First Step Counseling

09/18/2025

Our battle is a spiritual one. There is no other way to look at it. Hate for Christ and the order that God created is what has driven the division and chaos within our country. Hate for Christ is what has driven…

“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly rea…

09/13/2025

The reason you feel Charlie’s death so deeply is because grief doesn’t measure itself by proximity. It measures itself by meaning. You didn’t have to know him personally to feel the sting of his absence, because when a voice like his goes silent, something in the atmosphere shifts.

The reason it feels heavier than so many other tragedies is because your spirit recognizes that this is not just about a man, it is about a battle. Scripture says eternity is written on our hearts, and when someone who carried truth with boldness is suddenly gone, eternity aches within us. It’s like our souls know instinctively that the darkness celebrated, and that strikes us at the core.

The reason you can’t shake it is because psychologically, we don’t only attach ourselves to people…we attach ourselves to symbols. Charlie became a symbol of conviction in a time of compromise, courage in a time of fear. And when a symbol is struck down, it rattles something primal and eternal inside us.

That’s why even those who never met him feel it. There is a strange thread pulling at us, and it is not imagined. It is real. We are bound together by shared purpose, by shared longing for truth, by the Spirit of God Himself weaving us into a fabric that cannot be torn apart. This loss pulled at that fabric, and every one of us felt the tug.

So if you’ve wondered why this hits so hard, it’s because your soul knows. This is bigger than news. This is bigger than politics. This is about eternity, about truth, and about the weight of a man whose life carried both.

—Chad Prather

09/12/2025

“You were never meant to witness someone’s final breath… and then laugh at a TikTok.

You weren’t built for that.

Your soul wasn’t designed to hold that kind of weight and then move on like it’s nothing.

This isn’t just about tech.
This is trauma.
This is spiritual damage.

We’re overstimulated, under-connected, and completely shut down inside.

We’re seeing everything and feeling nothing.

And that should break your heart.”

— Dr. Raymond Nichols

09/10/2025

09/08/2025

First Step Counseling is growing — and we’re looking for a faith-based therapist to grow with us!
If you're passionate about evidence-based clinical care rooted in Biblical truth and want to help provide hope and compassion to the hurting community, let's talk!

Send your resume to firststepcounselor@gmail.com (attention HIRING).

08/23/2025

How to respond to your kids or even to yourself when violence threatens to steal peace?

When you or your child have witnessed an act of violence—like a shooting—it can be deeply unsettling and even traumatic. The body and mind often respond with shock, fear, intrusive memories, or hypervigilance. Both children and adults need gentle, supportive strategies to begin healing. Here are some therapeutic approaches from both a secular and Christ-centered approach.

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For Children
1. Create Safety & Stability
• Reassure them that they are safe now.
• Keep routines consistent (meals, bedtime, school). Structure helps children regain a sense of security.
2. Allow Expression
• Let them talk about what happened in their own words.
• Younger kids may draw, play, or use toys to “act out” what they saw—this is normal.
• Avoid pushing them to share before they’re ready.
3. Validate Feelings
• Acknowledge their fear, sadness, or anger: “It makes sense that you feel scared. That was very frightening.”
• Avoid minimizing (“Don’t worry, it’s fine”)—validation builds trust and healing.
4. Normalize Reactions
• Explain that nightmares, jumpiness, or clinginess can happen after scary events, but those feelings usually get better with time.
5. Teach Coping Skills
• Deep breathing: “Smell the flowers, blow out the candles.”
• Grounding games: “Find 5 things you can see, 4 you can touch…” to help calm the nervous system.
• Comfort objects (blanket, stuffed animal) can help regulate emotions.

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For Adults (and parents)
1. Acknowledge the Impact
• Trauma responses are normal after witnessing violence. Give yourself permission to feel without judgment.
2. Talk or Journal
• Share your experience with a trusted friend, counselor, or support group. Writing can also help process intrusive images or thoughts.
3. Regulate Your Body
• Trauma lives in the body—use grounding, deep breathing, stretching, or walking to calm the nervous system.
• Avoid overreliance on alcohol, news coverage, or social media replaying the event.
4. Establish Safety Cues
• Create a calm environment at home (low noise, predictable routines).
• Practice mindfulness or prayer if that aligns with your beliefs.
5. Seek Professional Support
• If symptoms persist (nightmares, panic attacks, avoidance, irritability) for weeks, therapy such as Trauma-Focused CBT (for kids) or EMDR (for adults) can help the brain reprocess traumatic memories.

