The Rest of the Story

The Rest of the Story

by Ann Maree Goudzwaard A particularly fruitful exercise in the practice of biblical counseling is data gathering. The Personal Data Inventory helps counselors discover basic information about the counselee and the nature of their problem. Counselors can refer back to...
Emotional Intelligence, Self-Awareness, and 1 Corinthians 8

Emotional Intelligence, Self-Awareness, and 1 Corinthians 8

by Greg Gifford, PhD Relational tension soon follows people who are not aware of how they are influencing others. “I had no idea that upset you,” we might hear in one of those tense moments. Or, “if I had known that was a problem, I never would have done that.” How...
What’s in a Name?

What’s in a Name?

I have a rather difficult name. Ever since I was a child I’ve had to explain it. I have two first names but no middle name, and, for some reason, this doesn’t make sense to people. Additionally, “Ann Maree” doesn’t roll naturally off the tongue. Typically, folks (my...
Identifying with Our Idols

Identifying with Our Idols

“Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.” (Ps. 115:8)  Many chefs love cooking with a unique food called tofu. It is a bean curd made from soybean and milk pressed into solid white blocks. It is one of the most versatile foods—which can be...
The Blessings of Counseling Children – Part 1

The Blessings of Counseling Children – Part 1

This article is the first in a series focused on counseling the young members of our community. It addresses the importance of speaking the Word of God to the children among us. Biblical counselors should be equipped to help children who need counseling. Children are...
Called to Peace: A Book Review

Called to Peace: A Book Review

Unfortunately, too many Christian women have to endure the heartbreak of domestic abuse. Unfortunately, too many pastors and biblical counselors are ill-equipped to deal with the trauma and complexity of abuse cases. Unfortunately, some of us deal with abuse cases not...
Gaze on God and Imitate What you See

Gaze on God and Imitate What you See

Louis Berkhof makes an interesting comment. He says, “None of the attributes of God are incommunicable in the sense that there is no trace of them found in man.”[1] In light of Berhof’s thought, listen to the words of 2 Corinthians 3:18: “And we all, with unveiled...
When You Hear “I Can’t”

When You Hear “I Can’t”

“I can’t.” “I’ve hit my limit.” “It’s just too hard.” “This situation makes me respond that way.” “I can’t help myself.” If you’ve spent any amount of time ministering to others, I’m sure you’ve heard these kinds of statements. They are the statements of the...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Faith For Waiting {Transcript}

Good Morning again. And this is now our last session together. And so I don’t want to miss the opportunity to express my thanks to you for coming, and for providing this experience for Kim and I. I don’t ever assume that we’re gonna be received with...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

The Gospel Divides Families {Transcript}

I know many of you have been admiring my tie, as the only person who actually wears a tie. There’s a little bit of a story behind it, in that when i got the job at RTS, I asked what the dress code was. And they said, “Oh, we like professors to wear coat...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

The Lost Sheep {Transcript}

Thank you very much. It’s truly a joy to be here, and I’m thankful for any opportunity to simply open up God’s Word and consider together what it means, why God gave us that portion of His Word and how we can live like it’s true. I think with...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Rugged Love for The Wayward Soul {Transcript}

Good morning. I trust you all rested well last night, even though I know that’s unlikely. Conferences are hard places to rest, aren’t they? They are places where gifted lay people, gifted people in ministry can assemble to study God’s word and to...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Profile of a Prodigal {Transcript}

Thank you for receiving me so warmly and Jim, for your introduction. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to be with you, not only to enjoy the privilege of teaching, and it is a privilege to teach the word of God, but to express my thanks to God for the...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Helping the Family Through PTSD {Transcript}

Go ahead and turn with me in your Scripture to 2 Peter, chapter 1, I am the last session.  This is the last session rather for our pre-conference.  I am not a session.  I realized that and I’m trying to figure out what in the world these metal boxes are on the...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

PTSD as an Interpretive Phenomenon {Transcript}

Good to be with you. IBCD does a wonderful job of being organized and timely and kind throughout this whole process. Thank you. It’s good to be here with you. Special thanks to Craig Marshall for organizing, keeping us all on track. Being communicative with us...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Demystifying PTSD {Transcript}

Thanks Jim for that very kind introduction, it’s a pleasure to be here with you. And thank you so much for all of you who are in attendance, it’s really exciting to see so many people who are here to learn about the issue of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-18. Temptation 1 {Transcript}

