Overview of Level 1
Level 1 equipping is a collection of our intro-level offerings. We like to offer these as much as possible on many of Christ Chapel’s campuses. If you’re curious about the process of change or walking alongside someone else, this is a great place to start that journey of exploration!
Typical commitment for a Level 1 class:
- Length: 4-6 class meetings
- Reading: roughly 2-3 short chapters per week
- Homework: Optional
- Cost: purchase your own book ($10-15)
“Head” Classes:
These opportunities are strategically designed to increase an understanding of what it is to walk alongside someone. How can we understand our focuses and move toward a view of God and of self that is more in line with the way Jesus modeled in the Scriptures?
- Caring for One Another
- Side By Side
“Heart” Classes:
These opportunities are aimed at your heart and how you are personally being changed by God. It’s so much more effective to help someone else when you’ve experienced true change by the power of the Holy Spirit.
- How People Change
- Real Change
- You Can Change
Overview of Level 2
Level 2 equipping is a collection of slightly more intermediate training opportunities. These are offered as much as possible when there’s a demand for them at your campus. If you’re still feeling out where God may be leading you in your journey of caring for others, this is a great step to continue learning!
Typical commitment for a Level 2 class:
- Length: 8-12 class meetings
- Reading: roughly 1-2 chapters per week
- Homework: Optional
Core Classes:
- Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands
- How People Change
Electives:
- Sinner, Sufferer, Saint
- re|engage leader training (online)
- AVENEW leader training (online)
Equipped to Counsel
This is Christ Chapel’s gold standard for training biblical counseling worldview and methods. The purpose of this class is to enlist, equip and encourage followers of Jesus Christ to live and counsel the gospel of Christ and His Word to people living amidst the suffering and problems of life.
*There is an application process to enroll in this course.
Commitment:
- Length: 28 weeks (over 2 semesters) of 2-hour class meetings
- Reading: 38 chapters (roughly 1-2 per week, with case studies)
- Cost: $60 for textbook
Level 3 Elective:
Level 4 Overview
Level 3 graduates can receive an invitation to continue their equipping through any of the following opportunities. Level 4 is typically reserved for those thinking about serving in an individual care role or vocational ministers wishing to expand their scope of care.
A Biblical Counseling Process
This is a great study for those considering serving as a counselor. In 3 parts, we discuss the entire scope of care for an individual. This is based on an immensely practical 15-chapter book by Lauren Whitman.
Intake Training
If individual care is the right next step for a person seeking help, Soul Care does an intake meeting with the potential counselee to determine some initial impressions regarding a probable scope of care; or if this person would benefit more from group care or another option. If you are invited to be an intake counselor, this training is what you need!
Ongoing Supervision & Training
Supervision: Throughout the year, the Soul Care pastoral staff leads monthly meetings with subsets of counselors who serve at Christ Chapel. These small group supervision meetings provide space for honest feedback on the counseling ministry that the lay counselors participate in. This is also a space for questions and guidance on particular cases (counselees’ identities are kept private). These are done in group so that counselor community feedback is a part of the oversight, but private coaching is offered as well.
Ongoing Training: Soul Care has a training manual written by Dr. Greg Cook for continually sharpening the skills of our counselors. Training from this material is brought into the supervision meetings, in addition to role plays and case studies that are intentionally designed to continue to build upon the biblical counseling foundations that have been set in previous equipping courses.
Level 5 Overview
Beyond receiving routine supervision and training, Level 5 equipping is reserved for those who are hungry for a more advanced pathway toward learning biblical counseling. A typical candidate for Level 5 may be:
- Those in a topically-relevant masters-level degree program
- A practicum student fulfilling cerps/credits
- Those seeking para-church certification (like ABC)
Special Topics:
Christ Chapel Soul Care is well-networked with providers and training institutions that offer professional certification, advanced training, and courses or conferences to further develop biblical counselors in the metroplex. When you are in the equipping “pipeline” with us, we will make these available as mutual interest and availability arises. Some of the para-church ministries we are currently in-network with focus on the following specialties:
- Marriage and Family
- Domestic Abuse
ABC CERTIFICATION:
The Association of Biblical Counselors helps raise up biblical counselors around the world by partnering with local churches and providing resources for equipping the saints for the work of counseling ministry. ABC has designed a three-level pathway for certification that allows churches to train, evaluate, and mobilize men and women who understand and offer a Christ-exalting, Scripture-based form of one-another ministry in the body of Christ. More info about this pathway can be found at christiancounseling.com/certification-overview
