WHY I SERVE AS A COUNSELOR AT VIPCARE?
A conversation with Chan Young Park
QUESTION: Why do you work/how did you come to work at VIPCare?
ANSWER: I have been interested in counseling ever since the failure to prevent the divorce of the newlywed couples that I was pastoring in Korea. I realized that as a pastor, not only did I need to have a deeper understanding of the Bible, but I must also be able to sympathize and empathize with the human heart. Thus, I started my journey as a counselor by attending a counseling school in Korea.
Afterward, I came to Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary in 2003 and completed my study in counseling by writing a dissertation on fathering and receiving a Ph.D. in Pastoral Care and Counseling in 2010. Although I completed my studies to become a counselor, God had other plans and called me to become a senior pastor at a local church in California. After 10 years of faithfully serving as a senior pastor, I resigned from the pastoral role. Then, God led me to find a place to serve as a counselor at VIPCare--which I got to know over the Internet.
Currently, I have joined VIPCare as an associate staff under the kind guidance of Dr. Thorpe and wish to better serve the people that God will allow me to counsel.
QUESTION: How do you approach therapy (or the counseling relationship)?
ANSWER: My overarching goal of therapy is to help clients restore the image of God and become the imitative image-bearer. In order to help my clients become the image-bearers of Christ, I must comprehensively, as well as holistically, understand my clients. Furthermore, by incorporating the Pastoral care from the local church along with the church's small group, I will encourage the client to join and commit to a healthy community. However, all of this is not possible without spiritual growth from the counselor and I will first be the one to commit to change in order to become the image-bearer of Christ.
QUESTION: What inspires you amidst COVID-19 challenges (what advice do you offer clients)?
ANSWER: As a counselor, I would like to help people manage their anxieties and fears. To manage anxiety, we should discern factors that we can and cannot control. Some factors that we can control include getting regular exercise, making plans to meet with friends and loved ones over virtual platforms, determining our exposure to news sources, practicing good personal hygiene, and limiting the time spent in places such as grocery stores where there may be larger crowds. We can’t avoid stress, but we can choose to gear it toward the productive kind and use healthy coping skills when we find ourselves stuck in more destructive cycles. For example, having a healthy support group within the family or close group of friends where we can encourage each other in these difficult times can be productive.
QUESTION: What motivates you in your outreach to Korean-speaking communities in Greater Richmond?
ANSWER: Approximately, there are more than 5,000 Korean immigrants residing in the Greater Richmond area. However, there are no places that provide or even offer pastoral counseling services for these Korean immigrants. Since many of the older Korean immigrants do struggle with the language barrier and would prefer speaking their native tongue, I would like to provide them with Korean-speaking counseling services based on Biblical and pastoral perspectives.
CONTACT:
EMAIL: CYPARK@VIPCARE.ORG
VIPCARE TELEPHONE: 804.282.8332 ext. 247
EDUCATION:
Ph.D., Pastoral Care & Counseling, Liberty University
Th.M. Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary
M.Div. Torch Trinity Graduate School of Theology, Seoul, Korea
Ordained Southern Baptist Minister
Chan Young Park