About Streams In The Desert
In the journey of life, our circumstances, our choices, and the experiences we encounter can take us through trying periods. In these times we can feel lost, alone, helpless, or desperate. We long for peace, hope, life...but it feels like something foreign or impossible to achieve.
The inspiration for Streams In The Desert Counseling comes from an exploration of two Greek words: “έρημος” which is the word for the desert or the lonely places, and “εἰρήνη” which is the word for peace.
Like a discovered oasis in the desert, Streams In The Desert Counseling is meant to be a place of health and regeneration for those encountering these “lonely places” on their life journey.
Water will gush forth in the wilderness
and streams in the desert.
The burning sands will become a pool,
the thirsty ground bubbling springs.
● Isaiah 35:6b-7a
Personal Story
Everyone has a unique story. Everyone has their own journey. I consider it a privilege to share this journey with the people who come through my door.
Going back to high school I knew that I wanted to do counseling. I had a heart for ministry but didn’t feel that preaching or leading a congregation was where my gifts would best be utilized. I wanted to be the person who could join in the midst of grief, trauma, hurts, anxieties, anger, sadness and fear. I wanted to walk with people through some of the most difficult moments of life, to walk through these moments with them, and to find life, hope, and healing.
My mission is about joining people in their darkest moments and finding life in the midst (Phil. 3:10-11)
Professional Training and Experience
Joel Harris graduated as a valedictorian from high school, Donelson Christian Academy in Donelson, TN. He received a B.A. in Psychology at Asbury University in Wilmore, KY and his M.A. in Counseling Psychology from Huntington University in Huntington, IN.
He has worked in the social services field since 2003 and has fifteen years of counseling experience. He has provided outpatient, home-based, online, and residential counseling.
Residential experiences include working at Caribbean Mountain Academy, a facility for teens in Jarabacoa, Dominican Republic, and Pierceton Woods Academy, a facility for juvenile sex offenders in Pierceton, IN. He moved to Stillwater, OK, in 2019 and worked for Stillwater Interfaith Counseling Center prior to forming Streams In The Desert in 2025.
He has received formal training for Trauma Focused Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy, Motivational Interviewing, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Sports Counseling, Anxiety Management, Emotion-Focused
Therapy, and has completed all three levels of trainings for Gottman Counseling for couples. He is also a trained educator for Gottman’s 7 Principles for Making Marriage Work and Bringing Baby Home. His areas of specialty include anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, marital and premarital counseling. He will work with all ages teenager and up, but has a special place in his heart for teens and 20-somethings.
