Equipping the Church
Training
Prior to COVID in 2020, it was reported that more than 85% of those in distress called the church first for help[1]. I think it is fair to say, that number has more than likely increased and the church must be ready!
In 2012, God invited me into His activity to start a biblical counseling ministry that would focus only on soul care and remain strictly in the context of the church – we called it the LIFE Center. Today, I am passionate about helping every church develop a peer-to-peer biblical counseling ministry with volunteers who are called to disciple others through their hurt. As stewards of God’s resources, with people being God’s primary resource, and to answer the Great Commission Jesus left us with, the church should transition a portion of their efforts to developing an effective and efficient way to meet the needs of those in crisis with audacious courage and readiness[2].
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If the church is not ready to hold safe spaces for those who are hurting, the world will!
I believe that a part of our command to make disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to observe the commands of Jesus (Matthew 28:19-20), includes teaching others through the human experience of living on this side of heaven, wrestling with emotions, and all our hurts, habits and hangups!
1 Stanford, M.S. (2014). Rethinking mental healthcare. Christian Counseling Today, 21(2), pp. 22-26.
2 Dickens, M. (2021). Quantitative Research on Peer-to-Peer Biblical Soul Care through the Encourager Program.
