COMPETENT TO COUNSEL BIBLICALLY

REVIEW:

SOME OBJECTIVES TO BIBLICAL COUNSELING

• A system of biblical truth that brings together people, their problems, and the living God. With the conviction that:
• God’s Word should be our counseling authority
• Counseling is a part of the basic discipling ministry of the local church.
• God’s people can and should be trained to counsel effectively.

The term that is used is "Nouthetic confrontation." Let’s look at the meaning of the term.

All Christians should engage in it. "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and (for the moment we shall simply transliterate the next word) confronting one another nouthetically." Colossians 3:16.

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There are at least three basic elements according to Jay Adams.

• 1 "to teach" The term "didasko" does not imply any problem, but simply suggests the communication of data (teaching); making information known, clear, understandable and memorable.


• "to admonish". Here is the idea: the sense of admonishing with blame, and to rebuke. That is never well liked. The idea of "nouthesis" gives the idea, there is going to be some kind of confrontation in which the objective is to effect a character and behavior change in the person you are talking to one on one.

Today:

THIRD POINT: 3 "for correction." I Corinthians 4:14. Paul wanted to confront but with care, because you are my beloved children.. He wanted to correct with the intent to benefit the person.

Paul would get his point across without screaming at them. He didn’t want to "exasperate" them. He would confront them as a "brother". II Thessalonians 3:15.

The third point of nouthetic counseling suggests changing that in his life which hurts the counselee. The idea is not to punish them but to help them. How often have I seen how the "what" they were doing in their life was only hurting them. Their behavior was hurting them, their thinking was hurting them. Their life was a mess. When they came for counseling, they were in trouble.

Generally I would counsel those in our church family, those who were our dear friends. I cared for each member of our church family. I was deeply concerned for their well being. Nouthesis is motivated by love and deep concern, in which you are willing to give advice, admonish, warn, do what you could to bring about change of behavior and change of mind. I often had strange ways of doing this very idea.

As Paul said in Colossians 1:28, in order that every man may be presented to Christ mature and complete. And the best way that can be done is to apply the principles of Scripture.

Scripture in II Timothy is used nouthetically. Reproving, teaching, correcting, and training men in righteousness. I believe scripture can instruct us in the manner that Christ would have us to think, behave, and believe about how to live life.

We get into the "what’s" of life because we are not personally confronted with the Scriptures.

We get into bad behavior and bad thinking when we are not confronted with Scripture. We get into the "why" when we don’t have a clear understanding of Scripture.

2 Timothy 4:21 "Preach the Word." I heard that a lot. "be ready in season and out of season," in the pulpit, in the foyer, in the class room, in the home, at the ball park, just about anywhere "reprove, rebuke, exhort", but note "with great patience and instruction." (I did have a little trouble with patience, and tactful instruction.).

I believe it’s a balance. Some preachers push people to guilt for wrong living and behavior with Scriptural teaching. Others will preach or teach scripture without any confronting.

There is a difference between how preachers and preachers versus how John MacArthur preaches.

Paul thought of bringing God’s word to press upon people’s lives in order to uncover sinful patterns, to remedy what is wrong, and to set new ways of life of which God approves.

John MacArthur said, I preach with the authority of Scripture, I want to push people back up against the wall as it were, and confront them with the principles of Scripture and the will of God, and force then to face life in the light of Scripture. Getting them to understand the "what" they are doing, is either right or wrong biblically, and help them know the "why" they are giving is not biblical, nor for their best interest, or for the glory of God. ( a very loose paraphrase of what John was saying)
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BIBLICAL COUNSELING: HOW DO YOU DO IT?

Review:

There are at least three basic elements according to Jay Adams.

1 "to teach" The term "didasko" does not imply any problem, but simply suggests the communication of data (teaching); making information known, clear, understandable and memorable.

2 "to admonish". Here is the idea: the sense of admonishing with blame, and to rebuke. That is never well liked. The idea of "nouthesis" gives the idea, there is going to be some kind of confrontation in which the objective is to effect a character and behavior change in the person you are talking to one on one

• Here is what Adams said,
  "Nouthetic confrontation, that is one on one, in its biblical usage, aims at straightening out the individual by changing his pattern of behavior to conform to biblical standard."

When I was a Juvenile Probation Officer, when talking with a kid that had just robbed his mother of $100, I didn’t say, "Son, why did you do that?" I knew why. I wanted to deal with the "What" What was done? What must be done to rectify it? "Young man, what you did, was really bad." What are you going to do about it?"

