Number 26 / Trees and Elephants

Thanks for all the birthday wishes everyone! It definitely means a lot being away from home and all :)
Number 26 is my first YWAM birthday and first birthday away from the States.

I guess my class caught on quick that I’m a Cubs fan (and I’ll always be a Cubs fan :) )
And BTW, hooray for the arrival of Theo Epstein! Let’s go Cubbies!

Trees and Elephants

For those of you who want a sample of what we’re learning in the FCM, I’ve got two words for you: Trees and Elephants. (Warning: this might get long)

Let’s start with the tree. This tree isn’t really an official counseling tool/model, but it is very revealing of why we do what we do.

It goes like this:
Trees grow from the roots on up

Roots -> Trunk -> Branches/Leaves -> Fruit

And similarly, we do too, but it begins with our beliefs
Beliefs -> Values -> Choices -> Behavior

Our behaviors and habits are the fruit of our beliefs. Simple enough, right? Right.

So what does this have to do with elephants?

Elephants are tamed at a young age. When they are young, their owners will tie a chain from one of their legs to a post or a tree. When a young elephant wants to run away, the chain & post is strong enough to keep it in place.

By the time the elephant is older, it is massive and strong enough to break any chain and uproot a tree, but its owner controls it the same way as before – by tying the elephant to a tree using another chain or even a rope. And when the elephant wants to run away, it feels the tension and stops because it has been conditioned to believe that it can’t break free.

And so it is with us.

You are beloved children of God, saints made in the image of God, and you have Christ in you – the hope of glory! But the enemy, the world, people, culture, traumatic events, and/or tragedy have conditioned us to believe that we cannot be who God says we are, that certain recurring sins cannot be overcome, that we’re not good enough, or that something about us is too messed up for the Cross – even though we know better…

And we find ourselves crying out for freedom.

When we believe in a lie, we live it out – it will bear fruit (shame, being hyper-critical of oneself, depression, fear, self-condemnation, striving, etc.)

By looking at the fruit of our lives, we have to ask ourselves, “Is this really what God intended? Is this in line with what God says?” And if something’s not right, we trace it back to a choice we made, which goes back to a value, which leads to a lie (or half truth) in our belief system. Then we look to the truth, repent, receive forgiveness/grace, and then apply the truth to our life.

Counseling is a ministry of change – to uproot the lies, renew the mind, restore a person to their original design, and restore their relationship with their Father. There’s more to what I wrote above and the application of truth can get difficult too, but if we ask God to search our hearts, He’ll lead the way (Psalm 139:23-24). He’s already won and holds the keys to freedom in His hand :)

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