Testimonials

Reviews

I heartily recommend Introduction to Biblical Church Counseling. This course equipped me by clearly laying out the purpose of biblical church counseling and by drawing a clear distinction between counseling in the church and counseling in the world. I was taught that biblical church counseling is first of all, well, biblical. It is based on the inerrant, sufficient, and unrivaled word of God. The Bible, as God’s revelation to man, alone stands as the unquestionable authority on issues concerning the care of human souls. Its revealed wisdom contrasts starkly with the numerous psychological models which attempt to answer the deepest needs of the human heart through a man-centered wisdom born of fallen human observation, interpretation, and application. I learned that biblical church counseling belongs uniquely in the Church, the community of those who have been born-again to eternal life through Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. We, the Church, have been empowered and called by the Word and the Spirit to minister the grace of God in its various forms. Much of this one another ministry is that of soul care. The community of Christ builds itself up as redemptive ministry flows from member to member of the body of Christ. This is a ministry distinctive from and far superior to the assistance provided by devotees of modern secular psychological schools of thought. This course helped me to understand that the core of biblical church counseling is helping others to see the centrality of Christ in all things pertaining to life and godliness. Christ must be seen as relevant, as making a demonstrable difference in our lives. The journey towards experiencing Christ’s relevance in all of life is the way to maturity. I hope that as a biblical church counselor I can support and encourage others to know Christ in this way. –Micah

Throughout this course, one of the things I kept coming back to was how vital it is to stay connected to Christ. Any time I point someone to Christ or listen to a struggle or stand with them during a difficult time, I desperately need to be connected to Christ. People do not need to hear my words. They need the truth of God. Of all the things I learned in this course, this was the most life altering truth. 

If someone is looking for personal growth in spiritual maturity and to therefore be able to help others in their own spiritual growth, plus practical and helpful information needed for Biblical church counselors, this course is excellent. Highly recommended. –Jennifer

The Introduction to Biblical Church Counseling course was beneficial for someone preparing to become a Biblical church counselor or someone needing to field important questions regarding their practice. I was challenged to evaluate my understanding of the Bible as the authority of every aspect of my life and the authority in Biblical church counseling This course also explained when it is appropriate to utilize outside resources. I appreciated the breakdown of legal considerations so I can responsibly steward any biblical counseling I may be involved in. Being taught by experienced and mature counselors, I know I can trust the information I learned from this class. –Meghan

How did this class help you grow in spiritual maturity? I felt like this class really helped me make sense of how Biblical church counseling is different from secular counseling and even mainstream Christian counseling. These differences caused me to grapple with how much I really believe that God and God's Word really makes a difference to all that I encounter in this life. I found that I can't claim that I believe that Jesus makes all the difference to my life while reaching for all that the world offers (through things like secular counseling methods) when I encounter difficulties. I personalized this comment intentionally. I cannot teach others to do things that I don't believe in myself. A 'practice what you preach' mentality. Did this course equip you to help others grow in their spiritual maturity? Some of this was answered above... but, by understanding that the truth of God is living and relevant to all that I encounter, I can now help others find how He is relevant to what they encounter. Would you recommend this course to someone else? Why? Why not? Yes. It was very informative. Aside from helping me come to terms with what I really believe and whether or not I believe that God is relevant to every circumstances that I (or any of us) encounter, it was very helpful in understanding the legal aspects of Biblical church counseling and how to be best protected while ministering to others in this capacity. As a licensed medical professional, it answered a lot of questions I had about the meshing of science and scripture. It also cleared up any questions that I may have had about serving in ministry in regards to professional licensing. How would you describe the person who could benefit from this course? I think that anyone who is doing any type of ministry where people may confide in them or go to them for guidance could benefit from this course as it touches on things like confidentiality, informed consent, legal protection, and mandated reporting. I would also add that there were nuggets of information that could be applied to my own personal belief system as well. It was a very beneficial class for all of the aforementioned reasons and more. I will also say that the format of the class was great. Having the ability to read the syllabus and watch the videos on my own time and be prepared with questions for our cohort meetings made the class very flexible and easily added to the rush of Summer activities and vacations. I learned a lot without the added stress of adhering to a rigorous or demanding class schedule. I rate it 5 out of 5 stars! –Mindy

This class made me look at the legal realities regarding counseling and consider how to navigate them. It also helped me to more clearly see how integration counseling presents difficulties that I didn't fully realize before. I also can now speak into this in others' lives in a more informed manner. I'd recommend this class to those considering some form of church leadership or counseling position, since it outlines important considerations in these positions. –David

I loved the video's that you have prepared for each lesson. Printing out the syllabus and taking the tests helped solidify my understanding of the material. From the first lesson we hear that Biblical Church Counseling (BCC) is always "drawing solely from the Bible" with no integration of worldly/secular methods (self-help). This reminded me to guard against temptation to insert any worldly thoughts of advice to someone. You remind us that BCC is to be "obnoxiously Christian". The default is always God's word in the matter. God has given us everything we need (reference 2 Peter 1:2-4): you all have quoted this to me on many occasions in your ministry. To me, this scripture in Peter is the "bedrock" for how we are to know the resource for counseling. In every curriculum in DDC Insititute we find that Jesus is the solution to every situation/circumstance of everyone's life. And I cannot help anyone in my own strength or reasonings, but only by having a close intimate walk with Jesus personally (Spiritually Healthy myself) can I help others. I am grateful for the material and faithful teaching of Kirk and Melanie extending a Godly resource for helping me to grow spiritually and to be able to help others in my reach of influence. Thank you, Lord, for leading me here as I needed and continue to need help in my journey to know the depth of God's love for me. I believe this course is helpful to any Christian in any capacity. We all have an opportunity to help others, and this helps prepare for those opportunities. –Tim        

A Biblical church counselor is subject to an ethic, a higher ethic than anything that this world could ever consider or create! It's the ethic of God. ~J. Kirk Lewis This course as with the prior Biblical Church Counselor courses taught by Kirk and Melanie, continues to impress upon my heart the high calling that we all have as Christ followers to stay intimately connected to Him, to be able to speak His truth when directed by His Spirit in us. The Introduction to Biblical Church Counseling 404 is a revelation of God's protection & provision that He has in place for those of us who believe and understand that a full dependence on Christ is the answer to all of life's issues. The very next day after finishing this course, the Lord gave me the opportunity to talk to a fellow sister in Christ about her current anxiety issues. Because of what I learned through taking this course, I was able to walk her through how the 'techniques' that she had been taught by a Christian counselor were self-empowerment and not dependence on Christ. I would recommend this course! It's majorly informative and helpful and does such a great job helping us to see how to best navigate and be respectful towards the laws that we must follow while encouraging us to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which we have been called (Ephesians 4:1). Kirk & Melanie, I deeply appreciate the love and time that you have poured into the development and teaching of this course. Praise the Lord for His enabling you all to share His wisdom and all of the experiences that He has led you through that you were able to share throughout this course! –Theresa

This course helped me redefine the term counselor. That term used to invoke thoughts of a clinician who held all of the education and licensures necessary to help people navigate the difficulties of life. While that definition may be true and applicable to secular and/or "Christian" counselors, it does not describe or apply to a Biblical Church Counselor. From a Biblical Church Counselor perspective, the term counselor describes believers who are acting as iron sharpening iron, drawing from the full COUNSEL of Scripture while fulfilling the Great Commission of making disciples. For me, that is a paradigm shift. All Christians are commissioned to help one another grow spiritually into a deeper, stronger relationship with Christ through biblical counseling, aka the Truth. Within that paradigm, this course has great eternal significance for ANY CHRISTIAN who wishes to grow spiritually in an intimate relationship with Christ wherein He gives True counsel to our hearts equipping us to share, from His abundant supply, True counsel with our brothers and sisters as we navigate life in a fallen world united in faith. This is not a new paradigm. Christ established this paradigm, "He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ; until we attain the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of people, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, that is, Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love." (Ephesians 4:11-16 NASB) –Kevin

Truly enjoyed this course. The format was good for the summer. The content was very informative and thought provoking. Being a licensed medical professional I realize the need to consider secular verses Christ based thinking in regards to care of clients. This course helped to differentiate the legal ramifications and differences. I highly recommend this course to those who are even considering becoming a Biblical Church Counselor. –Misty

I have experienced secular counseling because my work offered 5 free counseling sessions through our employee assistance program (EAP). I went because I was wrestling with becoming a new mom, deciding to go back to school/choosing a degree program, and concerned with balancing all the responsibilities well in a way that honored God. At the time, it felt like too much to carry although I knew these were the steps I needed to take. I remember meeting with a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She walked me through a prescribed curriculum centered on Cognitive Based Therapy. The idea was to complete the homework modules in the app to change my perceptions/behavior so that the problem/stress decreased. For me, it felt futile. It felt as if I was just talking with someone who had empty solutions. Looking back, I know that I was craving something deeper and had no idea the differences between secular counseling, integrational Christian counseling, and Biblical counseling. I appreciate that experience because I now can see the distinct differences.

I believe in Jesus, and if this is the basis of my belief then how could I not believe that the Bible holds every answer that I need to live this life in him and for him? The psychology woven into scripture is otherworldly. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy teaches us that we are to change our mindset/behaviors while Jesus calls us to renew our minds. We do this by meditating on His word and developing an intimate relationship with him. I love Kirk and Melanie’s ministry. We need many more people like them who are willing to sit with the broken and point them to foundational truth. I want to be one of these people. I look back over my life and I see the threads of this calling. I know that there is much more that I need to learn, and I know that Biblical Counseling is a responsibility with immense weight, but I cannot shake off the calling to help those who want to see Jesus more clearly and who want to live a life that honors Him. – Kate

The freedom to unashamedly share Jesus Christ as relevant to every aspect of life and to be able to speak the truth of God’s Word in love has proven to be the place that God used all the training and personal experiences of Kirk’s life to further the gospel among those that come to him for help. Kirk revealed that his type of counseling ends in one of two, sometimes three outcomes. He shared that he has seen some of the most severely disordered people experience the cessation of their disorders when truly surrendering to a relationship with Christ, and that it was amazing to witness.

Kirk Lewis articulated the effect of several years of secular training and addiction counseling as well as his struggle with the solutions he was offering clients and the significant limitations of those solutions forcing him to reconsider his calling. This crisis led him to realize that he was not offering his clients the ultimate help he knew they needed without God’s Word and for him that was neglectful. Because of this decision God’s Word was elevated in his life while he sought to understand what scripture said aside from any religious biases. This pushed he and his wife Melanie, who is in ministry with him, to study God’s Word related to individuals and their daily walk with Jesus to appropriate counsel the relevance of Christ to every area of life. – Jane