Finding Purpose in the Cyclical Europe Counseling Center

When people in the European context hear of a counseling center specializing in helping people who have been wounded by the Church, a common response is, “Wow! There are a lot of people who need that…” Many people have either been wounded “by” the Church or “for” their sacrificial service to it. Indeed, many hurtful and aggressive expressions of Christian faith have been major contributing factors to why many in the European context have become increasingly skeptical of religious institutions. Nonetheless, Europe is full of people who hold quietly to faith and spirituality. If people are not trusting traditional institutions to provide a safe place to foster faith and spiritual dimensions of one’s life, where will they turn? This is why our Cyclical Europe Faith Community exists as an outreach of our Cyclical Europe Counseling Center.

Furthermore, many Christian workers and leaders who have been what we call “honorably wounded” from the challenges they have faced in their work. Just in the past few years, we have observed many cross-cultural Christian workers leaving the European context for reasons that include 1) Stress and burnout from cross-cultural life and relationships 2) Educational needs for children 3) Family reasons back home 4) Discouragement in their work 5) Financial stressors 6) New opportunities and 7) Other personal or contextual reasons. A major stressor of cross-cultural life is a child’s educational needs. Along with interpersonal relationship challenges, these are two of the major reasons that cause cross-cultural Christian workers to leave their international work. Add visas, language barriers, cultural differences, health challenges, and some inevitable feelings of loneliness that come by being far from one’s home culture (including friends and family), and you have a culminating burden that can be overwhelming.

Churches have been trying to survive the challenges and changes of lower attendance and less funding for local or global outreach programs. Several churches and Christian organizations are making cuts or closing their doors. Many are needing to evaluate their giving commitments in an effort to survive for their own local needs. And many cross-cultural workers are returning “home” not by choice but because of lack of adequate support.

In the face of these new realities, the Cyclical Europe Counseling Center and the Cyclical Europe Faith Community exist to provide tangible support for today’s needs and invest in the future health and vitality of the church. Our mission is to help Christian leaders heal, stay in their work for longer, and flourish in their calling. We seek to be a source of hope for those who feel disillusioned, isolated, or burned out—and to equip them for resilient, faith-filled innovation.

Today, our counseling center includes a group of seven experienced mental health and pastoral counselors serving people of faith through online or hybrid counseling services. We provide individual counseling, small group counseling, or small group training options. Our professional experience allows us to serve a range of needs for individuals, including TCK’s (Third Culture Kids), families, and teams. We also provide trauma counseling. Our team of counselors are located in various countries around Europe, Africa, and the United States. The online nature of our work allows us to serve a broader group of people; however, we also can accommodate in-person, intensive services upon request.

The Cyclical Europe Counseling Center currently serves a network of about 12 Christian leaders across Europe who are participating approximately once per month, and a committed group of 6 who join us weekly, in our Cyclical Europe Faith Community, a 30-minute, Sunday morning, online worship gathering that occurs weekly. Some participants are attending local churches, some are leading or starting local churches, and some are faithfully serving others through their vocational callings outside the local church. We estimate around 250+ people are impacted from the faithful innovation outreach of the Cyclical Europe Counseling Center. We have also had around 20 formal or informal counseling sessions through the counseling center in the past several weeks since our official public launch on May 12, 2025.

We believe that both the Cyclical Europe Counseling Center and the Cyclical Europe Faith Community will continue to grow and develop momentum through increased visibility, a larger team of counselors, a broader client base, and more robust opportunities for spiritual formation, retreats, and leadership development. By 2030, we anticipate forming additional regional leadership networks across Europe, increasing our capacity to foster faithful innovation.

If you are interested to learn more, interested to join a faith community meeting, or interested to schedule a confidential counseling session, contact us via email at cyclicaleurope@gmail.com or via Whatsapp text at: +30 69 88 713 238.