Introduction to Biblical Counselling

Current Status
Not Enrolled
Price
$100
Get Started

Welcome to this eLearning course on Introduction to Biblical Counselling!

This course is intended to train lay counsellors. The difference between lay counsellors and professional counsellors is that professional counsellors are those who have acquired professional qualifications in psychology or counselling. Lay counsellors are those who are interested to acquire skills through training so as to be effective helpers or counsellors. Professionals usually have an office and charge a fee but lay counsellors minister everywhere and anywhere to those in the churches and community.

According to research, lay counselling has been found to be just as effective as the professional counselling. Lay counsellors are often friends, relatives, church members or colleagues who live in proximity to the counsellees. As such, they are more acquainted with the counsellees and in touch with the environment and the context they are in. With their better understanding, lay counsellors have an advantage to help others more effectively.

Lay counselling deals with normal people who have problems in adjustment to life. These may include identity problems, career and education concerns, relationship issues, spiritual issues and maladaptive thoughts, feelings and behaviours. Professional counsellors are equipped to handle the severely disturbed while the lay counsellors are not.

Who is it for?

  • People who cannot travel to places for counselling seminars/courses
  • People who do not have time to attend counselling seminars/courses
  • People who are house-bound : the elderly, housewives, physically challenged etc
  • People who like self-study.
  • People who are 18 years old and above.
  • People who can understand and write in English.

What can I expect?

  • The course has 12 lessons.
  • Length of course: 4 months extendable to 6 months.
  • Time needed for each lesson: approximately 2 hours.
  • At the end of each lesson, there are “Test Yourself” questions you have to answer. Keys will be given once the assignments are submitted.
  • The course is designed to apply to ourselves first (make it a tool for personal growth) before applying it to others.
  • Upon completion of the course, a certificate will be awarded.

What can I do?

  • You may spread the word around to those who will benefit from this eLearning course.
  • You may want to form a group of few people (5-10 people) to study and discuss the lessons together.
  • You may want to set aside certain days of the week and certain times of the days to do this study. A fixed schedule helps to get the job done.
  • You may email us at ptpcounsel@gmail.com or call us at : 040 2771 6941 for registration.

Person to Person (PtP) Institute for Christian Counselling has been offering Christian Counsellors’ training Courses for the last twenty one years. Such training is offered at various levels:

  • Introduction to Biblical Counselling (IBC)
  • Advanced Biblical Counselling – Level 1 *
  • Advanced Biblical Counselling – Level 2 *
  • Advanced Biblical Counselling – Level 3 *
  • Marriage Counselors’ Training*
  • Youth Counselors Training*
  • Art of Parenting*
  • Dealing with Addictions*
  • Domestic Violence*

* These are courses recognized by the Association of Christian Counselors, (ACC South Asia) and offered as classroom sessions.

More than sixteen thousand people received counsellor training at various levels. Most of these are offered as residential courses.

Counsellor training courses are best offered as full-time, on site programs, with high levels of interaction through role plays, exercises and peer counselling.

However, during the last twenty years many had written to us expressing their desire to pursue it as a correspondence course. PtP responded by offering the IBC as a correspondence course. Based on the response to the IBC Correspondence course, PtP subsequently introduced the Advanced Biblical Counselling course (not the same as Accredited Advanced Biblical Counselling -Level 1 course mentioned above) through correspondence and planning on offering the following courses as well:

Youth Counsellors’ Training | Marriage Counselors Training

We are now offering the IBC as an eLearning course so students may harness the benefits of technology to overcome the barriers of time and space.

All these correspondence and eLearning courses are not recognised by the ACC, South Asia. However, the knowledge gained through the correspondence course or an eLearning course will be very helpful in doing the advanced courses. If the students are interested, they can join the ACC recognized courses.

Please visit our website or email us at: ptpcounsel@gmail.com

At a future date, we hope to get the graduates together for a celebration of our God given calling and ministry. At all times, we desire your valuable feedback for a more fruitful ministry.

Samson Gandhi
Executive Director

About the Authors

Samson Gandhi is the founding Executive Director of Person to Person – Institute for Christian Counselling (PtP). He was a management professional called by God into Christian Counselling ministry. He was trained at CWR in UK founded by Selwyn Hughes. Later, he was trained to be a trainer at WFLT, U.K. He also served as the General Secretary of the Association of Christian Counsellors – South Asia. He has a Doctorate in Ministry from Bakke Graduate University, Seattle, U.S.A.

Samson has been a Faculty of the Haggai Institute teaching Christian Leadership at their training centers at Maui, U.S.A. and Singapore since 1999.

Soh Hiang Jamir is a trained counsellor and a facilitator.

About Person to Person

Person to Person trains individuals to be counsellors and people-helpers through a systematic training program in Christian Counselling that offers biblically sound teaching on life issues.

Person to Person is founded on the Person of Jesus Christ and focuses on the personal dimension of Christian ministry.

  • Bible-based and relying on the ministry of the Holy Spirit, our work is centered on the redemptive and restorative work of Christ.
  • Our training programs equip individuals to be trained counsellors and our teaching programs enrich the individual.
  • Started in 1997, PtP is a registered public society and is member of the Association of Christian Counsellors, South Asia (ACC).

Our Vision – We see every member of the Church experiencing the abundant life of Jesus Christ.

Our Purpose – We provide systematic training in Christian counselling, offer biblically sound teaching on life issues and serve as a referral counselling centre.

Our Values – We accept every individual as a person of worth made in the image of God.We hope for good in all situations.We work towards peace in all relationships.

Our Beliefs – The Bible to be the only infallible authoritative Word of God.There is one God eternally existent in three Persons; Father, Son and The Holy Spirit.The Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, His virgin birth, His sinless life, His miracles, His vicarious death and bodily resurrection, His ascension to the right hand of the Father and His personal return in power and glory.The ministry of the Holy Spirit, His gifts and graces.The spiritual unity of all believers in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Our numbers so far – image.png

Copyright © 2007 by Person to Person – Institute for Christian counselling.

This course is the intellectual property of PtP. All rights reserved. No part of this course may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means without the written permission of Person to Person, nor be circulated in any form of binding or cover other than in which it is published.

Person to Person – Institute for Christian Counselling
10-3-32/9/34, East Marredpalli, Secunderabad – 500 026.
Telephone: +91- 40- 27716941, 40045821
E-mail: ptpcounsel@gmail.com
Website: www.persontoperson.org

Before you begin
Think – Some thinking exercises to be done in the lesson.

Icon – Reference.png – This symbol calls for reference to the Bible; to look up the verses specified.

Icon – Prayer.png – Prayer at the end of the lesson

We recognise that this is Biblical Counselling and we want to look to the Lord to help us along in our preparation for this people helping ministry to build up the Body of Christ. This is a suggested prayer, based on the lesson. You are encouraged to turn your thoughts into prayer as you go through the lesson.

– Personally Speaking

These questions are designed for personal reflection, and application. The purpose is to help candidates relate the subject with their own experience. It is to enhance integration of learning into the candidate’s life. We want to encourage candidate to practice what is learned in the lesson. Counselling is a practical subject.
– Test Yourself

In order to maximise learning, it is useful to not only go through the notes but also be able to express them without the notes. This set of questions in TEST YOURSELF section is intended to help candidates recall and restate what has been learnt. This reinforces learning. We strongly recommend that you take the test after adequate preparation. Have someone to invigilate or take it honestly on your own.
Glossary
Counsellor – who gives counsel
Counsellee – one who receives counsel

The use of the word, ‘counsellees’ in plural form is to avoid using ‘he’ or ‘she’.