I'm A Real Boy--er, Counselor!

I had my first Practicum class today.  Essentially it is twelve students and our professor, and we're going to practice counseling on each other, both authentically and as pretend clients.  Today was mostly paperwork stuff and forewarning of things to come.  Dr. Dickens reminded us that our Stage 2 Interviews would be happening this semester; after those the Biblical Counseling faculty meet and decide whether or not counseling is a good fit for each of us.  If they decide yes, we can finish the program.  He told us not to be worried about the interview and to be ourselves.  What kind of people do counselors like, he asked?

Real people.  Counselors like the messiness of people, seeing the doubts and journeys and failures.  If you put on a perfect face around a counselor, they will be both a) bored, and b) suspicious.

This more than anything confirmed that I have a counselor's heart.  I'm more interested in sanctification than justification.  I want to hear about people's doubts more than their faith.  I like to hear "well, life has been hard" rather than "oh, I'm fine."  When someone cusses or acts out inappropriately, where many people harden their faces and look down upon the person, my face lights up.  Not because I approve of everything someone does, but because then I think, "That is the real person.  They've let their facade slip and now we see who they are.  They're broken like I am broken, and now we can relate more deeply and understand each other more fully."

When church leaders turn out to be sex addicts, I'm saddened by the people who they've hurt, but I'm not going to carry a pitchfork.  Of course they're struggling with s***, they are human beings who, on top of normal human being struggles, are thrust into positions of "purity" and responsibility.  Why are we surprised by someone's failures?

I'm often surprised that people are not exactly like me, so my confusion of "wait, you don't like when people cuss, and you're uncomfortable with people admitting that they think maybe God doesn't exist or doesn't care?" was nicely cleared up by the fact that those people who are drawn to honesty and messiness are, in fact, counselors!  Glad to know my "skills" are going to help me land a job.