So I wanted to deal with the "what" rather than the "why." You know the why? The reason people get in trouble or have trouble, even if they don’t know that they are in trouble with God, is their relationship with God and others because of their sinful nature..

Christians do not have to ask the question "why". They already know why fallen human nature acts sinfully. Many do not see the "what" as sinful behavior. It’s a chemical imbalance or "I don’t see why it’s a problem."

By the way, nouthetic counseling doesn’t take weeks to solve, unlike what most psychiatrists are saying is needed -- months and maybe years

"What" leads to solutions to problems'

"What are you doing?" That is a very good question to ask, rather than "Why did you do that?"

Now you might think: Isn’t that what a Christian should do? Yes, but it’s often the last thing we do. We will use the secular points of view. We will say, "I am depressed." "I have a chemical imbalance." "I am bi-polar." etc. Most of the time we will know the secular term and not the biblical term of our problems. All these terms are secular and are not biblical terms.
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Can I ask, "What does God say about what you are doing?" And secondly, what can be done about this situation? Many times they don’t like these questions.
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HERE IS THE POINT OF NOUTHETIC BIBLICAL COUNSELING CONFRONTING:

Biblical counseling seeks to correct sinful behavior patterns by personal confrontation and repentance. "The what you are in to, or what you are doing, by biblical standard is not what Christ would have you to do." And what are you going to do about it?
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Until they see and understand the "why" they won’t clearly see why the "what" is wrong. And they want see why the need to change is needed. The "why" of every problem is sin. When we understand the sin problem we will have and idea that the "what" is wrong.

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So the point is to try to bring about change of direction in the thinking and behavior that would be beneficial to the person and be glorifying to Christ rather than what is most convenient for the person.

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Adams says this:

• "Any biblically legitimate verbal means may be employed that will bring about change in the direction of greater conformity to biblical principles and practice."

NOW I WANT TO ADDRESS THIS IDEA OF ‘NOUTHETIC CONFRONTATION ."
WHAT IS BIBLICAL COUNSELING

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Discerning thinking and behavior that God wants to change.
You want to view how you think about any issue in life with what God thinks about it. Your problem might be that you don’t agree with what Christ says.
Using God’s Word to Change Thinking and behavior
You want to start with Scripture as the means of how you should think about living life.
For the benefit of the person and for the glory of God.
So how do you accomplish this process? it’s called nouthetic counseling
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Let the Word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and confronting one another nouthetically." Col. 3:16.

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Paul engaged in teaching the scripture night and day. He didn’t just teach on Sunday, then the rest of the week train to be a Gladiator. He engaged in the process of pastoral work that is necessary to build up individuals in their faith. He engaged individuals one on one on a daily basis. If you read Paul’s letters, you will see they are filled with people. I need to check out how many people are mentioned in his letters that he was personally involved with teaching.

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He preached, but Paul dealt with people as individuals, as groups, and as families, and he confronted them nouthetically.

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ELEMENTS IN NOUTHETIC confrontation. Usually there is going to be a clash or an argument of points of views. In my experience, those who I am talking to, generally do not agree with a scriptural point of view.

• Okay, what do the terms mean to "admonish," "warn," and "teach."
  A. T. Robertson, of Colossians 1:28, rendered it "put sense into."
  

So what does nouthetic confrontation consist of? There are at least three basic elements according to Jay Adams.

1 "to teach" The term "didasko" does not imply any problem, but simply suggests the communication of data (teaching); making information known, clear, understandable and memorable.

What I learned early, "to teach" is something that refers to the one who is teaching. The person who you are teaching, may not be at all happy about what you are teaching. They may not even agree with what you are teaching. They generally are not all that excited about hearing your instruction, or teaching on the subject at hand. My experience is that most don’t want to hear biblical teaching, but would rather hear what the other points of view are.

Adams points out: "nouthesis" specifically presupposes the need for a change in the person confronted, who may nor may not put up some resistance." But in either case there is a problem in their life that needs to be solved. Some sin, some obstruction, some problem, some difficulty, some need that has to be acknowledged and dealt with. What you are trying to say, is "God wants change." You don’t change by taking a pill. There needs to be an inward personality change, a behavioral change.

2 "to admonish". Here is the idea: the sense of admonishing with blame, and to rebuke. That is never well liked. The idea of "nouthesis" gives the idea, there is going to be some kind of confrontation in which the objective is to effect a character and behavior change in the person you are talking to one on one.

Here is what Adams said,

• "Nouthetic confrontation, that is one on one, in its bibical usage, aims at straightening out the individual by changing his pattern of behavior to conform to biblical standard."
  For example, Nathan’s confronting David after his sin with Uriah and Bathsheba. And also, Christ’s restoring Peter after His resurrection.

