Your Heart's Desire

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

We, the faithful, and we, those yearning to be faithful but struggling, all, long to turn over all our fears, concerns, doubt, trials, and tribulations to God and experience His freedom. In Psalms David reminds us that if we call upon the Lord, He will answer us. In the Gospel of Matthew Christ himself tells us that if we have faith the size of a tiny mustard seed, we can move mountains. In Philippians Paul reminds us that no matter our current situation we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us. We hear these words in church. We see these words on tee shirts, bumper stickers, and memes. So why do we sometimes get so stuck? Why do we struggle in our relationships? Why do we struggle with feeling worthy? Why do we allow fear to stand as a roadblock to breakthroughs? Why do we sometimes feel so hopeless, lost, isolated, or abandoned? 

Each of us is guaranteed to face adversity in our lives. Not everything goes as we plan. Things break, accidents happen, people hurt each other, people grow apart, loved ones die – sometimes suddenly and unexpectedly, we are disappointed by not receiving jobs or opportunities we long for, and we all struggle with inner conflict at times. 

Each of us has our own individual life experience and perspective. Our personal predictions on how and what is going to happen, what people will do, how well we are equipped to take on whatever challenge we are facing, our confidence, how much we trust others, how safe it is to be real with ourselves and those around us all started its formation when we were still young children. We modify our life rules based on what family was to us; what that parent, teacher, or coach said or shouldn’t have said. We modify our life rules through the trials, tribulations, exploration, and romance of high school. We form or don’t form our independence through college and professional training. Others are influenced by their military experience, life in war zones, and through the threat or actual loss of friends in battle. In our adult life any number of life events can have a huge impact on us emotionally and cause us to react rather than relate or grow through our experiences. 

None of us like to get hurt. If we do something and physically hurt ourselves, we usually avoid that something in the future. All the same, if we extend ourselves emotionally and get hurt, disappointed, embarrassed, or in any other way emotionally taken back by that situation, we tend to avoid the same in the future. Unfortunately, that limits who we can be, our true potential. 

I think it’s safe to say that our Heavenly Father would prefer to see us get back up and brush ourselves off when life knocks us down. We are human. We will fail at times. However, always keep in mind that we are created in God’s own image and by design created to live in the freedom of God’s radical love. Those who live in that freedom live with His love, peace, joy, and in His presence like none other. If you feel stuck, let’s fix that. If you feel held captive by fear, anger, your past, your desire to control, let’s fix that. Not by your power, but through faith, by His power.

A process called Aroma Freedom Technique is a natural reflective process by which with the assistance of a certified practitioner we revisit memories of past emotionally charged events that have contributed to our life rules that may now be outdated and interfere with our God given nature, potential, and gifts. The emotional freedom of the Aroma Freedom Technique happens at the brain’s amygdala - the crossroads and location of our primal fight, flight, or freeze response and our sense of smell. Aroma Freedom Technique was founded by Clinical Psychologist Dr. Benjamin Perkus. Understanding that this process can be responsibly practiced with clients by peer certified practitioners within various professional, therapeutic, life coach, religious, and/or others social support groups, he personally trains practitioners to pass on Aroma Freedom Technique benefits to others without requiring his students to be licensed medical or mental health professionals. This makes this powerful and beneficial tool more available, more affordable, and less ominous to its recipient. A guided conversation with a practitioner, a bit of Spirit guided personal reflection, and strategically smelling 100% pure and therapeutic essential oils during that process engages our past at the brain’s amygdala that triggers a neurochemical opportunity for memory reconsolidation and much needed relief from stress, anxiety, insecurities, doubt, guilt, depression, loss, isolation, frustration, heightened emotional response to a past event, and/or many other emotional hurdles common to our life experience. 

Aroma Freedom Technique is not psychotherapy nor is it designed to replace psychotherapy for an individual suffering from diagnosed mental illness. It can, however, be used to supplement clinical therapy by a licensed therapist. And, when used in a timely fashion, a simple AFT session can address stress and emotional blocks before any actual disorder is able to take root. Proactive use may eliminate the need for formal therapy in the future, even in the aftermath of significant events, past or present.

I hold a BS in Administrations of Justice and General Psychology from San Jose State University and a M.A. in Pastoral Studies with an emphasis in Pastoral Counseling from Holy Apostles College and Seminary. During a 28-year career as a police officer I worked both in patrol and as a school resource officer. I was a member of our department’s Critical Incident Team, served as a department liaison with our county mental health department, was a certified negotiator, peer support team member, and critical incident stress debriefing facilitator. Two of my chiefs have publicly cited me as having both command presence and “compassion presence” throughout my career. I have received accolades acknowledging my service to community, victims, and my peers on a department, city, county, state, and national level up to and including the office of a seated U.S. Senator. That being said, of all the tools I learned to help the public or my peers, none comes close in value to that which I see possible through Aroma Freedom Technique. These techniques have assisted me in redefining who I can be, what I am capable of, and freeing me from the weight of emotionally charged incidents experienced over my career as a first responder, 25 years of marriage, as a father of six children, and overcoming both conscious and unconscious restrictions I had placed on myself dating back to my own childhood. Aroma Freedom Techniques have emboldened who I am spiritually, intuitively, emotionally, in relationship, and how I may serve others in helping them discover their own God given unrestricted potential. During my training I have witnessed breathtaking transformation in the lives of my peers, friends, and clients. In my practice, even more examples (See My Story). Witnessing others realizing new hope, joy, passion, potential and freedom is simply beautiful.

The Holy Spirit invites us to live carte blanche in the freedom of His love for His purpose. Never underestimate your ability through Christ to achieve greatness in His purpose, whatever your chosen vocation. Your past and perceived inadequacies don’t need to matter. Moses, a stutterer, was chosen by God to be a spokesperson for God’s people and lead them out of Egypt. David, a small and simple shepherd, was called upon to be a warrior then King. A prostitute was one of the first persons to proclaim to others that Jesus was the Christ. A tax collector, a social outcast, was one of Jesus’ closest disciples and authored one of the four books of the Gospel. Simon, a sinful fisherman who ended up denying even knowing Christ three times leading up to his crucifixion, emerged as Peter, our first leader of the Church, missionary, miracle worker, and saint.  

Christ came to heal the blind, crippled, and those held captive – literally, figuratively, and spiritually. We are the blind, the crippled, and the captive. What holds you captive? Fear? Your past? A desire to control? Shame? Insecurity?  Living in anger? More importantly, what is your heart’s desire? Is there something you desire in your life but are held back by repeated failures to get there, or simply not sure how to achieve it? Are you ready for a breakthrough? Through God’s grace and the power of the Holy Spirit, this is possible. If you would like some guidance in progress toward achieving your heart’s desire, I’m here to help you explore what God has to provide. 

In His love,

Mark Doyle 

M.A. Pastoral Counseling; Certified Aroma Freedom Technique Practitioner