Journal of Biblical Counseling 30-2

The Journal of Biblical Counseling is committed to helping churches, like the one described above, to grow in offering wise care. We believe the articles in this issue will help to do that. Here is a preview.

A marriage is not always what it seems. Behind a peaceful fac ade there can be a history of great distress because one spouse controls and abuses the other. e Bible has a word for these coercive patterns: oppression. Be- cause these patterns are often hidden, it takes skill and knowledge to draw them out. In Identifying Oppression in Marriages, Darby Strickland gives you tools to do this.

Friendship is important at every stage of life, but not much has been written about it from a Christian perspective. Jonathan Holmes fills some of that gap with his article Do Your Friendships Live Out the Gospel? Well aware of how our highly digitized world has impacted relationships, he calls us to invest in what he calls biblical friendships. He explains what a constructive friendship looks like and offers concrete ways you can build such relationships.

In our next article, David Powlison discusses the underlying dynamics at work in anger at God. Fallen people instinctively hate the Lord because he insists that we listen to him and that we take what he says to heart. God s insistence insults our pride and self-will. Powlison goes on to identify four bits of bad advice often given to those who are angry with God, and then offers rich biblical alternatives.

We live in a world where people s sexuality is increasingly broken and misdirected. You can help. In Abiding in the Vine: Walking with Sexual Strugglers, Ellen Dykas gives us a framework to do so. Jesus metaphor of the vine and the branches offers a lens on sexual sin as an anti-abiding lifestyle. When strugglers reconnect to the Vine and live in Christ, a deep dynamic of change begins. Dykas offers concrete tools you can use to help others as they engage the Lord.

Our Counselor s Toolbox contains two items. In a More an a Proof Text article, Brenda Pauken shows how she uses the Old Testament story of King Jehoshaphat to provide foundational guidance to someone in a crisis. e second toolbox article asks the question: Should I see a counselor? Eliza Huie gives readers six questions to ask when you or someone you care about is wondering if it s time to seek formal counseling help.
David Powlison