[vimeo id=”135087125″]
I never thought I was a counselor… never.
Though I love working with people, sitting with a person to “counsel” them was never on my radar. I wanted to be a preacher, pastor, even a barista, but not a counselor. Little did I know that counseling was a part of all those jobs. As long as I was a living and breathing Christian, I was also counseling.
Think about it—we counsel when we:
- Give advice to our brother
- Help our mom through pain or grief
- Tell a friend they should break up with that person, and why
- Give hope to a person we meet at the store
- Instruct our kids in the way of the Lord
Any many, many more situations like that. You see, our interaction with others is often “counseling.” As Christians, the Word of God should always be in our hearts and minds, so we are technically “Biblical Counselors.”
I know, that “C” word can cause concern. Isn’t “Counselor” an overstatement? I don’t think so.
Now, let me be clear. I am not trying to be something I am not by saying I am (or all Christians are) licensed practicing counselors. We don’t have a certificate from the state, nor have we done our 2000 (or more) hours of supervision. I am also not saying that we are all psychologist. Rather, I do believe that we all have a duty to rightly divide the Word of God and speak truth to those we love.
As we do God’s work, in our homes, churches or workplaces, we must realize there is a duty we have to be a counselor. We are God’s ambassadors to the world. At Grace Chapel we teamed with The Association of Certified Biblical Counselors to help train our people and others in the importance to counsel well. Moms, dads, husbands, wives, singles and some of our young adults are now trained and pouring into others more intentionally.
I encourage you to go to one of these trainings! Every Christian has a call to be a counselor.
