You Can Hope Again Counselling

“He himself bore our sins” in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; “by his wounds, you have been healed” (I Peter 2:24, NIV).

Love of Christ shine out of me

Open hands of Christ to suffering humanity

Valiant spirit of Christ, help me fight against inhumanity

Enfold me in a far greater humility

Christ who died carrying the weight of your sin to the cross

asks you would pray,

“Make me free from sin’s captivity.

Erase all the wounds in me.”

Kevin and Karen Osborne are psychotherapists and pastoral counselors. Kevin is going to be a chaplain. He also feels called to be a professor of Psychology specializing in Pastoral Theology. Karen is the Director of a women’s abuse shelter. She enjoys doing cross-stitch while I like writing and singing songs. Karen makes me laugh when she sings the kitty bed-time song saying, “It’s that time. It’s the bestest kitty time of the day!” Kevin enjoys teasing the kitties and making them do kitty dances with music. Their kitty, Catherine, loves it when kitty daddeh sings All Things Bright and Beautiful. Kevin likes doing impressions. He tells children’s stories and helps others with their problems using his hand puppets, Dr. Teddy, who is a therapy teddy bear, and Mike the Moose from Matheson. This is a small town in northern Ontario, Canada, an hour’s drive south of the city of Timmins. Dr. Teddy and Mike the Moose from Matheson are consultants with us in our counselling practice.We are available to assist with worship and preaching to give busy ministers a much-needed break. We offer in-office, and phone counselling to anyone in the world.

Co-author on Mind’s Seat, a Christian inspirational blog

God’s peace walked with me amidst my busy day

His strength was with me as I did pray

He reminded me Christ is my hope and stay

His love is with me all the way

I love You, Father, more than I could ever say

When I get it wrong, You are always there to forgive

Have me my apology to those I’ve hurt give

Then, I feel a growing love for them in my heart live

Thank you, Father, for loving me with all my sin

Cleansing sin’s soot within

Flow healing river within me

Make me who I ought to be

Looking beyond my abusive past I finally feel free

See more of my God-given destiny

Blue sky of joy peaking through the gray I see

I rejoice that You love me!

Help me each day to love others as You love me

Never be offended by their hostility

Look beyond hurtful words to the pain inside You see

Listen with my heart and mind to suffering humanity

Everyone has something to teach me

A lesson

An experience

A new way of looking at things

In my weaknesses am I made strong

Through my challenges I see how You to my life does belong

You use those who can’t walk, hear, see or slow to understand

To teach others how we’re all fearfully and wonderfully made by Your hand

No one is ugly in Your eyes

We’re all beautiful

We’re all unique

Help me and all of us see Your path of peace, forgiveness and love

To soak in Your peace with all the business of life

To feel the healing flow of forgiving others and ourselves

To love one another as Your Son loved

Unconditionally

Completely

Sacrificially

With two open hands

Thank You, Father, for teaching us about Your peace, forgiveness and love.

Amen.

Kevin and Karen Osborne are Christian pastoral counsellors and psychotherapists. Kevin is studying to become a chaplain and professor of Psychology specializing in Pastoral Theology. We have started You Can Hope Again Counselling. Karen enjoys doing cross-stitch while I like writing and singing songs. Karen makes me laugh when she sings the kitty bed-time song saying, “It’s that time. It’s the bestest kitty time of the day!” Kevin enjoys teasing the kitties and making them do kitty dances with music. Their kitty, Catherine, loves it when kitty daddeh sings All Things Bright and Beautiful. Kevin likes doing impressions. He tells children’s stories and helps others with their problems using his hand puppet, Dr. Teddy, who is a therapy bear. He is a partner with us in our counselling practice.We are available to assist with worship and preaching to give busy pastors and ministers a much-needed break. We offer in-office, and phone counselling to anyone in the world.

Co-author on Mind’s Seat, a Christian inspirational blog

Dear reader:

This reflection is based upon life experience and real situations that happen in the lives of others.

I’m in a hurry today

So many gifts to buy

Lineups in the store to face

Deadlines to meet at work

Have to deal with my teenage daughter addicted to drugs

An eight year-old special needs son, for whom I never have enough time

My wife is in burnout

Both of us are juggling a career and family

She never has enough time for me

She tells me I never have enough time for her

When can we have time to breathe?

To stop this hectic pace of our lives

Have we focused too much on doing and not enough on being?

Father, do You hear us?

Where are You?

