Soul Care Culture: Developing a Church-Wide Culture of Biblical Soul Care

Share your thoughts It is easy to fill our days with good things in ministry. There are always more people to serve and needs to meet. Faithful ministry doesn't demand doing everything, but involves determining and stewarding the responsibilities, relationships, and gifts God has entrusted to us according to His wisdom. Kari Gross is joined by Janet Aucoin, director of Women's Ministry a...

Share your thoughts How do you counsel a fellow believer with Biblical clarity and Christ-like compassion when you aren't sitting in the counseling room? We talk a lot about formal counseling at BCM, but informal counseling is an indispensable element of the local church's design that offers a huge impact on a believer’s life and growth. In this episode, Kari sits down with two friends a...

Share your thoughts What does it look like after someone has gone through formal counseling? We talk a lot about formal counseling at BCM, but informal counseling is an indispensable element of the local church's design that offers a huge impact on a believer’s life and growth. In this episode, Kari fills in for Mike as the host and sits down with two friends and fellow BCM teammates, Christi...

Share your thoughts Many pastors and elders experience discouragement in counseling and even doubt they have the time, training, and resources to do it well. People should be able to go to their church for help when they are faced with life problems. Responding to the need for encouragement and training, BCM sponsored a spring conference for the Central IL Church Partner Network to equip church le...

Share your thoughts Ever since Genesis 3, we have encountered a world in which there is conflict. I pray that you are able to look at conflict not as an obstacle, but as an opportunity for God's grace to be displayed when his children reconcile through the power of the cross. In this conversation, I am joined by Josh Gerber who is a pastor at Newcastle Bible Church as well as part of the BCM...

Share your thoughts There is danger in the calling of being a pastor. The demands and privileges of being a faithful shepherd to your flock will often weigh heavy on your soul. Praise God that His power is made perfect in our weakness. Praise God that He chooses to display His grace so gloriously through meager men like us. Praise God for His design: all the weight of care and counsel does not hav...

Share your thoughts Most of the churches in the U.S. consist of less than 100 members. What does it look like for a church of this size to thrive in Biblical discipleship? How do the pastors and elders of these churches respond to the burdens of their flock when they already feel discouraged and unequipped themselves? BCM exists to come alongside these pastors and believers to help strengthen the...

Share your thoughts God loves His church. The church is God's good design for where troubled believers can go to find lasting change. However, many people have stopped going to the church for help for their sin and suffering. Today I am joined by a table of guests: Rodney and Jenna Bahler, Josh and Bree Himan, and Monica Scheuer. They are all passionate about the life-on-life discipleship of...

Share your thoughts Over the last 10 years, I have witnessed that a rising number of pastors are overwhelmed by the demands of soul care ministry and people's problems are getting seemingly more serious. The church leaders are not confident to deliver biblical counsel to their flock. As a result, many believers seek help outside the church. We believe the church is the best place and God’s de...

Share your thoughts If a woman confided in you about her struggle with life-dominating sins, would you know how to respond? Would you be tempted to direct her to a counselor outside of the church or would you be confident in your church’s ability to navigate the storm with her? Sarah Chadbourn joins us to discuss how God has shaped her passion for women caught in life-dominating sin. Sarah’s husba...

Share your thoughts When life falls apart, where do believers run? For many, the church is their last resort. The culture has offered rival explanations for our biggest problems, deepest needs, and the path forward to change. Overwhelmed pastors have accepted the counterfeits, hoping that licensed therapists will provide a balm for their hurting flock.  What if we were never meant to outsource sou...

Share your thoughts Why is it so difficult to go to your church with the struggles of your soul? What does it look like practically for a believer to seek help from their church? How does a pastor respond? Tragically, we have seen a trend that many Christians aren’t even going to the church or God’s word for help. When they do, many pastors feel discouraged and unequipped to respond and they send...

