The Christian Counselor's Manual CH 6

Hope

The author believes that the restoration of hope should be the first priority before digging into the deeper issues that might need to be changed (Adams, J.E., 1973, p. 38). This is agreeable in that without hope of a future most people have nothing. The author believes that paying special attention to each thing the counselee speaks about is paramount. He especially cautions that “They consider all self-deprecatory comments important and always investigate them fully. They [must] refuse to minimize or allow minimizing of a counselee’s negative self-evaluations” (Adams, J.E., 1973, p. 48).

An example of this might be investigating a comment about looking fat. When the counselor asks how fat the person believes that they are, the person’s comment will allow the counselor to truly be able to understand if the underlying issue is hypocrisy or a true belief about their weight. The comment of hypocrisy might be, “How dare you call me fat!” or “Well, geeze, I’m not THAT fat.” The comment of a true belief would say, “Since last year, I’ve gained 20 pounds, I’m not exercising and I’m not eating well,” at which time the acknowledgement would open the doors for the counselee to further discuss the feelings around being fat and the author states that “…the whole story is likely to emerge at once” (Adams, J.E., 1973, p. 47).

Adams, J.E. (1973). The Christian Counselor’s Manual. p. 39-48. Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan.