This is a weekly post that highlights resources from other counselors that I have found helpful. The counselors may be from the biblical counseling, Christian psychology, integration, or secular counseling traditions. By linking to a post, I am not giving it my full endorsement, I am merely indicating that I believe it made a unique contribution or raised an important subject for consideration.

Counseling ministries can provide an excellent and needed service and represent a point of contact with the community. However, there are a number of important legal concerns that should be considered by any church that offers such services, or that is considering doing so in the future. The more important concerns are summarized in this article.

When Violence Touches a Child’s Life by Julie Lowe

The threat of danger impacts our children on a regular basis. Tragic school shootings, violent crimes and the like all incite an array of heartache and anxiety. Even when the threat is not at our front door, it is booming from media outlets into our homes. The likelihood that your child is impacted is high. Regardless of where you live or how stable your family life is, the lives of kids and teens are being touched by violence to some degree and we must help them make sense of it.

Love God, Love People: An Athletic Primer by Joe Keller

If we are simply looking to guild biblical principles over our worldly commitments to competitive athletics, the integrity of the athlete will never withstand the crucible of competition. However, if we reframe the context of competition through our reordered love, not only can Christians compete at the highest level, but competition can become a distinctly biblical expression of our worship in a context that can easily extend worship to something other than God. Here are a few considerations for reflection.

What Are the Differences Between Psychology Specialties? by Mylea Charvat

It is time to end the confusion. I have found that in both casual and business settings, it is common for questions to arise about the differences between neuroscientists, neurologists, neuropsychologists, psychologists, and psychiatrists. For those not intimately familiar with the psychology and medical fields, these terms may seem interchangeable. In reality, they each have their own distinct purpose.

What I’m Reading

Addiction and Virtue: Beyond the Models of Disease and Choice by Kent Dunnington. What is the nature of addiction? Neither of the two dominant models (disease or choice) adequately accounts for the experience of those who are addicted or of those who are seeking to help them.

In this interdisciplinary work, Kent Dunnington brings the neglected resources of philosophical and theological analysis to bear on the problem of addiction. Drawing on the insights of Aristotle and Thomas Aquinas, he formulates an alternative to the usual reductionistic models. Going further, Dunnington maintains that addiction is not just a problem facing individuals. Its pervasiveness sheds prophetic light on our cultural moment. Moving beyond issues of individual treatment, this groundbreaking study also outlines significant implications for ministry within the local church context.

Tweets of the Week

Meaningful Meme

On the Lighter Side

Because, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones,” Proverbs 17:22.