Not all is as seems
If I had to pick a job to do that I would do for free, right now I’d probably pick counseling. It all started with Pastor Min’s Counseling courses. It’s something that I enjoy and I think people have benefit from it. We read various books and articles throughout the two counseling courses. These authors reinforced not only what I was learning in the class but also what I was learning at church. This concept of Nouthetic (Biblical) Counseling fits into my framework of understanding. Three main people influence my understading and approach to Nouthetic counseling. The first is Pastor Min. As my pastor and as far as I can tell from scripture, he’s right on and his Heart Motive theory is incredibly useful. The second is Jay Adams, the ‘Father’ of Nouthetic Counseling. He started it all with his book Competent to Counsel. The third group is Dr. David Powlison and the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF). Powlison is the modern day leader and writer for the Nouthetic Counseling movement according to PMin and all our articles we read for class came from the Journal of Biblical Counseling published by the CCEF of which Dr. Powlison is a member. All that I’ve read and heard from these sources make sense in my mind and against scripture and have shaped my approach and theology behind counseling. That is … until recently.
In my perusal of the web, I found a blog published by Jay Adams and company and have started following it. There was a recent article Rent – a – Pastor? that makes sense to me. However, it briefly criticizes one of the members, Dr. Ed Welch, of CCEF. I shrugged this off at the time.
Over break I purchased a book Depression: A Stubborn Darkness by Dr. Ed Welch. In my mind, he’s one of the leading thinkers of the Nouthetic approach to psychiatry which is his area of expertise. I’ve read a handful of his articles and purchased the book since I trust the author and seem to be encountering more people struggling w/ depression.
Today on Dr. Jay Adam’s blog, there is a critique of this book I just purchased. He basically said that Dr. Ed Welch’s approach to dealing w/ depression is not Nouthetic but Integrationist. I was shocked. Two “authorities” on Nouthetic counseling are clashing. People I thought who were in league with each other are at odds. I plan on reading the book to decide for myself. However this did get me thinking; if Jay Adams criticizes Ed Welch’s thinking, what else do people think about Welch, Powlison, and CCEF. I started searching through Google to see what other people think. I found other sites critical of Dr. Powlison and CCEF. I’m still not convinced they are wrong. More trusted sources affirm their position than oppose it.
All in all, however, it reminds me that I always need to be on guard. I cannot put my faith in any human words but only the Words of God. I constantly need to ‘test and approve’ what I read and listen to against the God’s Words.