The idea is to confront with the truth of scripture. Nouthetically, means you speak soon enough, strictly enough, and seriously enough to really effect genuine changes in them.

Counseling in the first place implies someone has a hindrance, difficulty, dilemma, problem, etc. and you presuppose a blockade that must be overcome..

And what generally happens, you don’t want to confront, challenge, or deal with what you really know to be the real problem. That is not the meaning of nouthetical biblical counsel.

"Why did you do that, or why are you doing this?" This is not nouthetical counseling either. One young man when asked why he kept doing what he was doing. He said, "It’s in my blood line." Too much on the "why" will lead to finding some extenuating reasons for excusing conduct which other wise would be described as sinful. Nouthetical biblical counseling is not finding excuses for their bad behavior. It is the task to stop them.

The idea is to discuss the WHAT, NOT THE WHY.

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BIBLICAL COUNSELING
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?

PART FIVE

THIS IS A 12 PAGE REPORT, SO FAR, AND I WILL POST THRU THURSDAY. I AM GOING ON VACATION FRIDAY THRU NEXT WEDNESDAY.

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SOME GENERAL REMARKS ABOUT BIBLICAL COUNSELING, ADMONISHING, INSTRUCTING, ETC.

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I am going to use some notes that I used while pastor/teacher of First Baptist Church in Altoona, Kansas for sixteen years.

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Biblical teaching about the needs of life is very tiring for the mind to bear up under for long. After one hour, one hour sessions, my mind becomes tired. (is it possible for your mind to be tired?) (I need to look up that question). There is at least a strain on my body’s physical functions.

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I had preached for years, since I was sixteen, so preaching was rather natural for me. I believed that in my preaching I was helping people learn about Jesus Christ and how He would have us to live in a secular world.
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My wife (Charity) first encouraged me to learn how to deal with people. Think of that. She felt I had a handle on theological principles but needed some help with dealing one on one with people. So I enrolled in Liberty University School of Life-Long Learning. Believe me it’s a lifelong process! The course was taught by Ron Hawkins, on "INTRODUCTION TO COUNSELING." Class was VCR tapes.
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Then for David Miller’s counseling class: "PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT", and I am thinking, what has this to do with biblical admonishing or instruction? Learning personality development is the systematic study of the person as they move through characteristic stages of growth and development. Oh! So we studied from a newborn child thru childhood and adolescence to adults.
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This is a whole other topic for a later study. I want to keep on the subject. But to say the need to understand the development of one’s personality does have a direct result on one’s behavior. You cannot ignore one’s upbringing in the process of learning what their problems are.
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SOME PRINCIPLES I LEARNED ABOUT BIBLICAL COUNSELING

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Compare the person’s experience to the Word of God. When they share a questionable experience that they believe to be true, evaluate it against the Word of God.

• Don’t give advice in areas you are not qualified in. i.e.
• Legal
• Financial investments, etc.
  
• Medical - Do not counsel people about medications prescribed by their doctor.
  
• Recognize the potential for medical problems to be the source of some of the problems.
  

Biblical counseling as we have learned, is addressing every issue in our lives with a biblical perspective.

Starting with a mindset that is focused on the teaching of the Scripture.
Gather information
Define the problem from a biblical perspective
Discover its root as to what the scripture would say it is
Find the biblical answer.

NOW I WANT TO ADDRESS THIS IDEA OF ‘NOUTHETIC CONFRONTATION ."
WHAT IS BIBLICAL COUNSELING

Discerning thinking and behavior that God wants to change.

• You want to view how you think about any issue in life with what God thinks about it. Your problem might be that you don’t agree with what Christ says.
  

Using God’s Word to Change Thinking and behavior

• You want to start with Scripture as the means of how you should think about living life.
  

For the benefit of the person and for the glory of God.

So how do you accomplish this process?

• it’s called nouthetic counseling

I had to first learn if the person who I am talking to understands that what I do is Biblical consulting. I am not trying to find out what the medical problem is, nor what the secular world would call their problems. I am not trying to give a secular solution but a biblical solution. I had to learn first if they were a believer, if they were willing to address their needs from the biblical point of view. Secondly, we had to discover if they were willing to at least learn what Scripture says about their problems.

What they were going to hear from me was what I understand the scripture is saying.

• "Let the Word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and confronting one another nouthetically." Col. 3:16.
  
• continue next

COMPETENT TO COUNSEL BIBLICALLY

part four

Footnote: I like Union Mills Doughnuts......

