Apply the Gospel to the Whole Experience of Life
The Encounter Ministry Biblical Counseling Center is now open and accepting all who need soul care.
Biblical counseling is a process of focused discipleship. It is an aspect of discipleship focused on applying God’s Word and walking in God’s Spirit when dealing with matters of life as a whole. Biblical counseling can be defined as a fluid event and process, as part of the Great Commission, when a follower of Jesus Christ in the service of the Holy Spirit provides face-to-face ministry of the Word to others.
Frequently Asked Questions
- A believer in Jesus Christ who has a good practical working knowledge of the Word and is committed to doctrinal soundness and a life that reflects the Gospel.
- This person also believes that God equips believers through his Word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit to help others with the issues of life.
- Secular psychotherapy is needs-based. The needs for self-esteem, love and acceptance, and significance tend to dominate. If these needs are met, it is believed, people will be happy, kind, and moral; if these needs are unmet, people will be miserable, hateful, and immoral. Biblical counseling teaches that true satisfaction and happiness can only be found in a relationship with God and a pursuit of godliness.
- Secular psychology is based on the theories and subsequent teachings of psychoanalysts. These include Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, and Carl Rogers and more recently ideas of post-modernism. In stark contrast, Biblical counseling is based on the revealed Word of God and subsequently on God’s theories and teachings for humankind.
- Secular psychology promotes mankind as the highest standard of truth and morality and rejects faith, the supernatural, and the Bible. Biblical counseling sees God as the highest standard of truth and morality and that Scripture is sufficient to address the impact on humankind due to fallen human conditions (Genesis 3) as well as equip the child of God for every good work (2 Timothy 3:15-17; 2 Peter 1:4).
- Secular psychology is based on the ideas that man is basically good and that the answer to his problems lies within himself. The Bible states that humans are much worse than they think, but also loved so much more than they can imagine. Humans are “dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1), and the unregenerate heart is “deceitful and beyond all cure” (Jeremiah 17:9). Therefore, the biblical counselor takes a drastically different approach: rather than seeking solutions to spiritual problems within one’s own mind, he seeks to confront sin, obtain wisdom from above (James 3:17), and apply the Word of God to the situation.
- In general, what is usually called “Christian counseling” is different from “biblical counseling” in that Christian counseling often uses secular psychology while viewing the client and their situation from a Christian worldview. Depending on the counselor, they may or may not use the Bible or even pray in the sessions. This is not to say that a Christian counselor is not also a biblical counselor, but often, Christian counselors are Christians who integrate secular psychology into their counseling. Biblical counselors counsel from Biblical theories and principles.
- Biblical counseling is committed to letting God speak for Himself through His Word. Biblical counseling seeks to minister the love of the true and living God, a love that deals with sin and produces obedience.
- All Encounter Ministry Biblical Counselors have a master’s, doctorate, or ABC Level 1 or Level 2 certification.
- Some of our counselors do have licensure in the state of Nevada. However, they do not offer services directly through the ministry. Arrangements can be made to pair you with a licensed biblical counselor if you so desire.
- ABC Level 1 is an intensive third-party (Association of Biblical Counselors) certification process that requires nine months of training in theology, discipleship, and counseling theory and a supervised practicum with an ABC-approved supervisor. Graduate-level counselors continuously supervise these counselors.
- ABC Level 2 counselors have an additional two years of supervised counseling experience.
- Encounter Ministry offers biblical counseling, discipleship, and soul care to all who come to our door for no cost to them.
- Our ministry is supported by the generosity of donors and partners who feel called to financially support our counseling.
- If you feel called to support this ministry, please click the Give link above; you may choose the “Biblical Counseling” fund to ensure your donation helps provide much-needed soul-care to our community at no cost.
If you have any questions or would like more information regarding our Biblical Counseling Ministry, please email counseling@encounterministry.life.
Register for Counseling
If you are in need of Biblical Counseling, you may follow this link to our portal and schedule an appointment with one of our counselors:
Become A Certified Biblical Counselor
Encounter Ministry is now an approved Association of Biblical Counselors Level 1 Training Center with Level 2 Supervision. If you are interested in becoming a certified biblical counselor, or learning more about starting a biblical counseling program at your church, please follow the link below and fill our interest form.
