"The Bible says that our core problem, the fundamental reason we do what we do, is sin. What is being said here? Scripture is defining sin as a condition that results in behavior. We all are sinners, and because of this, we all do sinful things. This is why I said that our core problem precedes our experience. David captured it well in Psalm 51: "Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me" (v. 5). David is saying, "I was born with a fundamental problem. I had it long before my first experience. Something is wrong with my inner self that fundamentally affects the way I operate as a human being." This has thunderous implications. Because sin is in my nature as a human being, it is inescapable. It marks everything I think, say, and do. It will guide my cravings, my response to authority, and my decision making. It will alter my values, direct my hopes and dreams, and shape every interpretation I make. [...]
The good news of the kingdom [of God] is not freedom from hardship, suffering, and loss. It is the news of a Redeemer who has come to rescue me from myself. He rescue produces change that fundamentally alters my response to these inescapable realities. The Redeemer turns rebels into disciples, fools into humble listeners. He makes cripples walk again. In him we can face life and respond with faith, love and hope. And as he changes us, he allows us to be part of what he is doing in the lives of others. As you respond to the Redeemer's work in your life, you can learn to be an instrument in his hands."
Paul David Tripp, Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change
Starting in September I am going to being co-leading a ladies' small group working through biblical counseling material. In preparation I am reading through some great biblical counseling books (like the one quoted from above). Biblical counseling is a Gospel-centered means of helping people work through life biblically, and I love the model (read more about it in this post). I'm excited (and humbled) to get to serve my church in this way.
Showing posts with label Biblical Counseling. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Biblical Counseling. Show all posts
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Spring is here! Hibernation is over!
Hey everyone (or anyone who still checks this...)
I think we're going to be making a blog come-back. I also realize this corresponds with the full bloom of spring, so I will say that I was hibernating through my first Real Winter. Now, some (say, those who live in Minnesota or upstate New York or something) would say DC doesn't have a real winter. I disagree: in February it was 9 degrees with a negative 3 degree wind-chill - and I dog walked! I used to go to the beach in Southern California in January. This "real weather" was unheard of. Bobby and I persevered, though, and now we are happy to see DC in the spring. It really is like a different city - big, leafy trees and beautiful flowers and gorgeous blue skies. We're loving it. Today it was 90 degrees with no humidity (yet). I love hot weather!
Now - brief update? Hmmm. Let's see.
Bobby's job: is going so well. He loves what he is doing. He started off working for 9Marks just as an interim job: six months until he came on the church as a Pastoral Assistant. However, within a couple weeks the crew at 9M realized Bobby could help Jonathon, the director of communications and main editor, more than they realized. Jonathon writes a lot of 9M material (books included) as well as edits their bi-monthly eJournal. Having Bobby on hand means that he can take over a lot of Jonathon's work and free him up to continue writing and traveling for 9M conferences, while still getting lots of work done. They offered him a job through next summer ('10), and the church will possibly have him for a year after that for the PA position. Bobby's big project right now is writing multiple question and answers (basically small essays) for each of the 9 Marks (find them here) that pastor's can look through. I think he's written around 170 or so so far. They are still all being edited and worked on but we pray that the Lord will use them to encourage pastors and help spread biblical truth about the Church!
My job(s): Right now I am doing a bunch of industrious things that help us save money and allow me free time to pursue relationships, taking care of our home and hobbies. I work less than full-time doing a couple different things: house-cleaning for this lady on the Hill every other week, being a mother's helper for five hours each week for the Lawrence family (Michael Lawrence is an Associate Pastor at CHBC), dog-walking, and working at CHLG on Fridays. I was offered a job at CHLG (Capitol Hill Learning Group) for the Fall - four days a week, 8:30-1:30, teaching the 3.5 - 5 year olds. This group is called the "Grasshoppers." Right now I teach the Fireflies. I love this age group and since being a kindergarten teacher was one of the things I was pursuing before marriage, I was grateful to accept the position! I will most likely be done dog-walking mid-July.
We are so grateful for the kind ways the Lord has provided for us. We have a great place to live (our studio is the size of a one-bedroom, very open and spacious, with a great kitchen), we both have jobs, our marriage is a delight and a joy, and our church home is a place of rich blessing.