WHAT IS THE OBJECTIVE IN GIVING BIBLICAL COUNSEL

So how are we to address our problems and issues and needs in life?
The term that is used is "Nouthetic confrontation." Let’s look at the meaning of the term.
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All Christians should engage in it. "Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and (for the moment we shall simply transliterate the next word) confronting one another nouthetically." Colossians 3:16.
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Paul wrote in Romans 15:14: that all Christians must teach and confront one another in a Nouthetic fashion. "Concerning you, my brethren, I myself also am convinced that you are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able also to confront one another nouthetically."
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Here is the point. Paul sees Christians meeting in nouthetic confrontation as normal every day activity. If they are filled with goodness and knowledge, they should be qualified and equipped to confront one another nouthetically. So in truth, you don’t need to be a preacher to counsel. The idea is that all Christians should be involved in this counsel.
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I also realized that public preaching, confronting people with their problems is a part of the preacher’s activity, but it’s not all he is to be engaging in. Public ministry is important, but so also is private ministry to individuals. While you would like to go home on Sunday Morning and watch NASCAR, or play golf during the week, there needs to be time when you confront individuals one on one.
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Note what Paul said about his ministry to the Ephesians: "Remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to confront each one nouthetically with tears."
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It seemed that I was confronting individuals every day in the Word.

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A part of ministry is daily, night and day, talking to people biblically about their life. Pastoral work is more than just getting ready for Sunday and Wednesday sermons. It’s that of course, but more it’s being involved in nouthetic activity. It’s the real work of pastoral work to engage in nouthetic activity.

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When you read Paul’s letters, you notice that he mentions a number of individuals in whom he invested a number of hours of work with. Paul not only preached on Mars Hill, but he dealt with people as individuals, as groups, and as families, and he confronted them nouthetically.
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Proof read by Charity Whisnant

COMPETENT TO COUNSEL BIBLICALLY


PART TWO:
PREFACE: THE OBJECTIVE OF BIBLICAL COUNSELING:
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You can see from the assorted disciplines of study that I have a variety of points of view as to how to do Biblical counsel. It’s interesting how MacArthur, Adams, Solomon, Gillham, Mack, Crabb, Gothard and Hawkins have the same Bible and same objectives but have different methods of reaching the goal.
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Some would say you need many sessions to solve people problem. Some would say a few. Solomon would say, you need about an hour. Some would just use the Bible, others would say read this book. Some would use all Scripture, short and sweet.
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PERSONAL COMMENT:

• I was in a church for four years, and never once did the pastors want me to do personal counseling at the church. Even when the objective is to train Christians to do biblical counseling. Today, counseling people could bring law suits. If you as a pastor, counsel, you could be held accountable for your counsel.
  
  
• SOME OBJECTIVES TO BIBLICAL COUNSELING
  

A system of biblical truth that brings together people, their problems, and the living God. With the conviction that:

• God’s Word should be our counseling authority
• Counseling is a part of the basic discipling ministry of the local church.
• God’s people can and should be trained to counsel effectively.
  

Do I need to say: "Jesus Christ is at the center of all true Christian counseling"? You would think not, but in many counseling sessions, problems are addressed as if Christ is not the answer from the Bible.

Counseling which does not move from one’s problem to the position of Scripture ceases to be biblical counseling. Scripture is our resource book to discover the direction one could take concerning the counseling of people with personal problems

PERSONAL NOTE:

• Having come back from the Nouthetic Counseling Seminars, I learned that in any counseling session, the first thing is to address the problems from the biblical point of view. I remember at one session saying, "Are you willing to look at your problems from Scripture?" "Are you willing to discover what your problems are as they are presented from Scripture?" "And are you willing to apply Christ’s solution to your problems?" Let’s discover what your problem is biblically and see if Christ has the answer to that issue in your life. I remember that when they said, "Yes." They really had no clue what was going to be revealed about their problems and the biblical solutions. I know that first couple was not ready to hear what the Word said they could do to solve their problems.
  
• Of course I had to learn what the real problem was. What was the root problem and the root cause? Then learn how to address the issue, and learn how to get those who I was counseling to receive what I was saying..
  
• Personally, one-on-one counseling and preaching/teaching on Sunday Morning is totally different I believe. Certainly some preaches in preaching will address every problem people have, and every sin that one has. And people will tune them out. Few people listen to a whole sermon. Few people really know how to apply the principles of Scripture.
  

Most people know the secular terms for their problems but do not know the scriptural term for their problems. Many people who have problems will not go to the Word, they will talk to their next door neighbor before they would talk to a believer. Many will seek out some secular person who might be able to help them. Most people know the humanistic or secular terms but not the spiritual terms.