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Together (Parent + Child)
• Model Calm: Children look to parents to gauge safety. Share that you also feel sad/scared but are finding ways to cope.
• Limit Media Exposure: Re-watching coverage can re-trigger trauma.
• Do Comforting Activities: Reading together, going for walks, playing, praying, or practicing relaxation as a family.

Faith-Based Grounding & Comfort Activities
1. Prayer as Grounding
• Encourage the child (or yourself) to whisper or speak a simple prayer when fear arises: “Jesus, please keep me safe,” or “Lord, help me feel Your peace.”
• This not only redirects attention away from fear but also instills a sense of divine presence and protection.
2. Scripture as a Calming Tool
• Choose short, reassuring verses they can repeat when anxious. Examples:
• “When I am afraid, I will trust in You.” (Psalm 56:3)
• “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” (Psalm 23:1)
• “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.” (John 14:27)
• Writing or drawing these verses on a card and keeping it nearby makes them accessible in moments of fear.
3. Jesus as a “Safe Place” Visualization
• Guide the child to imagine sitting with Jesus in a peaceful, safe spot—perhaps walking with Him by a quiet stream or sitting with Him under a tree.
• This visualization combines both imagination and spiritual comfort, reinforcing the idea that they are never alone.
4. Worship & Song
• Singing or humming a favorite worship song (even quietly) can regulate breathing and lift the heart toward hope. For children, something simple like “Jesus Loves Me” can be calming and reassuring.
5. Cross as a Comfort Object
• Holding a small cross, wearing a bracelet with a cross, or even drawing one on paper can provide a tangible reminder of Jesus’ protection.
• This acts like a grounding object.

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⚠️ Important: If either you or your child experience intense flashbacks, extreme withdrawal, or thoughts of self-harm, reach out immediately to a mental health professional or crisis hotline like 988.

08/23/2025

Registration for the 3rd Annual Bethel Christian Church Women's Conference is now open. Please sign-up, tell your friends, and share this post. https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf6STHOZCSKnGMC0FJchnYQGOE6evKOwJPuZQLirE46uyYmew/viewform?usp=sharing&ouid=101425867246573306683

08/13/2025

Church is supposed to be a safe place for believers to gather, build relationships, and deepen their walk with God. But what happens when the very place you run to for comfort and safety becomes the source of your deepest wounds? Church hurt is real, and for too long, it’s been swept under the rug by church leaders, well-meaning parishioners, and denominational organizations. Today, we’re pulling it into the light—because what stays hidden can’t be healed.

Church is supposed to be a safe place for believers to gather, build relationships, and deepen their walk with God. But what happens when the very place you run to for comfort and safety becomes th…

07/25/2025

07/08/2025

When words fail—
when the headlines hit too close to home,
when tragedy knocks the wind out of a community,
when silence sits heavier than sound—
God still speaks.

Not always with explanations.
Not always with the clarity we crave.
But always with presence.

Because presence is His language.
It shows up in the quiet moments, the long pauses, the arms that hold without needing answers.
It rises in the stillness of grief and says, “You are not alone. You will never be alone. Wherever you go, I already am.”

And He doesn’t stop there.
He moves through His people. Angels in disguise. Over and over again, we see His fingerprints like mercy threading through our lives.

Through the text that simply says, “I’m here.”
Through the meals left on porches and the prayers prayed at 2am and the compassion offered from one heart to another— a million words said without none at all.
Through the collective ache of strangers who decide that someone else’s pain matters too.
It is just like Heaven that even in the storms, God’s kindness is too strong, too steady, and too sure to deny.

This is how Heaven breaks through earth:
Not just in rescue, but in response.
It is not just that God is everywhere, but that the Presence moves through His people—
and there are angels all around.

The veil is thin…but so is the distance between sorrow and sacred.
Between the ache we feel and the comfort He gives.
Between the pain of earth and the pulse of Heaven.
Somehow, some way…amidst the most horrific and hard circumstances, the kindness of God and His people are a life raft in the storm.
There is always light breaking through the clouds.

—Cleerely Stated Stated Mike Moyers Fine Art

06/23/2025

Speak this over your week!

Cleerely Stated

06/16/2025

Speak this over your week.

Cleerely Stated