Struggling With Sin - Being Set Free to Serve and Love

Brothers, if a man is overtaken in a fault, you which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering yourself, lest you also are tempted. Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:1,2)

This is important to know if you are doing counseling. People get overtaken and trapped by their sins, so many times. Sometimes, when they come to Christ, they are already ensnared by a sin that will weigh them down. It is easy for us to tell people to repent. People need to repent. But what happens when a person truly repents, yet finds himself stuck in a sinful pattern? Do we assume that if the person has truly repented, that sin wouldn't be a big deal for him to get rid of? How many discouraged Christians are out there because they have a sin that is too big for them to handle. They wanted out. They repented. But they are still stuck there, and the sad part is, sometimes well-meaning people try to tell them that if they are really saved, they won't have trouble with sin anymore. Therefore, they must not really have repented enough. 

Let us listen to people when they are trying to get help. We need to stop ignoring the fact that sin can entangle us. We need to get the person in Christ untangled from his or her sin. Then they can be free to serve the true and living God, and do the same for other weak believers. Let us be forbearing and patient with those who are struggling. And above all, let us have compassion and humility in working with struggling brothers and sisters. Let's see more people in the Body of Christ come free of their sinful struggles. Let's be a means of grace to others.

Counseling Tidbit - Determining if a Person is a Christian By the Right Questions

  Instead of asking a person if they are a Christian, ask him or her what God is doing in their lives. The reason for this is because people have different understandings of what the word 'Christian' means. To some people, it means going to church and trying to be good. To others, it could mean, not being Jewish or Muslim.
  God deals with our hearts. That is how good counseling is done. Our knowledge is important, and we need to believe what is true, but if what we know to be true doesn't affect our heart, the Bible says that we are deceived. We become only hearers if we don't apply God's word to our hearts.
   The heart of counseling deals with what God is doing in our lives. The person being counseled may be a Christian in name only (nominalism). He or she may misunderstand what Christianity is about, and that will affect their ability to receive good and proper counsel. If we can sense that the person going for counseling doesn't understand the Gospel, we should teach them the Gospel. They need to hear. By asking them the question of what is God doing in their life, it will help them to see that God is likely not there, because they haven't responded to Him yet in repentance and faith.
   If after asking the question "What is God doing in your life", you can understand that they are recipients of the Gospel, then you can minister to them as a believer. The Gospel is the answer for all our sin and weaknesses. We will have the privilege of restoring a fallen brother or sister. Galatians 6 continues to tell us to bear one another's burdens, and that is forbearing or sticking with someone until we see them through. That is what the Body of Christ is supposed to be doing. Let us function as the church and love both the lost and those who know the Lord, and be ready to serve them in the way the is right for either group.

How Do We Counsel Without Trying to Fix a Problem?

Here is something I learned about this past week. I think sometimes, in our zeal and desire to help other people, when they come to us with their problems, we tend to try to fix them. What else are we supposed to do anyway? What should be our perspective on this? How do we bring God into the situation? If we try to 'fix' a person's problems, how are we really helping them through their problems? Are we really learning the lesson that God is taking us through? What is God's perspective and what is the best way to counsel another person biblically?