Charles E. Whisnant

WHAT IS THE OBJECTIVE IN GIVING BIBLICAL COUNSEL Next

INTRODUCTION: BIBLICAL COUNSELING

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I was preaching/teaching years ago, and I said, "God doesn’t need any philosophy, or secular psychology to accomplish His purposes for Believers. Scripture is sufficient for every emotional, spiritual need that Christians have." Of course that sounded pastoral. And I truly believed the statement was true. Any emotional stress or depression that one would have, can be dealt with by the Word of God. Okay!

That general statement came back to cause me to prove that statement. Usually a preacher will say, "Well, go read your Bible and you will be transformed, or find a remedy to all your problems in life." Or they will say, "My counsel is in my preaching and teaching, listen." We say all these things because we really don’t have a clue how to deal with people’s problems.

Christians don’t need to go to a secular Psychologist. Well, that might be true, but if we say that, then we need to be able to take a person to the Scripture and show them how Christ wants us to deal with life’s problems.

After I preached that message, I had the occasion to have a person in our church who asked me to counsel them biblically. Now up to that point, I had no real idea how to do that.
TRAINING: 80 and 90's

My early seminary training never really addressed biblical counseling, but while I was in Hyles-Anderson, Dr. Joe Combs taught a course on Pastoral Counseling and he used "Competent to Counsel" by Jay E. Adams.

I can’t remember how I was introduced to NANC. I knew NASCAR, but not NANC.

I couldn’t Google in the 80's and 90's, but doing so would have been good.

I can’t remember how I was introduce to "Lifetime Guarantee" Bill Gillham. Charity was most impressed with the Gillham’s. They have the most simple approach to Biblical counseling. Their set of tapes, and books were very practical and biblical.

Grace Fellowship International with Charles R. Solomon, also is good and a very simple approach to helping people understand their need for God’s grace. One of his books is "Counseling With The Mind of Christ." The Dynamics of Spirtuotherapy.

Gary R. Collins is general editor for the series of resources for Christian Counseling. There were thirty two volumes that I studied in the Christian Counselor’s Library

Larry Crabb’s books and material are good. He has the biblical approach to healing the deep wounds of the soul.

Then I enrolled in the Liberty University Life-Long Learning Master’s Program on Biblical Counseling, Dr. Ronald E. Hawkins, teacher.

I enrolled in the NANC , The National Association of Nouthetic Counselors. Faith Baptist Church in Lafayette, IN . For over six months I traveled to Kansas City, KS for training.

Also, I had been going to Bill Gothard’s Seminars for years and his approach to counseling good as well. The root causes, the root symptom and the root solutions to problems were addressed.

And I had enrolled in John MacArthur’s expository Biblical preaching ministry in 1983.

Charity and I went to several seminars where Jay E. Adams was speaking on the subject of biblical counseling. Another book of Adams. "The Language of Counseling" was very helpful.

I also appreciate the Master’s College, John MacArthur, Jr. and Wayne A. Mack’s material on Biblical Counseling. "Theological Foundations of Biblical Counseling and "Biblical Counseling and the Local Church." The volume "Introduction to Biblical Counseling" is great.

NEWSLETTERS, PUBLICATIONS, AND JOURNALS

Before I had Internet, I had Newsletter’s, Publications, and Journals sent to me via the US Mail, think of that. In the 90's:

• The Biblical Counselor: from NANC
• Christian Counseling Newsletter: Gary Collins
• Christian Mental Health For The Professional Therapist:
• Lifetime Guarantee: Bill and Anabel Gillham
• The Menninger Letter: Topeka, KS
• Minirth-Meier Christian Psychology For Today Publication. Paul Meier and Frank Minirth
• The Christian Journal of Psychology and Counseling AACC Gary Collins
• And the Journal’s Psychology and Theology
  

Now what is interesting here, the above list of works of study were done in a period while I was pastor/teacher at First Baptist Church in Altoona, Kansas from 1980-1996. I don’t think I had heard a lot, if any, about Christian or Biblical Counseling prior to the 1980's. In my youth, I didn’t know what counseling was by that term. But in the 60's and 70's I spent a lot of time one on one talking to teenagers and adults about their lives as Christians. The Bible was generally my only textbook. I believe for the most part the Bible does work in giving a lot of good advice and solutions, and principles for living life free from depression, and a lot of worry and a lot of hurtful stress. Some depression, discouragement, worry and stress is normal for all Christians. I remember saying, "I schedule worry for thirty minutes a week."

PART TWO:
PREFACE: THE OBJECTIVE OF BIBLICAL COUNSELING: Wednesday