We love that we are going to get to stay at CHBC for at least another year and a half. It is such a privilege to be in fellowship with all our brothers and sisters at the church - young and old, married, single, kids. I learn so much daily from watching everyone around me. In my free time, I am discipled by Moriah Gilbert, an elder's wife and a wise woman of God. When I work at the Lawrence's I get to hear and see the gracious, kind and wise ways Adriennce Lawrence shepherd's her five children. I meet with my dear friend Ashley regularly - iron sharpening iron. I also get the blessing to disciple and meet with two college students: Juline at Georgetown and Kaia at George Washington. Bobby and I have been getting more involved with college ministry (he recently preached at Georgetown IVF), and I have been continuing in my weekly study of Biblical Counseling with a small group. Most importantly, we get to gather with our fellow members of CHBC to hear the Word preached faithfully to us every week. Such blessings our God has bestowed on us!
Upcoming events:
Women's Retreat this weekend!
Three-day weekend to Wildwood, New Jersey. Geoff and Stephanie, a couple in our married small group, have family with a beach house there and they are letting us use it! Yay!
California! Jon and Jeanette are (finally!) getting married in Ventura on May 24. We will be flying in to LAX, staying through the wedding, and then borrowing B's parent's car (thanks!) to have a romantical road trip up PCH, stopping at Big Sur and then spending three days at a cottage in Santa Cruz before hitting up San Francisco and the East Bay. We cannot wait!
Hopefully I'll be able to do an OC trip near mid-summer...not sure, but a possibilty (I miss my ninos!)
Anyways, that is all! Hope you are well friends. Take care!
Hebrews 13:20-21
I think we're going to be making a blog come-back. I also realize this corresponds with the full bloom of spring, so I will say that I was hibernating through my first Real Winter. Now, some (say, those who live in Minnesota or upstate New York or something) would say DC doesn't have a real winter. I disagree: in February it was 9 degrees with a negative 3 degree wind-chill - and I dog walked! I used to go to the beach in Southern California in January. This "real weather" was unheard of. Bobby and I persevered, though, and now we are happy to see DC in the spring. It really is like a different city - big, leafy trees and beautiful flowers and gorgeous blue skies. We're loving it. Today it was 90 degrees with no humidity (yet). I love hot weather!
Now - brief update? Hmmm. Let's see.
Bobby's job: is going so well. He loves what he is doing. He started off working for 9Marks just as an interim job: six months until he came on the church as a Pastoral Assistant. However, within a couple weeks the crew at 9M realized Bobby could help Jonathon, the director of communications and main editor, more than they realized. Jonathon writes a lot of 9M material (books included) as well as edits their bi-monthly eJournal. Having Bobby on hand means that he can take over a lot of Jonathon's work and free him up to continue writing and traveling for 9M conferences, while still getting lots of work done. They offered him a job through next summer ('10), and the church will possibly have him for a year after that for the PA position. Bobby's big project right now is writing multiple question and answers (basically small essays) for each of the 9 Marks (find them here) that pastor's can look through. I think he's written around 170 or so so far. They are still all being edited and worked on but we pray that the Lord will use them to encourage pastors and help spread biblical truth about the Church!
My job(s): Right now I am doing a bunch of industrious things that help us save money and allow me free time to pursue relationships, taking care of our home and hobbies. I work less than full-time doing a couple different things: house-cleaning for this lady on the Hill every other week, being a mother's helper for five hours each week for the Lawrence family (Michael Lawrence is an Associate Pastor at CHBC), dog-walking, and working at CHLG on Fridays. I was offered a job at CHLG (Capitol Hill Learning Group) for the Fall - four days a week, 8:30-1:30, teaching the 3.5 - 5 year olds. This group is called the "Grasshoppers." Right now I teach the Fireflies. I love this age group and since being a kindergarten teacher was one of the things I was pursuing before marriage, I was grateful to accept the position! I will most likely be done dog-walking mid-July.
We are so grateful for the kind ways the Lord has provided for us. We have a great place to live (our studio is the size of a one-bedroom, very open and spacious, with a great kitchen), we both have jobs, our marriage is a delight and a joy, and our church home is a place of rich blessing.
We love that we are going to get to stay at CHBC for at least another year and a half. It is such a privilege to be in fellowship with all our brothers and sisters at the church - young and old, married, single, kids. I learn so much daily from watching everyone around me. In my free time, I am discipled by Moriah Gilbert, an elder's wife and a wise woman of God. When I work at the Lawrence's I get to hear and see the gracious, kind and wise ways Adriennce Lawrence shepherd's her five children. I meet with my dear friend Ashley regularly - iron sharpening iron. I also get the blessing to disciple and meet with two college students: Juline at Georgetown and Kaia at George Washington. Bobby and I have been getting more involved with college ministry (he recently preached at Georgetown IVF), and I have been continuing in my weekly study of Biblical Counseling with a small group. Most importantly, we get to gather with our fellow members of CHBC to hear the Word preached faithfully to us every week. Such blessings our God has bestowed on us!
Upcoming events:
Women's Retreat this weekend!
