Effective biblical counseling
Larry Crabb (Author)
"Dr. Crabb has written this book to help the reader think through a model of counseling which can be gracefully integrated into the functioning of the local church. In his view, any approach to counseling which is truly biblical will work most effectively when carried out in the context of a local body of believers. Counseling is not a discipline like dentistry or medicine which depends fundamentally upon a growing amount of technical knowledge administered by a highly trained professional. Rather, counseling is centrally and critically a relationship between people who care. Since this is true, we need to find mature believers in our local churches who are filled with the love of Christ and train them in counseling insights and skills. Dr Crabb feels that every Christian is called to a ministry of encouraging and helping others, especially those of the household of faith. This is one kind of counseling. Pastors, elders, and other church leaders have a special opportunity and responsibility to teach biblical principles of living. This is a second kind of counseling. It is also true, however, that some need to be specifically trained for a specialized ministry of counseling involving deeper exploration into stubborn problems. This is a kind of counseling and a major concern of this book. The question every counselor should ask is: What am I trying to change? The answer to that question depends on the answer to another question: What am I hoping will result from the changes produced? In other words, what is my ultimate goal? The Christian counselor desires the welfare of his client but he also believes the person's welfare depends on his relationship to Christ." -Publisher
Print Book, English, 1977
Zondervan Pub. House, Grand Rapids, 1977