Tag Archives: biblical counseling

Aren’t You the Group that Doesn’t Use the Bible?

The title is a question that our counseling center has been asked more than once. Our answer to that is “No.’ However, a better answer is “No, We definitely use the Bible… when it is appropriate.” Let’s talk about this…

There is a wide spectrum of perspectives with regards to the role of the Bible when it comes to Christian or Pastoral Counseling. At one end, the Bible has more of a symbolic role. It is valued because of what it symbolizes or what it means to the client. In other words, the Bible is valuable based on what people think about it, rather than what it is. We would view this as an inadequate position, while still recognizing that the symbolic value of the Bible should never be ignored.

At the other extreme are those that use the Bible as a counseling book, or even as their ONLY counseling book. For these, the Bible is “sufficient” for all questions relating to pastoral care and counseling. For example, if a person is struggling with moodiness or dysphoria, this sort of counselor is likely to open the Bible and start reading verses that he or she believes gives answers to this issue that will ‘fix things.” A sort of related group is Nuothetic Counseling. They also make strong use of the Bible. However, for them it is more common that problems are seen as springing from behavioral sin. Therefore the Bible is used to identify the sin and to call upon the client to confess, and then repent. So if someone comes who is moody or dysphoric, the goal would be to figure out in what way are they sinful, point to the Bible to where such a sin is identified, and then address the sin. Looking at the Bible as an ethical work or quote book is as inadequate.

Neither of the extremes describe how we use the Bible. The Bible is, first of all, a story book— telling the story of the complex relationship a loving God has for his, often unloving, creation. There is great wisdom, doctrines, ethics, and more in the Bible, but those are secondary to the overall story and theme of the Bible. It is within this story that we find our place and how we are to act. Our story becomes part of the story as well.

Consider the following Biblical passage

Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves receive from God. For just as we share abundantly in the sufferings of Christ, so also our comfort abounds through Christ. If we are distressed, it is for your comfort and salvation; if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which produces in you patient endurance of the same sufferings we suffer. And our hope for you is firm, because we know that just as you share in our sufferings, so also you share in our comfort.

II Corinthians 1:3-7

This is direct guidance in the Bible in how to do an aspect of pastoral care and counseling. The passage states that God comforts us in all of our troubles. That is comforting… it is a good statement of belief. However, it goes on to say that this comfort as we experience it in our lives is to help us to effectively comfort others who are suffering. The passage also goes on to explain that suffering is not always bad… in part because it leads to our recognizing God’s comfort in our lives, but also helps to develop patient endurance.

So what is a “Biblical” use of this particular passage. Most likely it is not simply quoting. . The client most likely is not experiencing that comfort simply by being told this. Quoting that verse does not suddenly give them that comfort, and the passage does not recommend it. It recommends that we share our own story of struggles and how God has proven ultimately faithful in bringing us through them.

Another way of saying it is that the passage suggest a number of things (if we are to break things into steps):

1. Listen and be present with those who are suffering. This seems to be implied in this passage. If you don’t feel so, don’t worry. Other parts of the Bible support this idea in both words and in examples.

2. Be empathetic to the troubles and sufferings of others because we have gone through our own troubles and sufferings.

3. Put ourselves “in their shoes”— in part because we HAVE been in those shoes— thus being slow to judge and slow to speak.

4. Share (cautiously, I think since we are not seeking to trample on their story with our own story) our struggles and how God has helped us through.

Of course, this is far from the full guidance on pastoral care and counseling. This is just one passage on one subtopic of PC&C. Still, proper use of the Bible is more about learning from the Bible and applying it, rather than simply quoting it. Consider Proverbs 15:22 ‘Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.’ Or consider Proverbs 11:14, ‘Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety.’ What type of counsel are these two passages suggesting. I would argue that certainly the most narrow understanding, quoting Bible verses, is not meant here. After all, if counsel is simply quoting Bible verses, it is hard to see how many advisors would be preferable to one. Presumably, good counsel would be express godly wisdom honed very much through an understanding of God’s will as seen in His Word, and through personal reflection and experience.

Do we use the Bible in our pastoral counseling? Absolutely. Do we fling around Bible verses? No. We use them when they are appropriate, but we are quick to listen, slow to speak (James 1:19-20), trying to treat everyone with gentleness and respect, focusing on what their concerns are (1 Peter 3:15), listening non-judgmentally (Matthew 7:1-3), dealing with each person compassionately (Ephesians 4:32).

Using the Bible is putting it into practice, not simply quoting it.

