Psychological Matters

Thought: Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God Hebrews 12:2 The second ontological question is "What is the meaning of my life?" This question seems to give people trouble. Inadequate answers tend to be a cause of chronic apathy and boredom. Why bother to get up every day if our life has no point? All of us need to have purpose to our existence. Without direction, our life could feel insignificant. To address this issue, each of us should consider developing a personal mission statement. This might feel like a huge undertaking, yet it is actually quite simple. We need to listen to ourselves carefully and to hear what goals and activities excite us. Do we love working with people? Does our heart break when we see mistreated animals? Do we prefer helping out behind the scenes? Are we more of a leader? Do we enjoy organizing eve...

Thought: When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." "I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "before Abraham was born, I am!" At this, they picked up stones to stone him, but Jesus hid himself, slipping away from the temple grounds. John 8:12, 58-59 One of my favorite classes in graduate school was an elective course called "Philosophy and Psychology." It wasn't popular since the reading list was long, but I found the topic interesting and decided to risk it. The professor was a practicing psychiatrist. He started the course explaining the importance of five ontological questions (for a definition of ontology, please see post dated February 13, 2010). He said that as psychologists we would be working with an ill population who would be searching for answers. He warned us that if we have not spent some time clarifying or defining ...

Thought: If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. . . he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. James 1:5-6 As I evaluate new clients, I mentally place their emotional distress or psychological problems on a continuum. On the far right end of this continuum are those whose lives have been going pretty well. They are surprised by the development of a psychological condition. They haven't made any recent changes, they like their job, their children are doing well, and the marriage is strong. As I listen to their list of new symptoms, I see a biological illness. This is the right end of the continuum; the presenting issue is primarily a physical condition. At the far left end of the continuum are individuals whose lives are undergoing significant change. These clie...

Thought: As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her." Luke 10:38-42 Today's blog is the final article in the interpersonal boundaries series. We are going to focus on "triangulation." This is a psychological concept introduced in the early 1970's, although it is an interpersonal maneuver as old as man. Basically, triangulation is drawing a third person into an unstable two-person relationship. For examp...