The Heart Of A Healer: Trauma-Informed Biblical Counseling

By Chris Lim

Every person you know has either been through situations in their lives that have resulted in trauma or knows someone who has. The church has lost the art of wisely walking with someone as they experience the effects of trauma in their life. We are at a loss when a friend loses a child, a coworker finds out they have cancer, or we hear about someone being the victim of human trafficking. If you're a fireman, nurse, police officer, pastor, counselor, schoolteacher, or any other profession that touches the lives of people, you have encountered people in trauma ... you have probably experienced the effects of secondary or vicarious trauma yourself. You have felt the hopelessness and inadequacies of trying to help someone understand the explainable. As I searched for resources to help me do that from a biblical perspective, I found that there is very little help for the Christian involved in the work of trauma-informed care. Most biblical counseling doesn't adequately address how to engage with someone suffering from trauma, and no secular methodologies can provide the ultimate healing and hope these victims long for. The Heart of a Healer is an attempt from a layman's perspective to combine the wise compassion of a trauma-informed care approach with the authoritative and life-giving truths revealed in the scriptures. This book is neither clinical nor theological in the traditional understanding of those terms. The Heart of a Healer outlines a practical and biblical approach to dealing with trauma. You will learn how to deal with it in your own life and how to effectively help others who are suffering through trauma. This book was born out of much prayer and the searching of scriptures. It is my humble prayer that God uses this imperfect attempt at this important subject as a tool to help those who he calls into this work, and that as a result, many will see your good deeds and glorify our Father in heaven.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: May 19, 2017
• ISBN: 9781635756197

Book preview

Chapter 1

Three Foundational Truths

Early on in my work, I was asked by a friend what qualifications I have to engage in this work. My simple answer was that I’m a Christian. I have Christ as my example, the truth of Scripture as my instruction, and the Holy Spirit as my teacher. This is not a simplistic answer; it is profound, authoritative, and effective. The God who created us has revealed to us His truth in the Scriptures, provided for us an example of how to live those scriptures out through the life of Jesus, and illumines our minds to His truth through the Holy Spirit. No classroom education and field practicum can compare to that. If you are a Christian, you can say the same. You and I have all we need to be used by God to help the victims of trauma.

This is not to marginalize the benefits of nonbiblical disciplines. Social studies and psychology provide good and helpful tools in managing a victim of trauma. From them and the difficult work that so many have done over the years, we have gained much insight and developed best practices. The manner and methodology of how to engage with someone who has the effects of complex trauma have been documented and researched by experts in these disciplines. In fact, the point of this book is to describe how to use the methodology of trauma-focused care in a thoroughly biblical manner.

There are many very good biblical counselors who have spent many years studying and applying biblical principles to the lives of people. Likewise, there are many good therapists who have spent many years studying and applying best practices from the mental health community to the lives of people. As a Christian, you are adequate for this work. You are adequate to effectively help heal brokenness because your sufficiency comes from the Lord.

Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us competent to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:4–6)

Three truths are foundational to the heart of a healer. The first speaks to our motivation; God shows compassion and mercy as an example for us to follow (Isaiah 1, Ephesians 2:11–13). The second speaks to our ability; God comforts us in our trials so that we know how to comfort others in theirs (2 Corinthians 1:3–11). The third speaks to our responsibility, fulfilling the second greatest commandment according to Jesus; loving our neighbor as yourself requires only simple acts of compassion (Leviticus 19:18, Matthew 22:39, Galatians 5:14). Let’s explore each of these briefly.

Motivation: God Prioritizes the Vulnerable

In Isaiah 1, the prophet Isaiah jumps right into a stinging indictment of the religious of his day. They were faithfully executing all the spiritual disciplines of the day. They were making all the right sacrifices, they celebrated holy days and festivals, and they offered public prayers. I’m humbled by their piety. I tend to think I’m doing pretty good if I make to church on time. It certainly puts my spiritual disciplines to shame. But how did God respond to their admirable spiritual activity?

