Basics to Restoration Ministries Approach Toward Prayer Counseling

Our experience has shown that most people in the churches that the Holy Spirit has called us to minister in, have a healthy, genuine desire to serve God with their whole being and take their rightful place in the body where God wants them to serve. The problem is not desire but due to past unresolved issues, unhealed hurts or unmet needs that have not been properly addressed or healed,they keep running into roadblocks, strongholds, or things that keep them in bondage or prevents them from experiencing all that God has purposed for them. Quite often deep seeded painful lies that become experiential truths such as thinking they are "too unworthy, shameful, inadequate, or fearful etc. to be used of God" causes many to fall short of the purpose and fulfillment of God. When these lie-based mindsets experience real truth, given directly by Holy Spirit, radical freedom and joy comes, which truly puts them on a high level growth curve to experiencing the kingdom of God as it should be.

In the process or prayer model we use, we are primarily facilitators, not counselors as most would interperate or practice counseling in the church today. We certainly agree and believe in Christian counseling, but believe the primary role for Christian counseling is more effective in the teaching/discipleship area, which is important in prepartion and follow up to deliverance and emotional healing sessions.

As a facilitator we help people pray through their issues by relying totally on the Holy Spirit/Jesus-the Counselor to bring truth. Jesus/Holy Spirit brings truth usually by the inner voice of the Spirit and in many cases visually. This level of truth is more personal and penetrating to the point of real transformation, which is more permanent because it comes with the anointing of Spirit and Truth,producing fruit that lasts. This new truth then replaces the lie based thinking or negative mind sets that cause struggles. We then come into prayers of agreement with individuals, breaking the lies of the enemy (stronholds) and deliverance of demonic spirits. Jesus is their deliver and brings release of the broken chains of bondage by the power and authority of His Spirit. The fruit of this freedom is very apparent and tangible. "He whom the Son sets free is free indeed"!!

It is our experience, that follow up discipleship/counseling is needed in many cases, to give understanding and to equip tem to maintain the truth received. At this point counseling/discipleship is more productive since the blocks of hearing are removed, so the seeds of truth fall on good soil and produce good fruit.

Some of the definite advantages to this type of ministry over the normal Christian counseling ministries of the church are:

• People's lives,marriages, and all relationships are being healed and transformed dramatically in considerably less time of ministry.
• When prayer counseling shifts from man's God given counsel to the direct communication (counsel) with Jesus/Holy Spirit, a higher level of life changing truth is experienced.
• The chance of developing a co-dependency between counselor and client is greatly reduced. Infact these Holy Spirit/Jesus encounter sessions show people how they can depend on the abiding Holy Spirit within them to lead them to more freedom as their comforter, helper and counselor.
• The pressure of responsibility of the prayer counselor to bring infallible counsel is lifted when the reliance is on the Holy Spirit/Counselor to bring truth. The training level changes from training people in understanding the whole counsel of God (gospel) and all wisdom, to being lead by the Spirit relying on the gifts of the Spirit. Certainly, a level of maturity is required, but the demand of having all the Godly answers is reduced. The life changing fruit in people's lives certainly is greater in comparision.
• Lay people can be used in this ministry, giving fulfillment in their lives. Many, who have a call and gifting to this type of ministry but are unable to acquire or can not afford several years of professional training, can be effectively used in ministry.
• The pastoral load is shared with others ad allows the Pastor to spend more time where their main calling and responsibilities lie. In many instances, a few counseling cases can involve incredible amounts of time by the Pastor, who then neglects the proper care over the whole flock, or suffers from overload and burn out. Many times those who really need this kind of ministry are lost or not attended to soon enough and backslide, etc.