How to be a Wonderful Counselor

What if the thing that finally reaches your struggling teenager isn’t a powerful lecture—but one simple conversation repeated every week?

Greyson was sixteen when gaming took over his life. His parents tried restrictions, counseling, activities, prayers, and priesthood blessings. Nothing seemed to work. He lost his friends, his scholarship, and his place at BYU. But one small and simple habit never stopped: every Sunday, one parent spent Time Alone with him.  “By small and simple things are great things brought to pass.” — Alma 37:6

In this episode, discover why consistent, loving attention can accomplish what lectures and consequences cannot—and how “small and simple things” can help the Lord bring about great changes in your child’s life.

Small and simple things. Every week. Every week. Every week.

When someone loses everything — like Job did — what do you actually say?

Most well-meaning comfort accidentally lands as criticism: "At least they're with God now." "Everything happens for a reason." "Cheer up." In this video, we walk through the Old Testament story of Job and use the CALM method to show what compassionate care really sounds like:

C – Ask a Compassionate question (not a critical one)
A – Bring in Ask/facts to help move pain from the emotional brain to the logical brain
L – Find what the Lord says in scripture
M – Land on one small My Next Step

Job lost his children, his health, his wealth — and his friends made it worse by implying it was his fault. We show how to avoid that trap, how to validate real pain without rushing someone past it, and how one verse changed everything for Job:

"Thou knowest the greatness of God; and he shall consecrate thine afflictions for thy gain." — 2 Nephi 2:2

Faith doesn't mean pretending life is fair. It means trusting that through Jesus Christ, pain doesn't have to be wasted.

🕊️ If you're walking with someone through catastrophic loss — or living through it yourself — this one's for you.

 #LatterDaySaint #GriefCounseling #Parenting

What do you do when you simply don’t feel strong enough for what you’re facing?

In this episode, I share how financial stress, rental-property problems, and a very opinionated Norwegian inner critic led me back to Alma 31:31–38 and Alma’s prayer for strength.

Using the C-A-L-M Method, we’ll look at how faith, wise thinking, and one inspired next step can help us face problems we cannot immediately fix.

Struggling with a child who's always on a screen? You don't need a Counseling degree — you need C.A.L.M.

In this video, we dive into Words of Mormon 1:18 and pull out a simple, scripture-rooted framework any parent can use when gaming or social media has taken over their child's life. After 30 years of clinical counseling experience, I've distilled it down to four steps:

C – Concerns
A – AI-assisted facts and logic
L – Lord
M – My next step

No advanced degree required — just a willingness to sit down with your child, lean on this scripture, and walk through four steps that actually work. Whether your son is glued to a controller or your daughter can't put her phone down, CALM gives you a practical, faith-centered starting point.

You don't need a master's degree in counseling psychology to comfort, guide, and inspire.

In this series, I share the best of my 30 years of professional counseling experience, distilled into simple steps you can actually use.

You'll learn how to listen with compassion, use AI carefully as a research assistant, and find one powerful scripture that can become a lifeline for someone you love — something you can keep "in your back pocket" for the difficult moments.

Most importantly, these scriptures will help you comfort those who stand in need of comfort and help ease heavy burdens.

This series is about becoming more like our Savior Jesus Christ, the most wonderful Counselor of all.

What do you say when your child comes home hurt, embarrassed, and worn down from being picked on?

In this episode of Comfort and Counsel, we step inside a father-and-son pickup truck conversation with a 13-year-old boy who is being bullied because he is short. Using Helaman 5:12, we explore how parents, counselors, and leaders can help a child feel understood, find wisdom that applies to his problem, find out "What Would God Say?, and begin building confidence on the rock of Jesus Christ.

When your child comes to you carrying heartbreak and pain, it can be hard to know what to say. Using AI as a thoughtful research assistant to help answer the question, “What would God say?” this podcast which is about a middle school teacher in rural Texas. It teaches you how to combine the best counseling psychology strategies I developed over 30 years of clinical experience with the power of God’s word. You will learn 5 simple steps to offer emotional support, seek wisdom and the words of God, and help your child or client find inspired next steps and healing through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. 

How do you bridle your natural man or woman?  How do you reign in yourself from thoughts and behaviors that are taking you down a destructive path?  I'm hoping to illustrate how Mosiah 3:19, which I used to think of as a prickly scripture, is a real gem to help yourself or those you love.

A Father who's 14 year old is so depressed that she thinks about taking her life, finds peace and strength in the Savior.  These two scriptures are good for anyone facing a tough challenge.

What are some great scriptures to help someone who is being bullied or emotionally abused?  Actually todays scripture, Alma 7:11-12 can help with a myriad of problems.  Listen to see an example of how to use it most effectively.