Reviews for Counseling

The average rating for Counseling based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-08-06 00:00:00 Sean Goodwin Nouthetic counseling training for laymen or pastors who have not been trained in this type of counseling. Bottom line: 1. Person communicates their problem; 2. You find the verse in the Bible to fix/address their problem/situation; 3. They repent/obey/agree/etc. to that Scripture and they are healed/fixed (OR) they reject/disobey/disagree/etc. to that Scripture and they are not healed. The mindset is good for basing counseling on biblical principles, but it does not deal with people holistically. People may have chemical dificiencies, social conditions and behaviors, addictions, etc. that take more than a verse to heal. Prayer, help, detox, institutionalization, prescription drugs, budget or financial advise and accountability, communication advice, etc. are just a short list of what may be needed to help individuals.

Review # 2 was written on 2019-05-18 00:00:00 Lauren Tolle-bulley This is a hard book to rate. Historically, Adams's work is very important. He was responsible for reclaiming the Puritan ideal of the pastor as counselor or "soul-doctor". By the 1960s, pastors had largely relinquished this role to "the professionals", and Adams led the way in undoing this abdication. There are many biblical principles in this book that are solid gold. Unfortunately, it also seems like Adams is very narrow in his application, seeing his method as the one right way to do things. In the right hands, and used by someone with wisdom, I think these principles would be helpful, but I've also heard stories about how dangerous these principles can be in the wrong hands. That's not necessarily a criticism of Adams himself, but he may have swung the pendulum too far in the opposite direction in reaction to the problems of his day. Those carrying on his work today, folks like Ed Welch, David Powlison, and Alasdair Groves, are applying biblical counseling principles with much more nuance.