Three-day weekend to Wildwood, New Jersey. Geoff and Stephanie, a couple in our married small group, have family with a beach house there and they are letting us use it! Yay!
California! Jon and Jeanette are (finally!) getting married in Ventura on May 24. We will be flying in to LAX, staying through the wedding, and then borrowing B's parent's car (thanks!) to have a romantical road trip up PCH, stopping at Big Sur and then spending three days at a cottage in Santa Cruz before hitting up San Francisco and the East Bay. We cannot wait!
Hopefully I'll be able to do an OC trip near mid-summer...not sure, but a possibilty (I miss my ninos!)
Anyways, that is all! Hope you are well friends. Take care!
Hebrews 13:20-21
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Biblical Counseling
Here John Piper works toward a definition of biblical counseling: "God-centered, Christ-exalting, cross-cherishing, Spirit-dependent, Bible-saturated, emotionally-in-touch, culturally-informed use of language to help people become God-centered, Christ-exalting, joyfully self-forgetting lovers of people who spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things for the joy of all peoples." Whew.
At Capitol Hill Baptist Church they are serious about equipping the congregation to minister to itself - training laity to care and serve each other effectively, in this case in the realm of biblical counseling, to the glory of God.
One of the ways I am benefiting from this is a small group I am in on Tuesdays. We are learning introductory material in the "Transformation Series." This semester we're completing a workbook entitled "How People Change: How Christ Changes Us by His Grace." The coursework is offered through the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF for short), and is based on both a book and a full course taught at the CCEF center, both of the same name as the workbook. For those of you familiar with CCEF, the workbook is written by Paul David Tripp, Timothy S. Lane, and David Powlison contributes. The course is geared towards helping both the lay counselor-in-training (me) pursue growth in godliness as well as help others toward the same end.
To get a better idea of what that looks like, this is what they write in the introduction to the workbook:
Many people in our culture would call How People Change a self-help course because it leads people through steps of self-examination and change. However, the Bible would use two words for this material. The first word would be gospel. This course is a study of what God has done in Christ to transform us from idolatry-enslaved sinners to people who are like him, zealous to do what he says is good in a world that is terribly broken. This course celebrates the truth that Jesus came to save us because we are unable to save ourselves. His work addresses the deepest and most personal issues of the human experience. This course calls people to know their world, to know themselves, and to know the Lord and his grace. The second word the Bible would use for this course is discipleship. Discipleship is walking with someone as he or she learns to walk more faithfully with the Lord. Rather than helping themselves through this course, people are being discipled by the Lord as they are discipled by you...Our ultimate goal is to encourage people to: 1) Look at themselves in the mirror of God's word, 2) Know and rely on Christ's grace and 3) Step out into life with renewed faith and courage.
At Capitol Hill Baptist Church they are serious about equipping the congregation to minister to itself - training laity to care and serve each other effectively, in this case in the realm of biblical counseling, to the glory of God.
One of the ways I am benefiting from this is a small group I am in on Tuesdays. We are learning introductory material in the "Transformation Series." This semester we're completing a workbook entitled "How People Change: How Christ Changes Us by His Grace." The coursework is offered through the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF for short), and is based on both a book and a full course taught at the CCEF center, both of the same name as the workbook. For those of you familiar with CCEF, the workbook is written by Paul David Tripp, Timothy S. Lane, and David Powlison contributes. The course is geared towards helping both the lay counselor-in-training (me) pursue growth in godliness as well as help others toward the same end.
To get a better idea of what that looks like, this is what they write in the introduction to the workbook:
Many people in our culture would call How People Change a self-help course because it leads people through steps of self-examination and change. However, the Bible would use two words for this material. The first word would be gospel. This course is a study of what God has done in Christ to transform us from idolatry-enslaved sinners to people who are like him, zealous to do what he says is good in a world that is terribly broken. This course celebrates the truth that Jesus came to save us because we are unable to save ourselves. His work addresses the deepest and most personal issues of the human experience. This course calls people to know their world, to know themselves, and to know the Lord and his grace. The second word the Bible would use for this course is discipleship. Discipleship is walking with someone as he or she learns to walk more faithfully with the Lord. Rather than helping themselves through this course, people are being discipled by the Lord as they are discipled by you...Our ultimate goal is to encourage people to: 1) Look at themselves in the mirror of God's word, 2) Know and rely on Christ's grace and 3) Step out into life with renewed faith and courage.
The course thus far has been teaching me a lot about God's promises and my own heart's reactions as well as equipping me to ask better questions of people as I talk with them about their own spiritual walk.
I have a lot of great resources that I have gleaned from the classes, so expect more posts in this topic.
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