We have lost our way

We don’t know if we can go on

Father, show us the way back to You

Show us how we can get our lives back

our family back

Father, we hear You

You want us to spend more time alone with You

To feed on Your Holy Word

Flood our souls with music that quietens us

Be willing to let go of this stressful pace of our lives

You call us to spend more time with our children

To never stop loving our daughter

Be willing to fight for her recovery

Tell her in love she needs to go into treatment for her drug addiction

You say to my heart I need to love my wife more

Pray You would put Your love in my heart for her

You call to my heart to embrace my son more

Encourage him that through his learning challenges You’re calling him to help others

We pour out our hearts to You

You let our tears come

Then, You remind us of this truth:

Those who are lost can be found.

They only need to say,

“Lord, here I am with all my sin.

Let me from the darkness come in.

Warm my longing spirit with Your love’s flame,

remembering Your Son,

who died that a world in darkness would see

Christ’s light that shines eternally.”

Father, thank you for loving me and my family

For teaching us about love from Bethlehem freely given

Love that was born in a manger to give us life

Love that grew up to give all it could

dying for a sinful world on Calvary’s cross

Love that heals us

Love that sees us

Love that hears us

Love that knows us

Love that conquers hate in us and others

Love that gives hope

Love that releases Your love to all we see

Kevin and Karen Osborne are Christian pastoral counsellors and psychotherapists. Kevin is studying to become a chaplain and professor of Psychology specializing in Pastoral Theology. We have started You Can Hope Again Counselling. Karen enjoys doing cross-stitch while I like writing and singing songs. Karen makes me laugh when she sings the kitty bed-time song saying, “It’s that time. It’s the bestest kitty time of the day!” Kevin enjoys teasing the kitties and making them do kitty dances with music. Their kitty, Catherine, loves it when kitty daddeh sings All Things Bright and Beautiful. Kevin likes doing impressions. He tells children’s stories and helps others with their problems using his hand puppet, Dr. Teddy, who is a therapy bear. He is a partner with us in our counselling practice.We are available to assist with worship and preaching to give busy pastors and ministers a much-needed break. We offer in-office, and phone counselling to anyone in the world.

Co-author on Mind's Seat, a Christian inspirational blog

I have had people who have been mean to me

There are times forgiveness for them has been awfully hard to see

But I had to learn by holding on to the past of my abuse

verbally, emotionally, physically, to no one could I be of use

I had to let go of hate

Let love in

That’s the thing that gives true peace within

It’s tough to forgive those who have hurt you

To release all of that pain

It will take time to forgive

That a renewed hope for life in your heart would live

I pray that you would see hate will only leave you imprisoned

Caught

Bound

Trapped

It took me decades to begin forgiving my father for abusing my mother, brother, two sisters and me

I was filled with sadness

Times were rare when I would have true gladness

I had to see through the lies that I was weak, and always would be a failure

Counsellors, family, friends and colleagues helped me see I am not the lies I was told

Guided me in singing a new song of

Freedom

Beauty

Love

Joy

There were times I screamed at God, “When I was abused why weren’t You there?

If You didn’t stop it, then You don’t care!”

When I became a Christian at 19 as I prayed at the altar I felt God say to me,

“Kevin, in every blow, in every slap, in all the terrible things your father and others said about you, do you really think I wasn’t there?

I felt every tear you cried

I was angry at how you were rejected by your father

I was there all the nights as a child and adult you have been afraid to sleep

Terrified your father would come into your room, smother you with a pillow

I was with you when you prayed at five under that willow tree

Pleaded with Me from your father’s abuse you and your family would be set free

I know this is hard for you to see now

I can’t change the way others act towards you

When I created you and all humanity,

I gave you the ability to choose how you would behave

Look at all they did to my one and only Son

He was

Rejected

Hated

Abandoned by his followers

Persecuted

Ridiculed

Beaten

Crucified

Don’t you think that tore away at me?

How I allowed Him to die

How he asked Me on Calvary’s cross,

“Eloi, Eloi, sabachtani?”

Meaning, “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?”

In his humanity He asked the same question you’re asking Me now

“Father, when I needed You most, You where nowhere to be found

Alone, abandoned You left me!”

“Kevin, this truth I hope you will come to believe

I didn’t want you to be abused

But some day you will see how loving and gentle a man of God you are

Why?

Because of all I allowed you to go through

That for others you would be truly there

For others you would mean it when you say, “I care.

