Transformative change (long-term therapy for some).
Transformative change (long-term therapy for some). The focused time spent in active change (brief therapy) will, for many clients, cascade into a longer period of transformative change. This will come about, essentially, in two ways. Some clients will elect to continue in long-term therapy, with a goal of effecting deep healing and core characterological change. Others will terminate counseling but will seek out a coach or pastor or spiritual guide to engage more fully the journey of spiritual formation and life transformation.
Counseling as discipleship. The final step of the model involves the very natural progression of counseling to discipleship. We recognize and strongly support the view of Christian counseling as a necessary and very effective form of intensive discipleship in the overall plan of God to bring the entire church to maturity and service. This is God’s universal goal—and His constant work through the Christian counseling endeavor—to help us become more like Christ and to motivate us to give that same gift away to others.
The Outline of Brief Christian Therapy
Since most clients terminate counseling within 8-to-10 sessions, and since managed care rarely authorizes more, we have developed a 10-session outline of Christian counseling that addresses both content and process issues a counselor will most commonly face. Bathing each session and the client in prayer, we begin with:
