Hey friend, I'm Julie Slattery and you're listening to Java with Julie.

Hey, thanks for joining me today. This listener-supported podcast is an outreach

of authentic intimacy, a ministry dedicated to reclaiming God's design for

sexuality. Well, whether it's in your relationships or a particular pain

point in your life, you probably know what it feels like to be stuck. Maybe

you're stuck in a sin pattern that you can't stop, or maybe you're just stuck in

the same argument over and over again with your spouse. You might be stuck in a

cycle of blame and anger you can't get out of. Whereas an individual, maybe you're

stuck in a cycle of self-condemnation, shame, and bitterness. How do we get unstuck

in our relationship with the Lord and our relationship with other people?

Well, sometimes we need the help of a neutral third party

to get us unstuck. And that's why our conversation today is all about

counseling. Now counseling can feel intimidating or embarrassing. You might

think, what if someone finds out I'm seeing a counselor? Or maybe you have real

worries about how much it will cost or you don't know where to look for a

good counselor? Well, today we want to offer you some reasons why

finding a good Christian counselor is worth that effort. My guess today are Greg

and Aaron Smolley. Greg is a psychologist and the president of

Marriage and Family Formation at Focus on the Family.

And Aaron is a licensed professional counselor. They've been my friends on

Java many, many times and there's always a lot of laughter along with a lot of

wisdom. But before we head to the coffee shop, I want to let you know that the

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