If it's God's will, why go to the doctor?

He probably was, but I mentioned this, because it is related, in that the same logic more radical teachers use to say we should not see doctors, is used by those putting down psychology, and judging those with emotional problems. There is this false dochotomy between physical and emotional.

Psychology does not deny the Bible. The Bible is to make us wise unto salvation and godly living (2 Timothy 3:15, 16), but it is not the magical cure for everything. Just like quoting a scripture won't solve physical ailments. The Bobgans respond to this "medical model" (as they call it) as taught by Carlson, with such titles as "Exposing the Myth that Christians Need Psychology" (from "Exposing the Myth that Christians Should not have Emotional Problems" 2-9-98, p.29). and "Why Christians Shoot their Bible" (after Carlson's why Christians Shoot Their Wounded), where they argue that mental problems cannot be compared with medical (physical) problems. The assumption here is that all non-physical problems are "spiritual", and thus from the person's own sin. But the Bible does not say any of that either. "different category". "resulting from guilt, unconfessed sin, lack of forgiveness, anger, etc". (the precise reasoning of Job's friends!!!) Where do you all get this from? It is being overgeneralized from some passages, like the ones discussed above, regarding God's "grace", happiness in "trials", etc. right away, we see those are being taken out of context, so the whole premise falls, when you reexamine all of them! People forget that the brain is a physical organ (how else could "the mind" be affected by drugs?) It is affected by chemicals in the body, and it is well known that a lot of depression is from this. Much of "old-time" Christianity is influenced by a dualist view, of a "soul/spirit" trapped in a body that it is otherwise completely separate from. (This is the "pagan philosophy" they should be more concerned with avoiding than psychology!) Meanwhile, one person defending the Bobgans states, regarding "attention deficit disorder": "I have always thought that this disorder is caused - in most cases - by a lack of discipline in the home. Children have lately not been taught to sit still and listen, therefore they do not listen in the classroom. A great deal of this disorder could be cured if the 'board of education' would early be applied to the 'seat of learning', as others have advised! It used to be said, 'Children should be seen and not heard'. Not so, lately, to everyone's detriment!" This sums up the simplistic approach by the critics. They speak completely from a lack of knowledge, based on their generalized assessment of modern society compared with the supposed "virtues" of the past. Here is an assumption, that every child that has ADD, simply was not "disciplined". Have these people been in every household with such a child? I myself have seen parents discipline their children, and the children still cannot concentrate on things, or stop being restless. You can beat the child all you want (as they seem to be suggesting), but it will not change them. (Then when that doesn't work, you will be left to conclude that this child has the devil in him, or something like that, and if the solution is only that he needs to be beat even more, it may reach of level of physical abuse and violence!) I myself seem to have Adult ADD, and it is not simply me "choosing" not to discipline myself, or making excuses for some sin!
As Carlson so aptly pointed out in the former article: "The emotional health gospel assumes that if you have repented of your sins, prayed correctly, and spent adequate time in God's Word, you will have a sound mind and be free of emotional problems". To do this, it will "redefine mental illness as 'spiritual' or as character problems". It is "communicated by some of our most listened-to leaders", and "needlessly adds to the suffering of those already in turmoil". So the Bobgans can mock article and book titles all they want, but this IS still shooting our wounded, in addition to shooting the Bible and along with the heart of God! This makes the Christian life far harder than it actually is. Christ said "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God". That does not say "man doesn't really need bread at all, so if he doesn't get much, that is God's will for Him, and all his true 'needs' are still being met by 'the Word of God' regardless of what it looks like", as it often seems this is being taken to mean. That is the true "Counterfeit Survival"! If that were the case, we would not have such an emphasis in scripture on giving to those in need.

This is all just another strain of "one-upmanship", as discussed at Rightwing page; especially when you make the progression from evangelical psychologists who blast "secular humanism", and then the BCM criticizes Christian psychology for compromising, then the Bobgans criticize BCM for compromising, BDM disagrees with even the Bobgans on some issues, and then a person named Darwin Fish (atruechurch.com) breaks away from BDM because they still accept the Bobgans as saved, and this person says anyone who believes the least thing wrong is lost! (Remember his disciple who was posting here last year sometime? Forgot his name!) Who is right, then? This should show you the mindset of these teachers.

As far as the "soul", we actually have not quite grasped the extent of the Fall and sin on man's mind, with such simplistic judgments that disregard the complexity of many problems in people's lives. We just place everything on the "wicked heart", which suggests that all our problems are totally our "wrong choices" based on our emotions or fleshy desires. Fundamentalists should remember how angry they got at secular education for teaching that homosexuality, alcoholism and other sins were caused by cultural conditioning or mental or physical imbalance rather than because of sin; and now they themselves are teaching that it's just the "conditioning" or "imbalance" of a wrong heart, (not necessarily a fallen nature) as if the person could have chosen otherwise! we actually end up treating sin as ACTIONS, rather than a condition, and this denies the doctrine of sin at its root. When we say that therapy is nonsense because all problems can be solved by quoting scripture unless the person just doesn't want help, what it basically comes down to is that man is basically OK; all having the same mental and emotional capabilities; only some just want to do wrong, and psychology is just "justifying" it with their pleas of insanity.

And regarding 2 Timothy 1:7

I note on the linked page, the irony that all of these charges of sin involve fear (of breaking the Law; hence "sin"), and this is precisely what these passages are offering us freedom from! Yet, they are twisted around to manipulate the very thing we are supposed to gain "victory" over!