Kayla Wright

What led you to become a Christian counselor?

My calling to Christian Counseling has been a slow burn placed deep in my heart from high school. Being raised in a Christian home, my relationship with Christ was cultivated and nurtured at a young age. My love for God developed a passion to love others in all facets of life, leading every conversation with empathy and an eagerness for others to feel seen, known, and accepted. Through the guidance of trusted adults in my life, I decided counseling would be the best avenue for me to love others up close and personally. It wasn’t until I spent a summer as a counselor at a Christian camp that I found my pull to Christian Counseling. At camp, I found a beauty in the intentionality and healing power of “sharing the Gospel” being the highest priority of my job. I knew secular counseling wouldn’t equip me to create an atmosphere pointing to Christ, so I began my journey of becoming a Christian Counselor.

How has your life prepared you for the work you do as a counselor?

As a chronic people pleaser, I have wrestled to keep God on the throne of my life through every season. When my parents divorced in 2014, I took the weight of the world and placed it on my shoulders. I thought I needed to carry the hurt of my parents, and though I was only fourteen, I felt I needed to protect my younger siblings from the blows as our lives were flipped upside down. This resulted in me burying my emotions to make room for everyone else’s. As I reached my breaking point, I sought help through counseling.

  • I learned how to lay all of my problems, and everyone else’s, at the feet of Jesus.
  • I learned my worth was not defined by the approval of others, but by God.
  • I learned how to begin setting boundaries with those in my life who insisted they were bigger than me.
  • I learned how to let go of bitterness and pick up grace.
  • Most importantly, I learned that God says I am made whole in Christ.

Now, I have the freedom to live fully, as Christ lives in me. I am equipped to use this testimony of God’s redemption in my mess to help others find Him in the midst of theirs.

What drives your passion to help young people experience Jesus and find hope in their lives?

My heart has always had a pull towards loving on children. In high school, I babysat my pastor’s kids and spent time with my younger step-siblings. In college, I served in Vacation Bible School and spent a summer working as a camp counselor at a Christian adventure camp in Washington. There is something refreshing about the curious nature of a child’s mind that challenges you to grow. I love teaching scripture to children and seeing Jesus through their eyes.

This questioning heart follows children into their teenage years as they seek to find their identity outside of their parents. Finding truth in today’s society, though, is becoming increasingly difficult. Teens today are being met with hundreds of conflicting voices telling them what is important and who they should be, leaving them wandering through a never-ending sea of information. Additionally, the “busy culture” of today contributes to teens feeling unseen, unheard, and unimportant. Teens need someone to listen, care, and point them to a source of truth that brings stability into the chaos of their lives.

I prioritize creating a safe space for teens to be vulnerable, ask questions, and seek truth without the weight of having all of the answers. I encourage teens to seek a relationship with Christ that brings internal peace, regardless of external circumstances. I strive to walk along-side of them as they find their own beliefs and navigate complicated relationships. Overall, I meet them right where they are in love, and love is where healing flourishes.

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Kayla Wright holds a Bachelors degree in Christian Counseling from CrossPointe Theological Seminary. She is certified as both a Christian Counselor and a Temperament Counselor by the National Christian Counselors Association. Kayla is board certified Child & Adolescent Therapist. She has a heart and a calling to speak hope into teens and pre-teens who are searching for answers to the struggles in their young lives. Kayla and her husband Clayton recently relocated to Louisville from Madisonville, Kentucky, and reside in Middletown, Kentucky. Kayla offers in-person counseling services in Jeffersontown, KY, as well as online therapy sessions via FaceTime or Zoom.