Two Excellent Books For Counselors (or anyone who wants to help others)

As a pastor I think about counseling quite a bit. But recently my daughter, Audra, has been talking about the idea of becoming a counselor. With that said, I would like to recommend to Audra, and to the rest of you, two excellent resources when it comes to counseling.

The first book I will mention is “Saints, Sufferers & Sinners: Loving Others As God Loves Us” by Michael Emlet. This book will give you a grid for how to counsel people. All people can be broken down into three categories, saints, sufferers and sinners.

“Scripture reveals that God minsters to his people as:

Saints who need conformation of their identity as Children of God,

Sufferers who need comfort in the midst of their affliction, and

Sinners who need challenge top their sin in light of God’s redemptive mercies.”

Saints, Sufferers & Sinners P. 8

I like this book because it gives us a grid that helps us to think about people and how they are struggling. The book is also super practical and gives me examples of how to help people no matter where they are at on their journey. There is also tons of advice that will lead you to take notes and implement it into your counseling, ministry, preaching, and friendships.

The second book is “Descriptions and Prescriptions: A Biblical Perspective on Psychiactric Diagnoses & Medications” by Michael Emlet. Here is how the book begins:

“What do you think when someone you know is diagnosed with a psychiactric disorder? Or has started to take psychoactive medication? Do you say to yourself, “Finally, he is getting the help he really needs!” Or do you feel skeptical about either the diagnosis or the solution (or both), and wonder is what that person really needs is simply to trust in Jesus more?”

Descriptions & Prescriptions P. 1

Here are a few of the chapters you will find in this book:

Chapter 3: How Did We Get Here? A Brief History of Psychiactric Diagnoses

Chapter 8: Implications For Ministry

Chapter 11: Classes of Psychoactive Medications

Chapter 12: Do Medications Treat a “Chemical Imbalance?

Chapter 13: How Effective Are Psychoactive Medications?

Chapter 17: Gifts of Gods?

Chapter 19: Medications and the Heart, for Better and for Worse

I think most of us have thought at some time, “I’m not sure how to step into someone’s life and help them when they have been given a psychiactric diagnosis.” Dr. Emlet has written this book so that you can begin to get a handle on how to think about this topic and how to help people who are struggling.

I would strongly recommend both of these books to you.