About
About Series
Whether the struggle is personal or you’ve experienced the pain of watching a loved one, virtually no life remains untouched by the problem of addiction. What can we do? What should we say? How do we even think about lives that are spinning out of control from seemingly unstoppable urges?
Our working theology of addictions is often a mixture of messages we have heard from pop psychology, AA, and pieces of Scripture. Some talk about addiction using the language of disease. Others offer simplistic explanations of sin and bludgeon addicts with the demand to just “stop it.” This conference will explore both the physical and spiritual components of addiction and how to navigate them carefully as Christians.
Follow along with these resources as we unpack these issues and learn how our sense of helplessness and desperate need in the face of such problems can become just the thing to drive us to the redemption and power found through Jesus.
Messages
Every Addict Lives with Shame
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Topics: Addiction
Listen to addicts and you will hear shame, shame that preceded the addiction and shame that resulted from the addiction. And here, in their shame, they can hear some of the most beautiful words they could possibly hear.
To Be Human is to Say “No”: A Biblical History of Temptation
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Topics: Addiction
Self-control is not a popular teaching, and we can offer it in ways that are not inviting. Our task is to learn it in such a way that we find it attractive and can make it attractive and compelling to others.
Biblical Insights into Addiction
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Gain insight into the heart of an addict to learn how to competently counsel someone struggling with addiction through an exposition of Proverbs 23:29-35.
Understanding Temptation: The War Within Your Heart
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In this session we will identify three idolatrous heart issues in all people and find out how these desires connect our flesh with the temptations of the world’s system and the devil. This topic helps counselors work with any counselee, especially the addicted
How the Physiology of Addiction Complicates Counseling
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Counseling those who struggle with substance abuse is a challenging problem in our society. We will discuss how addictive drugs affect the brain and how that may complicate counseling from a Biblical perspective.
Helping People Come to the God who Satisfies
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All addicts are seeking a satisfaction in something that will never truly satisfy them. In this session Dr. Jim Newheiser will discuss the need to lead addicts to the God who satisfies.
Hear the Addict’s Story, Retell the Addict’s Story
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Our help comes in two parts: knowing a person's story and knowing Scripture's retelling of their story. Both are essential. In this session you will learn to really listen to your counselees and then help them reshape their stories from a biblical perspective.
Relapse Prevention
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When an “addict” repents, you will know it. Learn how to identify the fruit of repentance found only in an abiding relationship with Christ.
Overcoming Abusive Speech
The Bible teaches that words can be as destructive (or abusive) as fists. Every time we open our mouths we are either promoting God's kingdom by building others up or we are extending the realm of the Evil One by tearing others down. How can our sinful tongues be tamed?
Basic Principles, Procedures, and Strategies for Counseling Addictions
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Addiction cases can be some of the most complicated cases in counseling ministry. This workshop will present a toolbox of biblical principles applied to various aspects of counseling those struggling with addictions.
The Attributes of a Christ-like Counselor
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This workshop explores the attributes of Jesus, the Wonderful Counselor and the Holy Spirit, the Other Counselor. We will examine what makes them the competent counselors that they are. Also, we will examine how these attributes must be and can be in your counsel. Finally, we will learn how you can develop these attributes.
Living with an Angry Husband
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Some women live with husbands who routinely express anger in its many forms. The Bible gives direction on this subject. Counselors will be taught how to help these women before the anger of their husbands becomes abuse.
Lies: Believing Them and Telling Them
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A neglected biblical theme for addiction is the movement from lies to truth, and from the Liar to the Truth. Our job is to do whatever we can to invite strugglers to be open and honest.
Self-Harm
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Learn how to offer hope in your biblical counsel of self-injurers by treating it as sinful heart issue rather than mental illness.
Addictions and the Discouraged Counselor
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All counselors struggle at times with discouragement in counseling, particularly in harder cases like addictions. This workshop will offer biblical hope and encouragement to the discouraged counselor in need of spiritual refreshment.
Medicine and Biblical Sufficiency
Biblical Counseling has been shaped by the doctrine of sufficiency. We will examine how that doc-trine and the science of medicine interact when we encounter those with worry, depression, OCD, and other emotional struggles. Can the Bible help when we counsel those with medical emotional labels?
Gospel Hope for Instant Gratification Junkies
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Topics: Addiction
Instant gratification junkies are hooked on immediate satisfaction at any cost. This trap can make you susceptible to addictions, anger, jealousy, and negative impulsive behaviors. The pursuit of instant gratification has detrimental effects on your Christian walk. When there is a problem, you want God to fix things quickly. When He does not, you take matters into your own hands making the situation ultimately worse. This seminar will expose the heart issues of instant gratification and will show how the gospel can help you escape the instant gratification trap.
Helping Family Members
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Families of addicts often need help as much as the addicts themselves. This session gives biblical passages and practical help for counseling the families of addicts. It also discusses how idolatry im-pacts the family, how enabling hurts rather than helps, and what can be seen when an addict truly repents.
Substance Abuse and Domestic Violence
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Substance abuse is often a factor in situations of domestic violence. In this session author Chris Moles will help counselors learn to deal with situations like these.
Psychiatric Medication and Spiritual Depression
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What does the Bible have to say about the use of medication to treat depression? What does the current medical literature say about the medical treatment of depression? This workshop will attempt to answer those questions from a medical and biblical counseling viewpoint.
