Biblical Counseling
7 Essential Elements of a First Session in Biblical Counseling
A first session in biblical counseling can be intimidating. Even the best Certified Biblical Counselors can experience some nervousness when meeting with a person for the first time. In some ways, we should; we are being allowed into a very intimate and hurting part of another person's life. This should come with a dose of apprehension and humility. Yet,...
Understanding Inspiration, Inerrancy, and Authority of Scripture
What is the inspiration, inerrancy, and authority of Scripture and how do they work together to help us? As the ultimate standard for life and living, there will never be any facts or findings that can contradict it. Because of the inerrancy of Scripture, we can hold it as the total truth and standard for all ethical, social, spiritual, and life science issues.
Forty-Eight Things you Can Do to Relieve Anxiety
Dealing with anxiety can be an up-and-down journey. The hills and valleys come when you least except them. We would love to just take the short cut to avoid them, or the straight path that will cut right through them, but it is not always that easy. Believe me, I know. Anxiety is a frequent feeling that I have dealt...
6 Essential Strategies For Building Rapport with Clients in Counseling
When a person sits down with you and asks you to give them wisdom on something they are facing in their life, it can be nerve-racking. What do I say? Will they like me and trust me? Can we build rapport fast so I can speak the truth in love? These and the questions will plague the mind of a...
Biblical Strategies for Dealing with Anger
Biblical definition of anger. Anger is a God-given emotion of displeasure. It is seen in Scripture as being something felt and expressed by both God and man (ex. God: Ps. 7:11; 78:49; Jesus: Mark 3:5). Anger can be righteous or unrighteous. Even if our anger is righteous, anger is not something we strive to possess or keep in our lives....
Avoid the Tragedy of Counseling Too Quickly
A few days ago some of the counselors and I were jesting about starting a drive-thru counseling service. We laughed at the thought of people taking advantage of this quick service to get fast answers to life's problems. "I am sure that already exists in Vegas," someone said. We quickly returned to the reality of hard sessions that require...
10 Resources for Counseling Marriage Conflict
Prepare and Enrich Prepare and Enrich is a tool that was designed by Dr. David Olsen to help evaluate the health of a couple’s relationship. This tool can be used for premarital and marriage relationships. It is something that a counselor would administer and facilitate for the couple, allowing them to see what is happening behind the scenes in their...
Top 10 Internet Resources for Depression
Biblical Counseling Coalition – Depression Articles This site has an excellent list of articles, audio and video resources on the topic of depression. There are several different biblical counselors that wrote these articles, giving a variety of perspective and expertise. Tools and steps are included to help the counselor know where to start and how to set realistic goals for...
Free Counseling Notes Template
As a counselor, taking notes is one of the most important parts of my job. The details shared with me in a counseling session are sensitive and critical, so I want to capture what I can. I also hear a lot of information over the course of many cases, so taking notes helps me keep the details straight. I...
Summary of the Seven Keys to “Strategic Pastoral Counseling” by David Benner
Counseling within the church context is full of challenges. Knowing what to offer it to your congregation and the boundaries that should exist within your counseling ministry are not intuitive. I have learned this the hard way, over the last nine years, as I have established two different biblical counseling ministry from the ground up. We have made our...
“You Did What?” and Other Questions You Shouldn’t Ask When Counseling
As a pastor, I have the opportunity to do quite a bit of counseling. I get to sit with the people that I care about deeply and delve into the problems of their life. As I’ve been doing this more and more over the last 6 years, I’ve learned many valuable lessons. Most of my lessons were taught to...
The Search for a Biblical View of Counseling (A Helpful Article Review)
Dr. David E. Carlson wrote an intriguing article in the mid 70’s that was delivered at the Research in Mental Health and Religions Behavior Conference in 1976. It was title, "Jesus’ Style of Relating: The Search for a Biblical View of Counseling”. His goal for this article was to “Bridge the gap between carrying helping professions and dedicated to communicating...