Disciple and Counsel with Biblical Confidence

1.        "The gospel of Jesus Christ is the foundation of biblical change (2 Cor. 5:17; Rom. 5:1; 6:16-18; 8:13). The gospel brings spiritual new birth, and it orients, guides, empowers, and dominates all of the Christian life following regeneration (Col. 2:6).

2.       Change is always possible for believers in Jesus Christ (Phil. 1:6; Rom. 6:17-18). No Christian is so entrenched in sin, so dominated by his past or anything else, that he cannot be changed by the dynamic work of the Holy Spirit.

3.       The Word of God applied by the Spirit of God is the primary tool for change (John 17:17; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; Ps. 119:1, 24, 133). Living and active, inerrant, God-revealed, Christ-commended, Spirit-empowered—when it comes to changing people, there is nothing like the Bible.

4.       The heart is the place where real, long-lasting change takes place (Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 10:5; Prov. 4:23; Mark 7:21-23; Matt. 12:34). The heart is where a person thinks, considers, analyzes, evaluates, feels, decides, and chooses—the mission control center of life, the real person on the inside, the inner man. Counseling is about changing a person’s heart or moment-by-moment thinking.

5.       God’s plan for practical daily change is: put off / be renewed / put on (Eph. 4:22-24; Col. 3:8-14). That plan includes the following components: put off, be renewed in your mind, put on true thoughts and righteous acts.

An Open Letter to Those Who Feel Unqualified to Offer Counsel

"Dear believer,

The body of Christ needs you. It needs your words and deeds. That is simply part of the deal when you follow Jesus. The apostle Paul wrote, “encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thessalonians 5:11). You are already speaking encouraging words and building people up. Now keep doing it, more intentionally, more skillfully, more prayerfully—when a child scuffs her knee, when a friend is separated from a spouse, when depression strikes a person you know, or when someone has been diagnosed with cancer.

The Lord specializes in using people who feel weak in themselves.

If you feel inadequate to help others in need, especially those with more complicated problems, that is a perfect qualification. The Lord specializes in using people who feel weak in themselves, and your sense of inadequacy will probably protect you from saying something unhelpful. We are usually unhelpful when we are confident that we know what another person needs to hear.

You already know the basics of help and encouragement. First, you have to move toward the other person, which is sometimes the hardest thing to do. You have to talk together and hear what is important to the person. Next, let the person know that you have them on your heart—you are with them and are moved by what they are going through. That might be enough for one day. You have built up the body of Christ.

If there are awkward silences or if you are inclined to go further, you can ask, “Could you suggest ways that I could pray for you?” If you are concerned that such a question could sound like a spiritual platitude, remember that it is only trite if you are not really interested or are not actually going to pray. If the person is on your heart and you are praying for them, you have given them a great gift.

Convictions that Shape the Local Church and Biblical Counseling.

"With regards to biblical soul care well taught Biblical Counselors share 3 beliefs:

1) It is the church’s responsibility to counsel people through their struggles, rather than relying upon those outside the church.  

This does not mean one never goes outside the church for help or that some problems aren't both/and body AND soul issues.  Medical doctors have been trained with the physical body and biblical counselors have been taught how to care for the spiritual matters of the heart, soul, and mind.

2) Lasting life change is the goal of counseling, and the greatest change people need is to trust Christ enough to follow his ways. This decision of faith impacts all other decisions in life and helps them best deal with the struggles of life. Faith is never a secondary concern in counseling.

3) Christ models for us reliance upon the Holy Spirit and the Holy Scriptures, and counselors should seek to increase that reliance as they help individuals grow in Christlikeness. We do not have the power or wisdom to change on our own. We need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit and the wisdom of the scriptures to change.

Within the church, these 3 beliefs are usually met with agreement. However, within many Christian counseling offices, these beliefs are often met with skepticism and resistance leaving them outside the counseling process.

Sadly, the gospel, the church, and the Holy Spirit are rarely discussed in many “Christian” counseling practices.  We talk to many pastors and churches who are troubled by this. They thought when they sought counseling at a “Christian Counseling” center that their faith would be part of the process and that their counselor would know how to direct them to the Scriptures for guidance.

So what do you do if you are troubled by this too?

Many churches are and have begun to respond. Rather than making a list of outside places where people can receive counseling/care, they have decided to equip individuals within their congregation to walk with the hurting. In order to consider this approach, you need to embrace four key convictions about Biblical Counseling that shape a ministry like this.

Key Conviction # 1 – Holistic Discipleship: Fulfilling the whole Great Commission

Why You Might Be a Better Biblical Counselor Than You Think

"Right after I finished college, I was asked to meet with two middle school aged boys whose father had recently taken his life. I was a young single man and I was nervous that I would say the wrong thing. These boys had already been in so much pain, and I didn’t want to make it worse. I had taken some training in Biblical Counseling, had a reputation for connecting with young people, but I had never walked anyone through an issue like this before. I didn’t know if they would sit quietly, cry, or be angry. I knew one thing though: God loved them and desired for me to demonstrate that to them.

I hatched a plan: “Scripture and Stickball”.

Each week we would look at one truth about God, talk about it, and go to the parking lot to play stickball. Our counseling sessions rarely lasted more than 20 minutes but that is all that junior high boys in that situation could probably handle. We talked about God’s love, sovereignty and assured them that we were there for them. I listened and answered questions they had and found another older women to work with their mom through her grief.

You might wonder if you or your church should consider developing Biblical Counselors. While counseling situations can be complicated at times, “Scripture and Stickball” works. Stickball is really an example of building a bridge into the life of a hurting soul for the purpose of sharing God’s love and truth with them. Stickball with a young mom might be help folding laundry and holding a grown-up conversation. Stickball with a college student might be an invitation to Sunday dinner and a conversation about their future plans. Stickball with someone stricken with cancer might be a ride home when the nausea is unbearable. Stickball with a grieving widower might an early morning breakfast at the local pancake house. Your stickball might be conversations and coffee, working on cars for single moms, hospitality, or inviting disconnected men onto a work team.

Do you know what your stickball is? God calls all of us to find our stickball and use our unique interests to make a difference.