The word "counsel" is not a good word to apply to what God has equipped certain believers to do. The Lord Jesus Christ is The Counselor. We are facilitators. We function more in the role of consultant than as counselor. It is not our responsibility to effect change in another person's life. We are merely here to point the way, should anyone care to go.

The problem is that the world has elevated the "counsel" in such a way that to use any other term, at least initially, is to confuse and turn people away from the king of help they really need. So, we use "counsel" when we mean consult and trust those who understand the difference are gracious enough to allow that freedom.

In talking about counseling we are referring to what used to be called discipleship. It the process whereby one believer teaches another believer to "observe all the things whatsoever I have commanded you [to observe]. Mt. 28:20 It is simply done in a more specialized way.

There are folks in every church that others turn to for help. These are not always those in official leadership positions. They are often those who have demonstrated a consistent walk with the Lord in terms of everyday living. Pastors are responsible to make sure these folks have the tools and understand the principles that guide the biblical counseling model.

It is to this situation that I'd dedicate my effort. It is important to make certain that those already getting counsel within the church do so biblically. This is not to say we need to establish some sort of "office" within the church made up of trained counselors. But it is to say every effort should be made to equip those God has chosen to be the encouragers.

This spiritual gifts of exhortation, teaching and mercy come immediately to mind. Care, however, must be given to avoid labeling. God is sovereign. His exercise of will cannot be confined by our definitions or determinations of what He has done or will do. We are observers, not designers. We watch and then work with what we see God doing.

THE BASICS: Generally speaking when a person has a serious problem it is the result of violating the Word of God. Some problems are the result of illness or physical injury or chemical or hormonal imbalances. These should be referred to a medical practitioner. All other problems are behaviorally induced the most common of which are depression and anxiety. Psychology admits that more than 90% of all clinical depression is behaviorally induced. People make choices. Choices come with consequences. Even in cases of physical illness or injury, often the problem is depression or some disruptive response to this new reality.

TESTING vs. TEMPTING: There are cases where a Christian is actually being tested by God through a difficult set of circumstances. Job is our primary example. Believers God is challenging in this manner, however, rarely see their problems as destructive. And they never give all the interest in as a result. The Bible says that God is faithful and will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able (I Cor. 10:13). The Bible also makes it clear that God does not tempt people to sin. If a person stands is because they are drawn the way of their own lost, and enticed (Jas. 1:13,14). And even in the midst of our sin God is there to give us grace (Rom. 5:20).

RESISTING THE GRACE OF GOD: The Bible teaches that it is God which worketh in us both to will and to do of his good pleasure (Phil. 2:13). The believer's new WANT TO is from God. Along with this comes power from God to accomplish that desire. Since God's grace is mediated by Prayer, the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit, when you find a believer who is struggling with an attitude or behavior you will find a prayerless Christian, a Christian who is neglecting the Word of God and who is grieving the Holy Spirit. This is called resisting the Grace of God. We are seeking our own way ignoring the solution God has already given. Even if our efforts result in a reduction of the immediate pressures, ultimately they will return because we have never repented of the core issue: Resisting God's Grace.

VICTIM or PARTICIPANT? The Christian needs to decide whether he will accept responsibility for his choices for whether he will blame something or someone else. The vain philosophers of this world teach us that problems have their source in our unconscious mind, in someone else's behavior toward us, in economic conditions, or social injustices. The Bible says that behavior standards from the heart (Rom. 8:5,6). And since the heart is depraved we cannot expect it to produce spiritual fruit.