Pastoral Counseling receives some of the credit for the recent success rate at an Addiction Treatment Center in Jacksonville, Florida. “A New Life” at Lakeview Health is offering Pastoral Counseling in their Christian Drug Rehab. In a recent article published by Religion and Public Interest, using research by the Gallop Organization and Lilly Endowment Inc it was reported that 79 % of Americans acknowledge faith can help them recover from illness.
The Drug Rehab Center in Jacksonville’s Pastoral Counseling is preformed by the same clergy that offers Celebrate Recovery, attended by patients in the Christian Program. This familiarity increases the comfort level necessary for the counseling relationship to develop.
There exists today an excellent understanding of the medical aspects of addiction. Theologically addiction my be a poor attempt to satisfy a spiritual need. “Our hearts are restless until they rest in God” a statement by Augustine directly speaks to the addicted person. The first three steps in the 12 step program speak to admission, hope, restoration and faith in a higher power. Pastoral Counseling will help in recovery that often involves a spiritual journey to accept God and develop a personal relationship with that God.