Ministry Counseling

While many books have tried to integrate theology and psychology, this book takes another step and explores the importance of the spiritual disciplines in psychotherapy, helping counselors to integrate the biblical principles of forgiveness, redemption, restitution, prayer, and worship into their counseling techniques. Since its first publication in 1996, this book has quickly become a contemporary classic—a go-to handbook for integrating what we know is true from the disciplines of theology and psychology and how that impacts your daily walk with God.

A Theology of Biblical Counseling is a landmark new book that unpacks the core theological convictions that underlie sound counseling, and practical wisdom for counseling today. Dr. Heath Lambert shows how biblical counseling is rooted in the Scriptures while illustrating the real challenges counselors face today through true stories from the counseling room. A substantive textbook written in accessible language, it is an ideal resource for use in training biblical counselors at colleges, seminaries, and training institutes.

Many pastors and lay counselors have had minimal training in clinical methods of grief and trauma counseling. The Complete Guide to Crisis and Trauma Counseling is a biblical, practical guide to pastoral counseling written by one of the most respected Christian therapists of our time. Dr. H. Norman Wright brings more than 40 years of clinical and classroom experience to this topic. He shares real-life dialogues from his decades in private practice to demonstrate healthy, healing counseling sessions.

Do you know someone who is struggling with pornography use? Unfortunately, it's likely that you do—but you may not know how to help. In this book, counselors Deepak Reju and Jonathan Holmes provide a treasure trove of straightforward, biblical strategies for guiding a fellow believer toward recovery. You'll learn how to listen well, develop a plan, understand the body's role in sexual struggles, and, by God's grace, keep your friend focused on Christ throughout his or her journey to freedom.

We might be relieved if God placed our sanctification only in the hands of trained professionals, but that is not his plan. Instead, through the ministry of every part of the body, the whole church will mature in Christ. Paul David Tripp helps us discover where change is needed in our own lives and the lives of others. Following the example of Jesus, Tripp reveals how to get to know people, and how to lovingly speak truth to them.

In Love Is a Choice, best-selling doctors Robert Hemfelt, Frank Minirth, and Paul Meier walk you through their 10 proven stages to recovery from codependency that results from external circumstances. Humans are susceptible to codependency because of our sinful tendency to use defense mechanisms to fool ourselves. In codependent relationships, deceitful games are played, and important Christian principles are often taken out of context and abused.

The First Will Be Last: A Biblical Perspective on Narcissism is just what the title says - an A-Z look at the Biblical perspective on these toxic people; including who they are, how they got that way, and how to deal with them. From key words to Biblical case studies, it will unlock a new perspective and provide a framework in your search for truth.

"Talk" seems so normal, so ordinary, so harmless. Yet there are few things we do that are more important. And underneath the normality of it all is a great struggle, a war of words that we fight every day. Who hasn't been hurt by the words of another? Who hasn't regretted something they said? Recognizing that words are powerful, Paul Tripp shows us how the gospel transforms the way we communicate. Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word is the only hope for our words. In our war of words, he is the one who gives us the victory.

Theology professor and Competent to Counsel author Jay E. Adams firmly believes that the Bible itself provides all the principles needed for understanding and engaging in holistic counseling. In order to bring the practice of counseling—whether by professional therapists or by the church—under biblical guidance, we first have to deepen our understanding of Scripture. A Theology of Christian Counseling is the connection between solid theology (the study of God) and its practical application.

Biblical counselors have worked for decades to demonstrate that God’s resources in scripture are sufficient to help people with their counseling-related problems. In Counseling the Hard Cases, editors Stuart Scott and Heath Lambert use the true stories of real patients to show how the truths of God’s word can be released to bring help, hope, and healing into the lives of those who struggle with some of the most difficult psychiatric diagnoses.

In Effective Biblical Counseling, Gold Medallion Award-winning author Dr. Larry Crabb presents a model of counseling that can be gracefully integrated into the functioning of the local church. He asserts that counseling is simply a relationship between people who care and that its goal is to free people to better worship and serve God.

Today we face a tremendous weakening of confidence in the Bible. This is just as true for the pastor offering counsel in his office as it is for the person in the pew talking with a struggling friend at Starbucks or the small group leader who is unsure of what to say to a hurting group member. We need to regain our confidence in God’s word as sufficient to address the real life issues we face today. We need to understand how the Bible equips us to grow in counseling competence as we use it to tackle the complex issues of life.

First published in 1989, Dan Allender's The Wounded Heart has helped hundreds of thousands of people come to terms with sexual abuse in their past. Now, more than 25 years later, Allender has written a brand-new book on the subject that takes into account recent discoveries about the lasting physical, emotional, relational, and spiritual ramifications of sexual abuse.

Dr. Ed Smith operated a modest pastoral counseling ministry in the mid-nineteen nineties. A substantial portion of those who came for help were women who reported having been sexually molested as children. Over the course of countless ministry sessions, Smith attempted to help these dear women find some measure of freedom from the emotional pain and dysfunction they were experiencing but eventually felt forced to give up since there was so little fruit from his labor. Then God showed up! After years of effort and struggle, Smith watched in awe as God transformed these women's lives by ...

When someone suffers through trauma, can healing happen? And, if yes, how does it happen? Dr. Diane Langberg tackles these complex and difficult questions with the insights she has gained through more than 40 years of counseling those whose lives have been destroyed by trauma and abuse. Her answer carefully explained in Suffering and the Heart of God is Yes, what trauma destroys, Jesus can and does restore.

Getting to know that special someone naturally involves learning about family and friends, education and athletics, favorite pastimes, and your hopes and dreams. Ideally, you'll talk about life's best moments and worst, the brightest places in your background and the darkest. But what about God? What is his role in your relationship? What do each of you believe about him, and how do you understand his dream for marriage-for your marriage?

Do you feel ambushed by your obsessions? Addictions come in all forms: overindulging, overspending, overworking, and more. But no matter how they show up in your life, your addictions trap you and edge out the full freedom you can enjoy in Christ. Join Dr. Tony Evans on a 30-day journey filled with powerful biblical insights and practical tips for overcoming the behavior that controls you. You'll discover the tools and principles you need to embrace healing and find liberation.

Increasing numbers of people involved in personal transformation are experiencing spiritual emergencies - crises when the process of growth and change becomes chaotic and overwhelming. Unfortunately, much of modern psychiatry has failed to distinguish these episodes from mental illness. As a result, transformational crises are often suppressed by routine psychiatric care, medication, and even institutionalization. When understood and treated in a supportive manner, spiritual emergencies can become gateways to higher levels of functioning and new ways of being.

Nothing destroys trust like sexual betrayal. Beyond broken vows, a woman who discovers that her husband has been viewing pornography or having an affair must deal with devastating blows to her self-image and self-worth. She must grapple with the fact that the man she thought she knew has lied and deceived her. She may even bear the brunt of shame and judgment when the people around her find out.

Many churches would like to start a counseling ministry, but they don’t know where to start. Mobilizing Church-Based Counseling offers direction to churches for creating a ministry built around lay-led counseling groups and mentoring. Based on proven models used in his own congregation, Brad Hambrick lays out a clear plan to launch a sustainable soul-care ministry that can be replicated in churches of any size.