David’s Catastrophic Sin. 2 Sam 11:1-5 [Jim] I think what I’d like to do is have you turn to 2 Samuel chapter 11. And there’s an outline in your notes if you wanna follow what I’m doing on David’s catastrophic sin. Got a couple of outlines...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-16. Worry/Anxiety {Transcript}

Understanding Worry We’re gonna talk about worry and anxiety. Worry is also a problem that’s incurring inside of us, in our soul, and the Bible teaches that there is a worry which is sin. In Philippians 4 verse six, we are commanded, “Be anxious for...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-12. Peacemaking 3 {Transcript}

Promote Peace by Confronting Sin Biblically. Had some good questions people have raised. One question was raised in terms of address everyone involved and I had made the statement that if people were not affected by what you did, then you don’t need to approach...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-11. Peacemaking 2 {Transcript}

Do All That Is in Your Power to Pursue Peace. Matt 5:9 Heb 12:14 Don’t stir up strife. Rom 16:17; Prov 6:19, 26:21, 18:21, 10:19; Titus 3:10; Eph 4:29; Jas 1:9, 3:1ff Talked about the fact that conflict is inevitable. Conflict also can be very dangerous, but conflict...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-10. Peacemaking 1 {Transcript}

God Tells You How to Make Peace. We’re gonna talk about peacemaking. And you have a handout on that in your syllabus. Also, you should’ve been given these folders which I hope you’ll look at. We’re going through this talk. We buy these by the...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Counseling an Abuser: 3 Steps

Domestic violence is something that no one counselor ever wants to encounter, but with a reported 1 in 3 women claiming to have experienced violence by an intimate partner[1] the unfortunate reality is that men in our churches do abuse their wives. The church should...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Help Strengthen the Local Church

We Need You! Our 2017 Goal for Donations is $50,000 Feel free to offer a custom amount or to give a one-time or monthly commitment.  You will have the option to pay online with a credit card or offline with a check. The IBCD Resource App has been downloaded over 5,000...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Communication Guidelines

Introductory Questions What is the biblical basis for intimate communication in marriage? 2:24-25 How do men and women differ in communication needs? How do men and women differ in styles of communication? By what means do we communicate? 6:13 What are some...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

5 Resources for Helping Sexual Abuse Victims

A heartbreaking trend began recently on social media. In the wake of the abuse exposed in the entertainment industry, women across the globe started speaking out about the harassment and abuse that they too have endured. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram are virtually...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Lessons Learned On Sexual Abuse

The recent #Metoo movement on social media reminded me of a very dark time my wife and I encountered in our ministry. A missionary, who we knew and trusted for over twenty years, was exposed as a sexual predator. He was respected and revered by churches in the United...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Reformed Parenting

Many parents struggle with guilt and confusion over how to train their children. Old-school parenting books emphasized discipline derived from the exhortations in Proverbs. The book of wisdom was used to chastise the foolishness out of children. The next generation of...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

CDC1-17. Fear {Transcript}

Understanding Fear Fear, very closely, related to worry. And depression. Fear is not necessarily sinful. We’re to fear God. When somebody, for example, starts talking about saying they’re mad at God they should fear God. And fear what just came out of...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Martin Luther and Jay Adams

This year we remember the work of a reformer, Martin Luther, who five hundred years ago dared to challenge the established ecclesiastical authorities when he nailed his ninety-five theses to the church door in Wittenberg. I see many similarities to what happened about...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Do You Need a Counseling Coach?

During the first half of this year’s baseball season, Yankee rookie Aaron Judge was a phenomenon. He hit for both power and average, and he was on track to set numerous batting records. During the second half of the season, Judge’s production fell way off. The only...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

Rebuilding a Marriage After an Affair part 2

12 Steps for Rebuilding a Marriage After an Affair To rebuild, people must choose to rebuild c.f. Jn 5:6 “Do you wish to get well?” The counselor must encourage a true biblical hope c.f. Heb 6:18-19: “so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for...
Union with Christ (Keith Palmer)

¿Qué es la consejería bíblica 2?

Hay varias maneras que los Cristianos confrontan los asuntos de la consejería. Esta sesión dará un resumen de cuatro de ellas. Va a mostrar que la consejería bíblica es la mejor manera para ayudar a las personas con sus problemas espirituales que son la raíz de sus...