What does it take to create not just an individual change, but a shift in the entire culture of a church? When we talk about culture, we are referring to the shared norms and default reactions, expectations, and approaches for a group of people.

While the culture of your church developed naturally over time, we are going to discuss the benefits and challenges of intentionally creating a culture around biblical SoulCare™ in your church. This is a topic that is near and dear to our hearts as the mission at BCM is to help churches build a culture of biblical SoulCare for God’s glory.

My co-host, Kent Kloter, is helping guide us through this discussion today. Kent serves as one of our Biblical SoulCare coaches. Our guest is William P. Smith. Bill is not only a pastor, author, and speaker, but he also has an MDiv and PhD and was a faculty member and counselor at the Christian Counseling and Education Foundation (CCEF).

In this episode, you’ll learn how to create a culture of biblical SoulCare, ways to weave counseling into the church's DNA and daily life, why we should be wary of trusting experts over Scripture, and much more.

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/william-smith-40

What advice do you give a family when they can’t find help for their teen? Many parents are at the end of their rope, they can’t resolve the bad behavior, the school system doesn’t want to deal with it, and they have nowhere else to turn.

As a pastor, this might seem like a daunting task to counsel parents of a teenage son and direct them to resources.

Joining me on the podcast are Andrew Held and Shane Knapp. They are both staff members at Salem4Youth, a year-long program that takes young men between the ages of 12 - 17 to overcome defiant behavior and better prepare them to function successfully in society.

In this episode, you’ll hear some of the resources you should utilize before considering a live-in program, how to best support a child in the program, whether Scripture can address complex issues facing our teens, and much more.

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/held-knapp-39

How often has someone told you they have a chemical imbalance or that they have received a mental illness disorder diagnosis? As a pastor and a counselor have you felt equipped to advise that person?

What many people don’t realize is that these diagnoses are often a prerequisite to receiving treatment. They are treating the brain, but they are not taking the time to counsel the mind.

My guest today is my previous professor of biblical counseling at The Master’s University, Greg Gifford. He is also the author of Lies My Therapist Told Me: Why Christians Should Aim for More Than Just Treating Symptoms. Greg holds a PhD in biblical counseling from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and is an Elder as well as an Associate Pastor of Counseling & Life Groups at Faith Community Church in Santa Clarita, California.

In this episode, we discuss the difference between treating the brain versus caring for the mind, why pastors can still counsel with confidence, some common lies members of your congregation may have heard from therapists, and more.

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/greg-gifford-38

I’m sure you know, Pastor, the heavy responsibility of looking after your flock. There is an expectation that you will have the answers and all the time in the world to counsel each and every member. If you are blessed to have other counselors on your team, it can be difficult to distribute the workload evenly.

How can you build enough trust in your team to create a culture of SoulCare throughout your church? What are the steps to identifying and training counselors to create a team around you? It’s because of questions like these that I am excited to talk about the apprenticeship program.

I’m joined by my teammate, Pastor Chad Nightingale, who serves as the Senior Pastor of Pekin Bible Church and is our Church Care Partner at BCM.

In this episode, Chad shares ways that pastors can redirect counselees to other competent counselors on the team, the common mistakes an apprentice can make, some of the qualifications for an apprenticeship, and much more.

Listen in!

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/chad-nightingale-37

Have you ever wondered what an ACBC Conference is like? Well, you don’t have to wonder any longer! We are recording live from the ACBC Conference in Fort Worth, Texas to give you a glimpse into what this year’s conference has been like.

Several of our staff join in for this episode as we talk to conferencegoers about biblical counseling, the role of pastors, who can offer SoulCare, and more! Listen in as we find out how God has been working through them and the ACBC training.

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/acbc-conference-36

This week, Ben Holman is stepping in as our host at the 2024 ACBC Conference on the campus of Southwestern Theological Seminary.

Over the past couple of episodes, we have been discussing the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). If you haven’t had a chance to hear them, you can go back to listen here.

All of that has been a primer for today’s conversation. We are joined by Jenn Chen who has quite literally written the book on analyzing the DSM from a Biblical counseling standpoint. She is an ACBC Certified Counselor and the author of Biblical Counseling and Mental Disorder Diagnosis.

In this episode, Jenn helps us look closer at what some have incorrectly labeled “the bible” of mental health, the limitations of the DSM, how to guide ministry leaders on how to transform the culture of your church, and more.

Listen in!

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/jenn-chen-35

We are back for part two continuing our discussion of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry. The author, Gary Greenberg, gives an account of the history behind the DSM and his behind-the-scenes reporting of the deeply flawed process by which the DSM-5 has been revised.

My teammates, Kari Gross and Ben Holman once again join me for this conversation. In this episode, we continue our discussion on The Book of Woe, why so many put their faith in the DSM, why many seek a diagnosis for their suffering, where to place our hope, and much more.

Listen in!

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/gross-holman-34

Pastor, I’m so thankful you’re meeting with me today through this podcast. In this modern world, there are many new terms coined every day and as soon as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) issues their latest version it seems like they have new information to add to it.

I’ve got my teammates, Kari Gross and Ben Holman, joining me for this controversial conversation. We are having a discussion all about the book, The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry. The author, Gary Greenberg, gives an account of the history behind the DSM and his behind-the-scenes reporting of the deeply flawed process by which the DSM-5 has been revised. The DSM frequently turns suffering into a commodity, and the APA into its biggest beneficiary.

In this discussion, we want to take a deep dive into how we as Christians and pastors should respond when someone we love informs us that they are pursuing a path to the therapist down the street. Should we engage them as a pastor or as a friend and try to show them there’s a better way? What do you do?

Listen in!

Show Notes: bcmnational.org/gross-holman-33