently and treat you with empathy and respect, someone who understands the power of a corrective relational experience to bring healing. If you are a Christian, you will want to find a Christian counselor who is not only skilled therapeutically, but who also holds and understands your values as they help you process your experiences.

A trained counselor has access to latest research and therapeutic interventions to help you understand the root cause of your thoughts, feelings, and experiences to bring relief and healing from soul-injuries. Many Christians have found biblically-based, research-informed therapy to be essential to growing in faith, healing from past trauma, improving relationships, and working through the grief and sorrow of living in a broken world.

Growing in Faith

Churches emphasize community as a way for believers to serve, disciple, and refine each other. Counseling is another form of community: in the form of a safe and confidential relationship, you can examine and change harmful thought patterns, process painful emotions, and grow in your ability to experience emotional vulnerability and trust.

Within the church community, we study the Bible together and practice the presence of God individually and corporately. We look to our pastors to be able to explain doctrinal concepts and to teach the Word. Likewise, counseling relationships are a chance to learn from someone who specializes in the human psyche and has a wide range of knowledge about human nature and why we do what we do.

In Christian counseling, the therapist should be able to provide research-informed therapeutic techniques, guide you in making wise moral choices from a biblical perspective, and offer wisdom in resolving relational dilemmas. Just as we often need help interpreting Scripture, we often need help interpreting and sorting out the complex struggles in our lives.

Counseling relationships are a chance to learn from someone who specializes in the human psyche and has a wide range of knowledge about human nature. Just as we often need help interpreting Scripture, we often need help interpreting the complex struggles in our lives.

We know that good practices for spiritual health include church attendance and involvement, rhythms of prayer and Bible reading, and an awareness that our lives are lived before the face of God, which informs the choices we make each day. There are good practices for mental health, too, and those can include therapy, journaling, and reading books on topics like relational boundaries, personality development, understanding emotions, and habits of healthy communication. Educating yourself on these topics can destigmatize the conversation around seeking help for the difficulties and trials of life.

Healing from Trauma

Sometimes Christians are reluctant to dive into their past hurts. Maybe you believe this because you think it’s counter-productive, it’s too painful, or you’re not sure where and how to begin to examine your past. However, this discounts how the brain works. The brain has trouble distinguishing the past from the present, so acutely painful memories can feel just as powerful today as the day they occurred. Learning how to process your story will open up a self-awareness that could be life-changing for you.

Without this awareness, you may respond to trials or trauma by distancing yourself from God. You may feel let down, betrayed, or abandoned. These feelings can override what you know is true. So even though you ‘know’ that God loves you, you may still feel unlovable. Reading more Bible verses is not enough to correct this internal dissonance.

What you may need is a corrective experience of being with someone who represents Jesus through their eye contact, their voice, and their presence. The therapeutic relationship allows someone to model the presence of Jesus for you – to look you in the eye and remind you that you are a beloved child of God, and that nothing can separate you from His love.

An experienced counselor can walk through the reasoning of why your past matters, explain the neurological nuts and bolts of how your brain works (and why the past is never really in the past), and help you make sense of what’s happening inside of you in response to pain and trauma. When you can examine your life story in the context of a safe relationship, you will be on the road to healing from past hurts and grow in your ability to manage your present.

Improving Relationships

Friendship: Christian friendships can be the source of much joy – a real-life illustration of Christ’s exhortation to “love one another”, as evidenced by His life of suffering and sacrifice. But friendships that are ‘closer than a brother’ don’t come about without patience, kindness, service, and often, forgiveness. As you reflect on your relationships, working with a therapist will help you to identify ways in which you can love others better: rooting out comparison and competition, pride and jealousy, and a sharp tongue or critical spirit.

A therapist may also help you identify relational patterns that are unhealthy, hurtful or damaging to your soul. Getting untangled from an abusive relationship requires wisdom and the application of boundaries so that your life isn’t destroyed by another person. The support needed to make these changes is often found in the context of counseling or a support group that can give you clarity and support when making hard decisions.

Family: There are many underlying forces that create dysfunction in families. We see these dynamics in our own families and in families around us. The result is that you may feel frustrated, hurt, misunderstood, and disconnected. Your family relationships may be strained or completely broken, and you are looking for support and wisdom to know how to navigate this from a biblical perspective.

The truth is every family has some level of dysfunction. Talking about it openly helps to normalize it, and regardless of the level of dysfunction in your family (and how much it may or may not be your fault), a therapist can help you take ownership of your behavior, set healthy boundaries, and create realistic expectations for change within your family of origin.

Marriage: Many times, couples view marriage counseling as a last-ditch resort, akin to admitting that the marriage has failed. We don’t treat other areas of our lives this way – for example, hiring a financial advisor to help you make good investments for your future is praiseworthy and encouraged. So when your relationship needs fine-tuning, why is seeking advice often looked down upon?

If you find that your marriage is mired in conflict, a counselor can help you step back and identify sources of conflict in your marriage, dig below the surface to the deeper issues, identify the ways the conflict is impacting you, and provide conflict resolution techniques that help resolve conflict peacefully. A counselor that holds a biblical view of marriage, and is familiar with the behaviors that hurt relationships, will be able to speak truth into your relationship and model the behaviors that rebuild trust.

Parenting: If you are parenting a child who is struggling with identity and insecurity, you may find it helpful to talk to a counselor who can provide neutral, balanced feedback and guidance. It’s important to understand the two core questions that are a driving force in every child's psychological and emotional development: “Am I loved?”, and “Can I be free?” Answering those questions for your child is the first step in helping them to form a strong ‘internal container’ that will help them move through life with confidence.

In addition, children need four things to develop a healthy sense of self and trust in others: to be seen, to be soothed, to be safe, and to feel secure. Those are the four S’s of basic psychological needs that must be present in order to be able to form healthy relationships that are reciprocal: where you can depend upon others to be there for you, and they can depend upon you to be there for them. Child development counselors will be able to provide parents with emotion-coaching skills that create a strong attachment between you and your child so you can work through hard things together.

In Conclusion

Christians should be taking the lead when it comes to mental health, because our perspective is unique: not only can we provide hope and resources to understand the effects of trauma, intergenerational sins, addiction, and abuse, but we can also share the love and forgiveness that comes from a right relationship with God through Jesus. The Christian view of human nature and the need for God’s grace adds an important spiritual dimension to treatment.

Being rightly related to God is the foundation for sorting through the rest of life’s trials, disappointments and struggles, and is the starting point for effective Soul Care. That’s why we encourage you to consider counseling as a means to help you reflect on your unique and complex story, which holds powerful insights waiting to be explored.

So why should Christians care about mental health? Because your soul is your most valuable possession, and tending to its wounds will open you up to being transformed by the love and grace of God.

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