Many people are confused and mixed up. The Bible is the only true mirror that can help a person unscramble their mixed-up thinking. However, the Bible is a difficult book to face for the person who is on the defensive. And so the real question is: Does this person want to change?

People in a state of confusion need hope–the hope of God! Romans 15:13 tells us, “Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” It’s God that fills hearts with hope!

Many times individuals will focus on whatever difficulty is in front of them. It is important to direct them to the root problem:  an issue between themselves and God. The person you’re counseling needs to admit they’re wrong. 1 John 1:7 says, “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.”

The Word of God is a discerner of the thoughts and the intents of the heart. We can all make excuses for not walking in the Spirit–our past, our childhood, how people have treated us. But the true issue is: What does the Bible say? This is what you, as a counselor, must point out to those you counsel. Challenge the people you interact with to walk moment by moment with the Lord, and to be sensitive to the fact that the Lord will, in His faithfulness, cast light on their path.

Take a step . . .

Memorize Hebrews 4:12: “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” Ask God to help you to apply His Word wisely as you counsel others.
Read Hebrews 4:12, Romans 5:13, James 3:14 and  1 John 1:7.

This summary is from Dr. Brandt’s message, The Use of the Bible in Counseling.

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According to Proverbs 15:4 (KJV), “A wholesome tongue is a tree of life: but perverseness there in is a breech in the spirit.” What does it mean to have a “wholesome” tongue? A tongue that speaks good of people and situations. A tongue that builds up people (yourself and others). A tongue that is gentle. A tongue that is kind. A tongue that builds others up.

Psalm 34:13-14(NIV) says, “Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.”

The Bible makes it very clear in Matthew 12:36 (NIV) that we need to be careful about the things that we say: “I tell you that men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”

We all need to give a little more thought to what we say before we say it. “Biblical speech” involves applying God’s Word to our lives daily. It means we allow the principles of scripture to influence our words and how we use them. It means we build people up, we use words of challenge in loving ways, we use words of grace.

Proverbs 21:23 (NIV) gives good advice:  “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.” Griping, grumbling, or complaining often don’t accomplish anything. And engaging in this kind of talk can also make you feel awful.

Titus 3:2 (NIV) instructs us “to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men.”

According to God’s Word, our behavior and our words should reflect our devotion to God. We need to pay attention to the way we conduct ourselves! Our words impact our lives, the lives of others, and our relationship with God. Commit yourself to studying God’s Word and applying His principles to your speech.

Take a step . . .

Memorize Psalm 19:14 (NIV): “Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.”

This is a summary from Dr. Brandt’s message Biblical Speech.

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My answer is, “I have no idea.”

I believe that you make a great mistake by aspiring to make a counseling interview pleasant. Instead you should want to make it to the point; you should want to get to the bottom of the problem. This is a great big world with many needs, and we can’t be going around and around and around the same question over and over and over again.

It is my firm conviction that if you will sincerely put your faith in the word of God and honestly seek to listen to the individual who is talking to you, with the backdrop of your knowledge of the scripture behind you, you can move pretty fast in helping people.

Hebrews 4:12 tells us that “The Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

To be effective in counseling, master the Word, not just in your head, but in your heart. The psalmist says in Psalm 119:11, “Thy word have I hid in my heart that I might not sin against thee,” and in verse 105, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet.” Having the Word of God firmly rooted in your heart and mind, you will be prepared to listen to a person’s story, and then help them to discern their thoughts and intents using the Word to mirror what they’re saying to you.

You need to have enough of the scripture in your head so that as you listen to each individual’s story, you are able to start sorting out what they are telling you, applying your knowledge of the scriptures to each situation. Not according to your knowledge of what a certain psychologist has said, or what a well-known sociologist has said, or what a distinguished anthropologist has said, but what the Word says. It is important to remember that if you’re going be an effective counselor using the Bible, it’s not enough to simply own a Bible or even be somewhat familiar with it. You must use it, and know enough of it that you can immediately apply it.

According to 2 Timothy 3:16, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works.”

This Bible is profitable to use for doctrine, for teaching people that there are certain truths to believe in and live life by. The Word of God is profitable for reproof. As a Bible counselor, you need to help people find out what God’s Word has to say about where they made a wrong turn. The Bible is profitable for correction. Use it to give the people you counsel a plan for change in their lives. It is also profitable for instruction in righteousness. There is a right way to live!

Using the Bible, help people to diagnose their sin. You have the unique privilege of pointing them Jesus! He can forgive them and help them to live a life of victory.

Take a step . . .

Begin today to memorize God’s Word. Choose one passage from the Old Testament and one passage from the New Testament to commit to memory this week. Continue to add to your collection of memorized verses over time.

This summary is from Dr. Brandt’s message, The Use of the Bible in Counseling.

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When a crisis hits and you need to make a wise decision, you will need to already have God’s Word in your heart. Only then will you have a godly reservoir of information to pull from to make the right choice. Let’s call that reservoir your “vat” or your mind. You can’t pull any information out that you don’t put in. If you want to make wise, godly decisions, then you need to be filling your vat with wise, godly words and thoughts. We call that meditating on the Word of God, or memorizing scripture.

Many godly men and women from the past have said that the one thing that has helped them most in their lives was meditating and memorizing scripture. Dr. Henry Brandt states in his book, Heart of the Problem, “Even now, forty years later, I still consider Bible memorization the single most important aid in my Christian life and in my counseling.”

If you want to obey God’s guidelines in your life, then you need these guidelines in your head. Waiting until you are in a crisis is not the time to start memorizing scripture.

Start today by picking one scripture verse that has meaning to you. Write it out on a 3×5 card and carry it with you. Office supply stores have 50 3×5 cards spiral bound to keep your verses together. Look up words that you don’t understand. Discuss the verse with others. Read the verse out loud until you can say it from memory. Put it aside for a few days and see if you can still repeat it from memory. Review your cards regularly and you are on your way to having a vat that is filled with the wisdom you need to make godly decisions in a crisis!

“Blessed is the man… (whose) delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night.” (Psalm 1:1-2)

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All of these things can vary depending on who you talk to, or the place or time you are living.  Opinions vary.  Sometimes the same source will change its mind concerning a topic and give the opposite advice at a later time. What do you use to decide?

Many people are living miserable lives because they are confused about what guidelines to use for their life decisions.  God gives us a measuring stick that is unchanging:  the Bible.

God tells us that the written Word that He has given us is “God-breathed.”  That means that the Bible was inspired by God.  Timothy goes on to tell us how valuable God’s inspired Word is to us.  It is helpful for teaching and instructing, reproof when someone has done something wrong, correction to restore someone to a right state, and training in righteousness, which is instruction with the goal of increasing virtue.

Look up the following verses and answer the associated questions:

Hebrews 4:12:  What exposes the thoughts and motives of a man’s heart?

Psalm 1:1-2:  What does a person have to do to be blessed?

Psalm 119:165:  What two things will someone have if they love God’s law?

Matthew 24:35:  What does this verse say will never pass away?

So, what is your measuring stick?  Make a decision today to find out what God says and live by it.  Do you have a plan for reading the Bible?  Why not make a plan today to start reading God’s Word, which has never been influenced by popular opinion!  Have a measuring stick that never changes and will never pass away.

“All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)

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Experience freedom and healing from sin problems