Share your thoughts How has our culture been influenced by psychology? How has that affected the church? You cannot go very many places in our world and not encounter the definitions and categories that have been handed to us by the psychology establishment. Many Christians- including ourselves as pastors and church leaders- have allowed our anthropology and epistemology to be informed by a broade...

Share your thoughts If you look out at your church, how many of your flock still have a regular therapist outside of your biblical counseling? Are there those who are addressing their problems through medication? Or do they attribute their issues to a diagnosis of some kind? There’s a common issue we are seeing among churches, and especially in the younger generations, that they would rather turn...

Share your thoughts Dear pastor, if you’ve been listening to our podcast for a while, you’ve heard us refer to our Customized Blueprint Solution to assist churches in creating a culture of SoulCare. However, you may be wondering what exactly that means or how it looks practically. To help give you a snapshot of how it works, I’ve asked my teammates, Chad Nightingale and Kent Kloter, to join me for...

Share your thoughts When I think of leaders, especially leaders in ministry, not only do they have all the pressures and stressors of directing a team, but they also have to grapple with spiritual warfare, the responsibility of guiding their flock, nourishing marriages and families, and so much more. So today, dear pastor, we are discussing how to thrive in the midst of ministry. This conversation...

Share your thoughts We are talking to small group leaders for today’s conversation. Have you ever wondered what your role is as a small group leader? Is it to lead discussions about the latest sermons or to be hospitable and make sure there are good snacks? And just how does small groups intersect with SoulCare™? To help guide us through this discussion and provide wisdom is my guest, Scott Mehl....

Share your thoughts We are bringing you this conversation live from the ACBC Conference in Fort Worth, Texas. Each conference has been so encouraging and insightful; however, there is one thing I’ve noticed – not as many pastors are involved enough in their counseling ministry to attend a biblical counseling conference. Joining me to help answer the question, “Why aren’t more pastors coming or tak...

Share your thoughts What do we do when dark events sweep across our nation and affect us close to home? How do we respond as pastors and leaders when current events affect our congregation so deeply?  Often, when events like the assassination of Charlie Kirk occur, it can leave our sheep feeling confused, hurt, and looking for direction on how they should respond. Helping me wade into this discuss...

Share your thoughts The biblical counseling movement is ever-growing, and yet, not everyone who goes by the title of “biblical counselor” adheres to the same ideals and beliefs. There are those who claim to be biblical counselors but still turn to outside sources, additional therapies, and specialized training they feel is necessary to be able to adequately address what may come into the counselin...

Share your thoughts In the counseling room, you will come across a wide range of issues and problems that people are seeking counseling for. There are few that are more daunting than issues of addiction, whether that be drugs, alcohol, pornography, or something else. Chad Nightingale is filling in as the guest host for this episode. Joining him for this vital conversation are two men, Mark Shaw an...

Share your thoughts It’s Kari Gross again, and I’m back with Henry Nightingale and Christian Martin, the co-hosts of a Christian gaming podcast called Courage Wisdom Power. If you missed our first episode with them, you’ll want to be sure to go back and listen to it here . Many pastors and elders can experience discouragement and doubt in their counseling, especially when they come face-to-face wi...

Share your thoughts Many pastors and elders experience discouragement in counseling and even doubt they have the time, training, and resources to do it well. We firmly believe that people should be able to go to their church for help when they are faced with life problems. However, when it comes to the youth of our church or even the teens in our own household, it can be challenging to instill a s...

Share your thoughts Where do you send your sheep to get outside help? Who can be trusted? It’s normal to feel nervous and wonder if the advice they receive will be biblically sound.  In a past episode, we shared some behind-the-scenes of what intensive counseling was like from the perspective of the counselees and their advocate couple. Today, we are going to show you what it’s like from the couns...

Share your thoughts Does a thriving biblical counseling ministry really need to be championed by the lead pastor? What if they are too busy or have too much on their plate already? These are just some of the questions we are going to be tackling in this conversation. You might recognize the name of my guest for this conversation, as he’s been around the biblical counseling movement for a long time...