Models of Pastoral Care, Coaching, and Counseling

<div style=”margin-bottom:5px”> <strong> <a href=”https://www.slideshare.net/CeliaMunson/models-of-pastoral-care-and-counseling&#8221; title=”Models of Pastoral Care and Counseling” target=”_blank”>Models of Pastoral Care and Counseling</a> </strong> from <strong><a href=”http://www.slideshare.net/CeliaMunson&#8221; target=”_blank”>Celia Munson</a></strong> </div>

June 2014 Mini-Workshop

Many have been asking about our next Mini-workshop. Our next planned one will be in June (probably 3rd week… exact date TBD). The topic will be “Counseling: Models of Interaction Between Psychology and Theology.” This will be a brief (2 – 2.5 hours) lecture and discussion groups on various models: “Levels of Explanation,” “Integrationist Camps,” “Christian Psychology,” “Biblical Counseling,” “Transformational Psychology” (and Spiritual Direction), “Historical Pastoral Care,” and “Modern Pastoral Care.” It will be held at Philippine Baptist Theological Seminary (Baguio City). Probably More details to follow.

Theology and Psychology: Brief Consideration

We get questions at times with regards to the relationship between the Christian faith and Psychology when it comes to counseling. Between various schools of thought, some of whom appear to be at war with each other, it can be quite difficult to know what is what, to say nothing about what is right. We are not going to try to explain all of the differences. A good place to start would be “Psychology & Christianity: Five Views” edited by Eric L. Johnson, with contributors from five schools David G. Myers, Stanton L. Jones, Robert C. Roberts, P. J. Watson, John H. Coe, Todd W. Hall, David A. Powlison. The five “schools” are:Psychology and Theology
–Levels of Explanation
      -Integrationist
      -Transformational Psychology
      -Christian Psychology/Counseling
      -Biblical Counseling

Transformational Psychology on first glance at least seems to simply be a type of Christian Psychology. Because of lack of detailed knowledge of Transformational Psychology, and because our counseling center tends to work mostly within the Pastoral Care movement, the diagram shows Pastoral Care instead.

If the X-axis shows the focus of the counseling. The farther to the right, the greater the emphasis on theology. The farther to the left, the greater the emphasis on (secular) psychology. Near the origin on the X-axis is a more balanced approach. The Y-axis shows the philosophy of the counseling. The farther positive (“up”) the greater the philosophy towards integration of theology and psychology. The farther negative (“down”) the greater the philosophy of separation, or reducing dialogue between theology and psychology in treatment.

It is important to note that the X-axis has on the positive side “theology” not “Bible.” There is a couple of reasons for this. For one, while Bilbical Counseling describes its basis as the Bible, not everyone would agree that its principles are Biblical. Rather, it is safer to say that that Biblical Counseling is based on a theological understanding of the role of the Bible in counseling. A second reason for using the term “theological” is that the Pastoral Care movement takes very seriously the integration of faith/theology and psychology, but some practitioners utilize theologies that do not have the Bible as its base.

Looking at the four quadrants, the five views covered produce a continuous (and overlapping) curve. At one extreme in the lower left is the “Levels of Explanation” view. It tends to focus on Psychology and separates human problems into categories (levels of explanation)… some that are the domain of psychology, and some that are the domains of other specialties. In the upper left are the Integrationists. While all in the upper quadrants could be described as integrational, here the term tends to be used by those that focus more on psychology than on theology. Those that are more integrationist (strong) see a greater role for theology. Those that are less integrationist (weak) see a lesser role for theology.

In the upper right quadrant are two groups. One is Christian Counseling and the other is Pastoral Care. Arguably, these two greatly overlap. Both place a strong role for theology but seek to be effectively informed by findings in secular psychology that have been found useful. Since both Christian Counseling and Pastoral Care overlap, they could easily be seen as one school. They are often kept separate for two reasons. First, they developed differently. Christian Counseling came as a reaction to integrationists on one side and Biblical counseling on the other, in the 1980s. Its underlying theology tends to be relatively conservative. Pastoral Care is older coming from the Clinical Pastoral Training movement in the 1920s and beyond. While it does not, strictly speaking, have only one underlying theological perspective, the average pastoral care practitioner would be seen as more theologically liberal than the average Christian counselor. In the lower right quadrant is Biblical Counseling. It was a reaction to the left quadrant practitioners in the early 1970s. Originally known as Nouthetic Counseling. It takes a more negative view of psychological principles and methods that are seen as not coming from the Bible. As such there is a strong separation between counseling they feel is consistent with the Bible, and counseling based on sources outside the Bible. Recent movements in Biblical Counseling have sought to find more integration, but separation still dominates the movement.

Perhaps it is best not to focus on “Who is right” and focus on what each has to offer. Biblical Counseling tends to focus on sin and behavioral changes. In some cases that is the care needed. For serious psychoemotional problems such as personality disorders and psychoses, the integrationists and levels of explanation practitioners are better prepared to assist recovery. For problems such as conflicts, being “sinned against,” self-esteem, and such, perhaps Christian counseling and Pastoral Care have more tools to help.

When it comes to treatment, one size may NOT fit all.