M Scott Williams

I am a student from the great state of Idaho. I am currently enrolled at Grand Canyon University (GCU) focusing on master's of science in Clinical Mental Health with and emphasis in Christian Counseling and Trauma. I am also enrolled in three other programs that are currently focusing on trauma, narcissism, and biblical context.

Through these programs I will be obtaining my counseling certifications and licensure and then begin my next season of life being a mental health counselor here in the Treasure Valley. I spend most of my time working, attending school, participating in Celebrate Recovery (CR) and family life. However my spare time is devoted to my grandkids, my daughter and girlfriend, and if I have time, enjoying my hobbies of welding, car rebuilding, and of course my horse. A horse is a horse unless of course it is the not so famous Hercules.

I am a strong man of the Christian faith. My faith will be an intrigal part of my counseling so I can address not only the mental health of my clients but also their spiritual and faith-based health as well. As time permits I will enjoy adding Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) to my skill set as I already have some of the certifications and Hercules has already been a part of the process.

I believe strongly in the mental health of the Treasure Valley and want to say YES to my Higher Power, Jesus Christ, in a way that not only deepens my own recovery but also allows me to give that recovery away to others. To serve the purpose of this educational pursuit in such a way that I can meet people right where they are at, walk with them in their journey, and allow them to heal in a positive and meaningful way. Every person has a story inside of them, when that story is shared it becomes a powerful force that can glorify our Higher Power and deepen their relationship with God, self and others.

In my darkest moment God said to me "But I will restore you to health and heal your wounds,’

declares the Lord,‘because you are called an outcast, Zion for whom no one cares.’ " I remember thinking over that for a few days and then realized that was Jeremiah 30:17.

In just three years I have a softened heart, a new relationship with Christ and others, a freedom only found in my recovery and now see the reason that people had a song on lips and joy in their hearts as found in Psalm 126.

What is God telling you about your life verse?

Are you ready for 12 small steps and 8 principles? If so find a local CR near you and begin a new life in recovery from your hurts, hang-ups and habits. Find a Christian counselor near you to help you balance mind, body, soul, and spirit.

Please remember if you were abused in any way ---You are not responsible for what others have done to you, it was their choice and their will to inflict that damage on you. I encourage you to lay the blame down and take time to love yourself and to love your heavenly Father.

There have been times in our life where we need to step back and look at ourselves and ask what is our purpose in this moment. In this moment, I am being led to follow an old dream of becoming a certified counselor to help others out of trauma and PTSD due to abusive situations. I recently graduated with my B.A. in Psychology with an emphasis in Mental Health and now I am fully engaged in my Master of Science in Clinical Mental Health degree with an emphasis in Trauma and Christian Counseling.

My story of Intimate Partner Abuse (IPA), Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), codependency, depression and suicidal idealization has allowed me to understand others in similar situations. I have a deeper understanding of the stigma of mental health and how this affects men on a deeper level of community connections. I truly understand the fear of sharing the story of abuse, the fear of not being believed or understood, the abandonment and manipulation of others, and the stigma of traditional views of the male being only the abuser-not the victim. Through my journey I rebelled against God partly because of my belief of him allowing this abuse to happen to me. I nearly walked away from his grace and loving mercy. I have since realized that he was always with me, and that it was the choice of that trusted partner to be abusive, and that it was my brokenness,my codependency, my fear of sharing my story that allowed me to endure it.

Through a new walk with God and surrendering my life to him I have found a new path to follow that is now free of the hurts, hang-ups, and habit of my codependency, of my choices to move into a broken relationship with broken people. It is often heard "Hurt people, hurt people"- I was certainly a receiver of this and being a broken and hurt person myself I have had to make my amends for those I hurt as well. I am now free to look at my own story, sit with my own hurts, and rewrite my story of abuse. This site is designed to offer others an opportunity to share in my story, maybe find a nugget of hope, a mustard seed let's say, and begin their own journey of recovery.

I have found my strength in Celebrate Recovery, a faith based recovery program. If you want to know more please look at the Celebrate Recovery page for more information. As you read through some of the lessons I teach at my local CR you will find that I use a lot of resources and excepts, parts of my story, and lessons from the CR national team, these are meant for the sole purpose of the teaching and I give full credit to those sources. I could not do many of the teaching without the support of my fellow wayfarers, research articles, and fellow writers. I have shared my testimony at three CR churches at this point and hope to share at more. I love the idea of sharing my story not because I love to talk about myself, but because our stories have the power to connect mankind, the power to break the stigma of mental health, and to to break the hold of the enemy over our lives.

Michael Ivanov shares in his self published book The Mount of Olives the story of a young boy named Felix. Felix is being mentored by a bookmaker in the times of Jesus and in the course of this story Ephraim instructed Felix to write his story. Ephraim tells Felix "..Everyone's story is unique yet most people bury theirs because they are ashamed of it, they do not realize the power in it. They fear being different, and with that, they surrender their experience." Felix like many of use sat and looked at a blank piece of paper and was scared to open ourselves up becasue of the fear of being vulnerable, the fear of yet another rejection, the fear of retaliation. Ephraim continued to tell Felix "Many people have become slaves to destructive thought, but it is your perspective and your journey to victory, out of defeat, that can change their lives."