Analysis Of Effective Christian Counseling

Christian counseling has benefited from the insight that psychologists have discovered about the human mind. However, it is important to note that many aspects of effective Biblical counseling differs greatly from that of its secular counterparts. This study will compare and contrast the theories of Dr. Crabb as outlined in his book, Effective Christian Counseling, and some of the theories held in popular secular counseling: Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, Cognitive-Behavior Therapy, and Rogers’ Client-Centered Therapy.
Goal of Christian Counseling
When one sets out to accomplish a task, it is imperative that a goal be set. Dr. Crabb sets forth the goals for Christian counseling as “MOVE OVER and MOVE UP” (Crabb, 1977). Dr. Crabb theorizes that a counselor must help a client move over into the pathway of spiritual obedience and to move up in which the client obeys not only externally, but also internally (Crabb, 1977). By moving up, the client not only experiences a change in thinking, but ultimately that change also involves a change of heart, changed goals, and a transformation of the personality (Crabb, 1977). The effective Christian counselor will be able to look beyond the “fundamentally self-centered” goals of their clients and will be able to set a goal of helping the client find “spiritual and psychological maturity” (Crabb, 1977).
Dr. Crabb’s goal-setting theory differs from that of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT). REBT is a form of psychotherapy pioneered by Albert Ellis (Johnson, Ridley, & Nielson, 2000). The goal of REBT is for the client “to understand exactly how they create their own emotional reactions by telling themselves certain things, and how they can create different emotional reacti...

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...quired to comfort and exhort one another: “Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” Therefore, a non-involved role of a therapist cannot fulfill the role that God has for them. Dr. Crabb suggests that at times it is important to just listen (Level I counseling), but sometimes the counselor must be prepared to exhort and enlighten (Crabb, 1977).
Throughout the study of comparing and contrasting Dr. Crabb’s method with that of the REBT, CBT, and RCCT, it is apparent that the plan laid out in Effective Biblical Counseling by Dr. Larry Crabb is the best approach for the effective Christian counselor. The plan laid out of Dr. Crabb fully institutes the role of the Holy Spirit and the Lord Jesus Christ in the life of the client, and the client is fully dependent upon God for change instead of depending upon their own abilities.