You offer pastoral counseling. Why are you called Iaomai Farms?

A farm is a place of life where you see plants and animals grow, face challenges, and if well cared for, thrive. In the New Testament and Greek translation of the Old Testament (Septuagint), iaomai (pronounce ee-ah'-om-ahee) is one of the words translated to English as healing. People are often familiar with therapeuo from which we get our word therapeutic. This engages natural processes that foster healing and wholeness. However, the healing that iaomai describes always relates to when God is central to and clearly the proponent of healing and restoration. It is used when Jesus heals, when Christians are told to pray for one another that they might be healed, and even in the Septuagint when God is referred to as “God our Healer.” We see pastoral counseling as a relational space in which the Holy Spirit works, bringing healing and restoration that is not possible apart from Him. Iaomai Farms is a ministry fostering healing and growth that is only possible when God is at work.

What does a pastoral counseling session look like?

It is very similar to other counseling sessions in that there is a formatted time, we work to understand your needs and goal(s), and get to know you and the dynamics that have brought to you this current situation. As we explore your background and situation(s), we include things that secular counseling does not include such as prayer, Biblical insight and application, and aspects of spiritual formation and discipleship.

You mention both pastoral counseling and Christian counseling. What’s the difference?

Good catch! Words have meaning, and they are important! Different organizations advertise Christian counseling. Some use that to mean they are professional counselors who include their Christian perspective. Others use that synonymously with “Biblical counseling” or nouthetic counseling—a model that focuses on rightly understanding and applying the Bible and normally does not include application of clinical or therapeutic models. Because many people do not have a box for pastoral counseling, we use choose to also use the verbiage of Christian counseling. On our website, we use these two terms interchangeably. It is fitting as pastoral counseling is rooted in the pastor’s theological background (for us, Christianity). It also fits as it falls between where others frequently apply the term. We begin from a Biblically-rooted theological foundation, complemented by contemporary psychological data and training in various therapeutic models, decades of pastoral leadership and pastoral counseling experience, and prayerfully integrate those as we come alongside and care for people.

What kinds of issues or situations do people seek pastoral counseling for?

Just to name a few:
-Greif, loss, and trauma
-Burnout or compassion fatigue
-Anxiety, worry, fear
-Depression or feeling “stuck”
-Changes and unmet expectations
-Conflict management or anger management

-Pre-marital and marital counseling
-Christian faith-based questions and challenges
-Sabbatical planning and support
-Significant transitions such as career change, divorce, becoming empty nesters, and other major life changes

I am a minister wrestling with situations I might not want my denominational or church leadership to know about. What are the limits of your confidentiality?

Ministers can have so many challenges—especially if we have made some choices that go against our faith community’s standards and what we aspire to. Though this is not the situation of every pastor we support, we know pastors are people, and people make mistakes and fail to live up to expectations. That’s part of our need for forgiveness, grace, and restoration. If you have messed up, we will journey alongside you as we look at what led to that and how God wishes to work in your life. We do not run to your denominational or church leadership, or family members, or other parties to divulge what you have shared. We will only share what you explicitly wish us to do so if a situation arises where you wish for us share information divulged in private. If you do request that, we will do a written agreement detailing what that information will be so that we are all on the same sheet before any action is taken. We have great respect for the sacred space of clergy confidentiality, confession, and the pastoral counseling relationship. The only limitations to this are per Texas law discussing clergy privileged communication. These are discussed in Texas Rule of Evidence 505, Texas Family Code § 261.202, and Texas Human Resources Code § 48.051. These discuss that clergy-confidentiality does not apply in situations involving abuse, neglect, or exploitation of a child, elderly person, person with a disability, or individual receiving services from a healthcare provider. In these situations, clergy must report them. If in doubt, we can have a conversation about general situations impacting confidentiality and how those may apply in our relationship.

What is a chaplain?

Great question! Chaplains are ministers with special skill sets and training who serve in very specific ministry contexts. Chaplains are often found in hospitals, prisons, our military services, and fire and police departments. Many corporations and communities also employ chaplains.

What are the qualifications to serve as pastoral counselors? Is there some sort of certification or oversight system?

According to the Texas Administrative Code (§681.2), pastoral counselors are an exempted category separate from professional counselors (LPC, LMFT, LCSW). To paraphrase the code, pastoral counselors are recognized religious practitioners who operate under the auspices of a recognized religious group (ie, ordination by a religious body), remain accountable to the authority of that group, and do not present themselves as professional counselors. With this in mind, Aimee and Brian are ordained clergy with the Assemblies of God. This ordination can be removed if we violate various professional standards for our denomination. Additionally, we are endorsed as Pastoral Care Chaplains by the Assemblies of God Chaplaincy Ministries. This endorsement has education, experience, and professional requirements beyond our ministerial ordination. This is required of professional chaplains in institutional settings, such as hospitals, prisons, and the military. Additionally, our endorsement can be removed if we violate professional standards or do not maintain professional proficiency. These two items speak to our professional competency, having been vetted, and remaining accountable to professional standards independent of Iaomai Farms. That is in addition to each of us having more than 20 years of various ministry experiences, multiple thousands of hours of pastoral counseling, over a decade as military chaplains, and other experiences and training as helping professionals and providing pastoral care and counseling.

In your description, you mention leaning “on the Holy Spirit and attending to His role and work in our lives.” What does that mean? Do you just pray problems away? Do you reject clinical models and modern psychology?

As pastoral counselors, we understand that a) God created us for relationship with Him, b) that every situation in life fosters opportunities for experiencing God’s redemptive work in and through our lives, c) that many people are distracted with noise and busy-ness of life that we miss what God is clearly wanting to speak and do in our lives, and d) many people have difficulty translating what Scripture teaches to actioning it in their daily lives. While these last two items do not fit every person, they frequently are the case. Regardless, it is a healthy, spiritually integrative place to begin with exploring a person’s experience of their life and God’s interactions with them.

We do not reject modern psychology. We are trained in a variety of helping/therapeutic models (ie, Solution Focused, Cognitive-Behavioral, Emotionally Focused, Collaborative Couples Therapies) as well as popular curriculums (7 Habits of Highly Effective People/Couples/Families, How to Avoid Marrying a Jerk/Jerkette, Speed of Trust, and more). These may provide insight, assist with our process, and offer meaningful frameworks or tools for engaging various problems. But as we meet together with the expectation of God meeting with us, it is incredible the insights and comfort the Holy Spirit brings as we honestly wrestle with and engage the hard things in life. As He shows up, there is insight and healing that might not have arrived if we (Aimee and Brian) are focused on models and our own observations/insights. There is great value in the clinical models and coaching tools available, but they alone cannot accomplish the deep healing and growth God can bring.

All that to say, we offer a spiritually integrative approach that holistically engages each person. We engage Biblically-based theologically realities in our reflection and interpretation of experiences people bring. We implement meaningful discipleship, emotional, and relational practices for the individual or couple’s growth. And as we continue meeting, people also grow in their awareness of God’s presence, leading, movement, and ongoing work in their lives.

Counseling is expensive, what if I cannot afford it?

We understand and appreciate the financial challenges with seeking help, whether that is through counseling or other services. Our rates are already well below the average charged by other organizations so that it may be more accessible. For those with financial hardship, you may qualify for a discounted rate. Please contact us for more information and to discuss if this might be an option available to you.