This month, UBA is hosting a free seminar to teach pastors, church leaders, and everyone in our communities more about domestic violence—what it is, how to respond, and how the break the cycle we see both inside and outside the church. It will be in both English and Spanish September 20th, 9-12pm at Ecclesia Houston. 

This seminar is going to be a challenging time for everyone and will feature two incredible and experienced speakers—Debbie Moseley & Adam Mason. With decades of experience and their deep passion for those they serve, Breaking the Cycle is bound to be an impactful event. 

Meet Debbie

Debbie Moseley is the Executive Director of The Bridge Over Troubled Waters and a veteran in the field of domestic and sexual violence. She has dedicated over 33 years to the work and started as a volunteer at The Bridge in 1987 alongside her mother and grandmother. In 2003, she became the Executive Director. Debbie has both overseen and worked in every program that The Bridge offers.

The mission of The Bridge Over Troubled Waters is to offer support, provide safety, and prevent domestic and sexual violence. They are founded on the belief that everyone has a right to live a life without violence and to walk in their full potential as a human.

With two offices—one in Pasadena and one in Baytown—The Bridge Over Troubled Waters is able to provide services such as case management, crisis intervention, a 24-hour hotline, domestic violence and sexual assault prevention presentations, emergency shelter and transitional living to those in Harris County. In the past 40 years, The Bridge has become the 8th largest family crisis center in Texas. Every year they serve approximately 20,000 people and aim to end domestic violence and sexual assault.

Debbie's expertise with The Bridge Over Troubled Waters, the impact that it has on the community, and her Social Work License have given her the opportunity to work with, educate, and gain knowledge from clients, business partners, and other outside agencies. Debbie is a Board Member of the Harris County Coordinating Council and an Executive Board member of The Pasadena Chamber of Commerce. She is also a member of the Texas Council on Family Violence, the Harris County Adult Fatality Review Team, The Pasadena Police Academy Training Review Board, and the Bridges to Life prison ministry. Debbie and her husband live in Pearland and attend New Hope Church.

Meet Adam

Adam Lee Mason is the minister of counseling services of the Julianna Poor Memorial Counseling Center at Houston’s First Baptist Church and has served there since January of 1999. He and his wife, Sharlene, have been together since May of 1984 and have three grown children. Their daughter and her husband live in the Austin area, and their two sons live in the Houston area.

Adam has been a lifelong learner, who is devoted to excellence in his field. He is an ordained minister of Christian counseling in the Southern Baptist church and a licensed professional counselor—supervisor in the state of Texas. He has an M.A. in Marriage and Family Counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also has an M.A. in Religious Education with an emphasis in administration from Southwestern and a B.A. in Social Service from Howard Payne University. He regularly attends continuing education related to the counseling field and has specialized training in Spiritual Direction.

Adam's passion is to guide men and couples toward spiritual formation. His formal education has prepared him to work with individuals, marriages, families, and groups. His approach to counseling is from a biblical perspective, utilizing techniques from two distinct methodologies: the cognitive-behavioral approach and Spiritual Direction. These techniques include, but are not limited to: active listening, assessments, homework, psycho-educational discussions, reading assignments, prayer, and therapeutic confrontation. The cognitive-behavioral approach focuses on thoughts and behaviors and sees emotions as the result or consequences of our thoughts.

His purpose in counseling is to reach the specific goals for individual and relational growth, which are mutually agreed upon by both the client and the counselor. He believes people best flourish when these goals are consistent with biblical truth. Spiritual Direction focuses on experiencing an authentic encounter with the Trinitarian God embracing both His mystery and His personhood. The goal of Spiritual Direction is the intentional shift from self-obsession to God-obsession.