I will be here as long as you need me,

so from your abuse, from whatever issue you have,

you would be set free.”

Kevin and Karen Osborne are Christian pastoral counsellors and psychotherapists. Kevin is studying to become a psychologist and professor of Psychology. He feels called to also be a chaplain. We have started You Can Hope Again Counselling. Karen enjoys doing cross-stitch while I like writing and singing songs. Karen makes me laugh when she sings the kitty bed-time song saying, “It’s that time. It’s the bestest kitty time of the day!” Kevin enjoys teasing the kitties and making them do kitty dances with music. Their kitty, Catherine, loves it when kitty daddeh sings All Things Bright and Beautiful. Kevin likes doing impressions. He tells children’s stories and helps others with their problems using his hand puppet, Dr. Teddy, who is a therapy bear. He is a partner with us in our counselling practice.We are available to assist with worship and preaching to give busy pastors and ministers a much-needed break. Please visit our counselling website, where you will also find our blogs. We offer in-office, and phone counselling to anyone in the world.

Co-author on Mind's Seat, a Christian nspirational blog

I spoke with hope for a while as he walked with me.

These are the thoughts he shared with me.

There is a Christian leader I know who follows God.

He is soon to loose his home and car.

I have made appeal after appeal,

only to have those faithful few answer the call.

Hope, please answer this question that perplexes me.

Where is greater community for this beloved friend, a valued mentor

who is seriously ill,

who is down to eating oatmeal and peanut butter?

Hope paused and then prayed before answering this question.

Then, he said to me,

“There are still people who care,

who for the suffering are truly there.

In this ever-darkening world they are getting harder to find;

those who have not forgotten the inner healing power of being kind.

The god of materialism reigns because many live with secret pains,

they don’t want others to see.

They get temporary pleasure from things;

from their big screen TV saying, “I get 500 channels.

Don’t you see how happy I am?”

I live where there is yet those who care;

in those who say to the hurting, “I am there.

I will not go away.

Please tell me how I can bring hope to you today?”

I exist in those who have suffered their own secret pain;

who see when we reach out to others a helping hand,

that’s where hope does with that bleeding soul stand.

Hope said, “There are many people needing me —

the abused, addicted, broken-hearted, those with physical and developmental challenges, rich, poor, sick, searching souls and the lonely.

I must go, so they will not give up on me.”

I’m thankful for the time hope walked with me

Taught me more about him

Brought some brightness into my day

Put a smile upon my face

Had me pray for me and all of us to have a more compassionate humanity,

because like it says in God’s Word, “These three remain,

faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love.”

Love is the fire that gives hope life.

Love is the gift we all can give,

for it is in giving love, and helping with the needs of others, hope does truly live.

Your abuser has told you that you are garbage

That you are of no use

You will always be refuse

Today, hear this truth and hear it deep inside

When from life you seek to hide

Tears are with you day and night

You live in darkness, desire to see light

Because the many lies your abuser has beaten you to believe

Remember your abuser’s goal is you to deceive

To tell you that you are ugly

To have you become a false self

Not the true self you are meant to be

You are a beautiful person inside

Not ugly

Not stupid

Not a failure

Speak these truths to yourself over and over

I am beautiful

I am creative

I am articulate

I am intelligent

I am an overcomer

Believe that in your hurt and pain

New life and hope you will gain

Reach out to those who care

Who will tell you the true person that lies within there

I have been abused too

My schizophrenic father so many times did beat me

He did not in his sickness want me the truth to see

Did not want me from my prison of lies to be set free

These are the lies he told me

You are stupid

You are weak

You are clumsy

Your brother is smarter than you’ll ever be

And these killing words did he say over me

"Kevin, I wish you had never been born.

You disappoint me.

A failure you will always be."

I’m healing from my abuse

Know that I’m not a piece of refuse

And neither are you

Hear the truth of who you are

Heal that searing scar

Don’t try to heal on your own

Don’t try to gunnysack the pain

Hear love’s sweet refrain

That there is a plan and purpose for your life

All things are possible to those who believe

Who love from others they are willing to receive

Who will take your hand through your living hell

And will tell you that you’re really swell

That is how you will go from abuse to alleluia

Because this truth you will then know

That you have an overcoming story to share

And the wounded healer you shall be

The victorious healer you shall be!

Because lives from their living hell you are setting free

The truth that they are beautiful they will see

What an ambassador of hope you will be!

When broken lives their abuse and alleluia you teach others to see

What an overcoming story that will be!