Bridgehaven Counseling Associates & COVID-19
3/13/2020 Dear Bridgehaven Client: Hello, I hope and pray this finds you well. For those who don’t know me, my name is Tony Higgins, and I serve as both the Executive Director and as a Staff Counselor at Bridgehaven Counseling & Associates (BCA). In light of the ongoing developments related to the COVID-19 virus, I wanted to take a moment to communicate some information that may be helpful to you. First, on behalf of all of us who serve in and through BCA, I want to say “Thank You” for the trust you have placed in us. Please know, every time you and/or your family come in to meet with...
Read MoreTrusting God in the Decision to Care for a Loved One
Approximately 34.2 million Americans have provided unpaid care to an adult aged 50 or older in the past 12 months. The majority of caregivers are female (60 percent). Most caregivers are taking care of one person (82 percent) and providing care for a relative (85 percent)—most often a parent or parent-in-law (49 percent), according to the AARP and the National Alliance for Caregivers. These statistics reveal that at some point in our lives, most of us will be faced with the decision to care for a loved one—sometimes sooner than we expect. Making that choice will depend greatly on individual...
Read MoreConfronting Lies with God’s Truth
Part 5 of V on Singles Ministry in a Couple’s Culture Church 48.6%! That is the number of singles living in the Raleigh Durham area. Once our counseling center learned about this number, we knew we had to address the issue of singleness in our churches and in our community. We created this blog post to help both the church and singles understand each other better. We end this blog series with an exhortation to reject the lies about singleness and replace them with the truth that will set us free. Lies We Believe About Singleness Our flesh is prone to make idols of many things, and we...
Read MoreCreating a Family Dynamic at Church
Part 4 of V on Singles Ministry in a Couple’s Culture Church Do you remember the song “We are Family” by Sister Sledge? Here is a portion of their lyrics to refresh your memory: We are family Get up everybody and sing Everyone can see we’re together As we walk on by And, and we fly just like birds of a feather I won’t tell no lie All, all of the people around us they say Can they be that close Just let me state for the record We’re giving love in a family dose We are family (Yeah, yeah, yeah, ah) What would it look like in our churches if there was no marital divide to separate...
Read MoreThe Singles Experience
Part 3 of V on Singles Ministry in a Couple’s Culture Church Do you know how a single person experiences church in a couple’s culture? Have you asked them what their experience is like? Know Their Story The experience of singleness is highly variable and subjective. Being single in your 20s is a different experience from being single at 30, 40, 50 or even 70 and beyond. Being single can be a different experience for men and women. There are many variables to how one experiences singleness based on culture, family and social pressures, personal expectations and emotional maturity levels. What...
Read MoreChurch’s View of Singleness
Part 2 of V on Singles Ministry in a Couple’s Culture Church As a single, what has your experience in church been like? Do you feel welcomed, neglected or something else? Throughout church history there has been error and extreme views from both sides of the marriage/singleness issue that has influenced the church’s attitude about singleness. The Hebrew Rabbinic Talmud states, “The man who is not married at 20 is living in sin.” On the other side, church ascetics have lifted singleness up as a holier call or higher station in life than being married. The Catholic Church even went so far as...
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