When faced with relational, psychological or life challenges, it’s hard to know where to turn for guidance and support you can trust. John Hawkins Sr., president and co-founder of Gateway Counseling Center, has been working with couples and families since the early seventies and has published numerous articles and works specifically addressing how to develop healthy and functional relationships.

As a pastor, he understands how to incorporate faith as a resource for achieving therapeutic and life’s goals. In 2007 he founded Gateway Counseling Center with his son, John Hawkins Jr. They offer counseling for individuals, couples and families of all ages for a wide range of ailments.

Hawkins said, “Gateway Counseling Center provides churches and the Christian community with clerically professional counseling that is faith based; even many non-Christians want counseling that is positive and recognizes the spiritual dimension of their life. We also offer life coaching for people.”

Gateway Counseling Center helps churches by assisting the members “heal and develop both emotional and spiritual health.” Experienced in assisting clients suffering from a variety of disorders, the areas of care their clinicians specialize in include couples therapy and relationship issues, such as communication impediments, infidelity, and recurrent conflict management difficulties; compulsive behaviors, such as sexual compulsiveness, workaholism, and serial relationships; working with individuals with histories of trauma and abuse experiencing PTSD; and mood disorders, such as anxiety and depression.

Penning a message of encouragement

Hawkins has been advertising in the Good News for approximately 3-4 years. He enjoys the large variety of the articles topics in Good News such as Music, Local, Health, Marriage, Encouragement, World, Finance, Movies, Sports and Dig Deep as well as the “uplifting and positive news they spread in the community.” Hawkins is also a Good News writer. He has recently addressed topics such as Bruce Jenner’s transformation and how Christians should respond, and how to cope with the loss of a mother or the death of a loved one. To read his Good News articles, simply visit the Good News website and search John Hawkins Sr.

Family man and minister

Hawkins obtained his B.A. at Midwestern Baptist College, his D.D. at Trinity Baptist, his M.A. at Baptist Christian University, and his M.S. at Palm Beach Atlantic. He has been pastoring and counseling for forty-three years and has traveled on short-term mission trips to Haiti, Uganda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Peru, El Salvador, Guatemala and Mexico to train pastors and ministry leaders to further God’s kingdom. He’s a retired pastor, completed two years of evangelism in the nineties and now leads a Bible study for adults.

Hawkins is a native of Alliance, Ohio and has been counseling people for many years. He is married to Charlotte and they have four children, John Jr., Heather, Holly and Jared, as well as thirteen grandchildren. He attends Family Church in West Palm Beach. His favorite Bible verse is 2 Chronicles 16:9a “The eyes of the Lord search the whole earth in order to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” Hawkins’ heart is definitely committed to him.

If you’re interested in receiving counseling from Gateway Counseling Center, you can contact them at 561-797-0631 or visit www.gatewaycounseling.com.

For more articles by Shelly Pond, please visit goodnewsfl.org/author/shelly/