Pastor Jonathan Burger
Pastoral Counseling & Life Coaching
Pastor Jonathan is a Board-Certified Pastoral Counselor and member of the American Association of Christian Counselors serving the Greater Seattle area. Having grown up in the Pacific Northwest he a has heart to see the people of this great region grow and mature into the individuals God designed them to be and as a long time resident has the understanding of the unique challenges facing those in the Pacific Northwest. From a young age it was apparent that Pastor Jonathan was destined for ministry and at the age of 12 felt the call to ministry. His journey however has not been an easy one as the fervor of youth lead him to make decisions that would delay his pursuit of ministry and in the process cause many instances of heartache. It is that heartache and delay that through Christs influence, Pastor Jonathan finds his greatest strength in ministry.
Pastor Jonathan is a multiple time graduate of Liberty University, graduating with a Master’s Degree in Pastoral Counseling, discipleship and Church leadership as well as Bachelors Degrees in Religion and Psychology. Along with Counseling, Jonathan brings over a decade of ministry experience and leadership to his work, having spent significant time in men’s and youth ministry as well as church planting.
Pastor Jonathan along with his wife Abigail have a blended family of five children ranging from 9 to 18 years old. Their journey to one another and to the place of ministry together has not been a smooth one. However, through the tough circumstances God has used that journey to uniquely equip them for the ministry of healing the broken hearted and leading his sheep. It is their mission to bring individuals a deeper understanding of who God is and an awareness of their identities in Christ. Through the application of these biblical principles, individuals develop a greater understanding of who God is and as a result experience a deeper level of healing.
Our Approach
Spirit Lead: Isaiah 9:6 calls Jesus the Great Counselor, and as the Great Counselor it is his example that we follow in all our ministry opportunities. Jesus himself in John 5:19 says that he does nothing he has not first seen the Father do and in accordance with that example we do nothing that we have not seen Jesus do. Our desire within this ministry to honor Jesus by heeding his words to Peter in John chapter 21, to feed his sheep as we recognize his position as our shepherd and our duties as under-shepherd in all of our interactions. We believe that all ministry whether in an intimate counseling setting or from a pulpit is lead by the Holy Spirit imparted to us at Salvation in Jesus Christ. The same power that enabled Jesus to perform his mighty works is alive and functioning today as it guides and directs his ministry. According to Romans 8:26 it is the Holy Spirit that gives us direction where to go and when to act and it is the Holy Spirit that leads our ministry.
Practical: When God created humans he created us both spirit and flesh, and while or spirits will live on long after our flesh fails, the issues we face today are rooted in the physical, meaning, there is a practicality that needs to be applied to your spirituality. It is our belief that behind every spiritual concept is a practical application and behind every command or rule given by God in the Bible is a practical reason. It is our goal to remove the veil of confusion and unravel Gods practical truth and purpose for everyone of our clients lives.
Cooperative The counseling relationship is only as successful as the parties allow it to be. With this in mind we employ a cooperative approach in which the client along with the counselor/ pastor takes an active role in their treatment.
Eclectic God made mankind in his image but he did not make them all alike. Everyone carries their own history and has their own unique story. With that in mind we take an eclectic approach combining classical Biblical counseling with modern theories and techniques.