Your new moons and your appointed feasts my soul hates; I am weary of bearing them. When you spread out your hands, I will hide my eyes from you; even though you make many prayers, I will not listen. (Isaiah 1:14–15)

Can you imagine their surprise? These people were diligently sacrificing and praying and doing all the things we think of when we think of spiritual activities. Surely, they thought that their religious activities were pleasing to God. Surely, they thought that while they are not perfect, God would look down upon them and see their efforts. Then to hear from God, My soul hates them, I’m weary of bearing them, I will hide my eyes from you, I will not listen to your prayers (Isaiah 1:14–15)! It must have been utterly devastating. Why did God have such a strong reaction?

What they were doing wasn’t the problem. Rather, God was angered by what they were not doing. He told them, Your hands are full of blood (verse 15). The blood that was on their hands was from the wounds of those who were oppressed among them: the orphans, the widows, those for whom justice was out of reach. The solution is found in the next two verses.

Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your deeds from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice, correct the oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. (verses 16–17)

It’s sobering to realize that the evil which God condemned were all spiritual activities: it was their religious festivals and their sacrifices. God even said their attendance at church was the trampling of my courts (verse 12); even their prayers were despised by God. On the other hand, what is the good that God commands of them?

Frist, cleanse yourself from your evil deeds (verse 16), then…

seek justice

correct oppression

bring justice to orphans

advocate for widows

This is not a new list of righteous activities. God is not saying, Hey, just replace your festivals, offerings, church attendance, and prayers for social justice. God is teaching us that He doesn’t want us to simply do religious or spiritual things; no, God wants us to engage with others in this world in a way that demonstrates His character and love to them. In doing so, we become the vessels demonstrating God’s goodness and compassion for them. God uses our compassion to the vulnerable to demonstrate His glory and bring the lost to Himself.

God, through His prophet Isaiah, instructs us today that it is not our religious activities that bring Him pleasure but rather how we engage with the most vulnerable among us. King Lemuel’s mom in Proverbs 31:1–9 teaches the future king the same lesson. She warns her son against chasing after women (verse 3) and the dangers of excessive alcohol (verses 4–5). Instead, this wise mother instructs her son to open your mouth for the mute, for the rights of all who are destitute. Open your mouth, judge righteously, defend the rights for the poor and needy (verses 8–9).

Some are focused on being spiritual, living a good life; or being righteous, living separate and distinct from the others; or being religious, following spiritual disciplines and rituals. Others are focused on partying, having a good time, taking it easy, and looking out for number 1. Both groups are misguided. Some of us try to find purpose in life through religion, while others are wild and free, enjoying today because tomorrow is not promised us. God is saying that purpose is found by understanding His character and becoming like Him. There are those among us who are taken advantage of because they don’t have a voice; they don’t have the means to secure their own justice. As a result, those who are more powerful use them for their own gain or pleasure. God has compassion for them, and He wants to demonstrate His compassion for them through you.

Ability: Your Heart Is God’s Classroom

The apostle Paul pulled the curtains back a little in his second letter to the Christians in Corinth. In 2 Corinthians 1:3–11, he opens up and becomes vulnerable with them to teach them that the presence of trouble in your life may not be an indication that there is sin in your life; rather, these trials allow us to both share in the sufferings of Jesus and learn from God through the way He comforts us in the midst of the pain of life.

Paul shared with them that while they were in Asia, they were burdened excessively beyond their own strength. He said it got to the point where they thought they might die. I don’t think the apostle Paul was engaging in hyperbole. In fact, he said, Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raised the dead (verse 9). Most of us have not suffered literally to the point of death. I cannot begin to imagine the emotions that floods someone who is truly fearing death—the despair and dread; feelings of hopelessness; the fear of the pain you’re about to undergo, wondering how your loved ones will be without you; and regretting the moments of life you left unlived. I’ve not even come near to this type of experience; some reading this may