About

Hi, I’m Aaron. I am a disciple of Jesus, a husband, a father, a pastor, and a counselor. I live with my wife and three kids on the western edge of the Twin Cities. We enjoy music, the outdoors, gardening, and anything board games. I also enjoy college football or basketball. I like learning and putting into practice the latest research on nutrition, fitness, sleep and biohacking for healthier, holistic living.

I serve as an associate pastor at Mound Evangelical Free Church. I exclusively provide fee-for-service counseling through LHPC.

Over the past decade, I’ve provided counseling to individuals, couples, and groups in churches and counseling centers. I’ve helped people navigate challenges like marriage and family issues, fear and anxiety, anger and conflict, abuse/oppression, depression, guilt and shame, addictions (especially sexual), OCD, and ministry-related struggles. I collaborate with churches and other counselors as part of a care team.

I’ve taught counseling in the local church and as Adjunct Professor of Biblical Counseling at Bethlehem College and Seminary. I’ve provided supervision and consultation to counselors and counselors-in-training, in churches and counseling centers.

My interest in helping others started at the U. of Illinois, where I studied psychology and biology. To this day, I provide care that addresses both body and soul. I then completed a masters in social-personality psychology at the U. of Missouri. I wanted to more effectively help people with their struggles, so I began the doctoral program in counseling at the U. of Minnesota. While there, Jesus Christ drew me to himself. I read the Bible for the first time and began trusting Jesus, savoring the good news of salvation through his death and resurrection. I completed a masters in counseling and then prepared for pastoral ministry through seminary.

Degrees:

  • B.S. in Psychology and in Molecular & Cellular Biology — University of Illinois
  • M.A. in Social-Personality Psychology — University of Missouri
  • M.A. in Counseling and Student Personnel Psychology — University of Minnesota
  • M.Div. — Central Baptist Theological Seminary.
 Certifications:
  • Christian Counseling and Education Foundation (CCEF): Completed Level One, Two and Three certificates.
  • Prepare & Enrich: Certified facilitator for pre-marital and marital assessment.
  • DISC: Administer and coach the Portrait Systems DISC personality assessment.

My Passion

It’s a privilege to walk with people, listening and talking about the real and difficult struggles of life. As we talk, I aim to connect your story to The Author of The Story, which is a story of salvation, reconciliation, freedom, and new life. Jesus offers lasting hope and real change—something I’ve experienced personally and seen in countless others. I believe he can do the same for you.

FAQs about Biblical Counseling

In our conversations I seek to understand you — how you think, feel, and act. How do you live, both physically and spiritually? We explore your relationships with others — God, people, and creation. What is the heart of the matter — what do you believe, what really drives you, and what do you value? Together, we consider what is good, hard and bad. We connect your story to the Author’s story. We pray to the God who hears and knows you. He will be with us! We listen to his Word. We trust the Spirit to empower heart change. Step by step, we grow in wisdom and love. We do this with others who walk alongside you.

It can be a big step to admit you need some help. Yet facing our struggles is not something we can do alone. You don’t have to! Reaching out for help is an initial step in the journey to finding lasting hope.

You don’t have to be a Christian to meet with a pastoral counselor. If you’re open to considering who Jesus is and what he offers you in your struggles, we can talk.

I am grateful for the clinically-informed training I received in graduate school at the University of Minnesota. I have been greatly influenced, both personally and professionally, by the training I received through CCEF.

At LHPC, I ascribe to the confessional statement of the Biblical Counseling Coalition:

“Biblical counseling occurs whenever and wherever God’s people engage in conversations that are anchored in Scripture, centered on Christ and the Gospel, grounded in sound theology, dependent upon the Holy Spirit and prayer, directed toward sanctification, rooted in the life of the church, founded in love, attentive to heart issues, comprehensive in understanding, thorough in care, practical and relevant, and oriented toward outreach.”

Pastoral, biblical counseling is not the same as licensed counseling. I do not provide counsel as a registered, licensed or certified professional within the State of Minnesota (e.g. licensed professional counselor, psychologist, psychiatrist, marriage and family therapist, social worker) or any other jurisdiction.