McMinn (1996) instructs that we need a healthy sense of self in order to overcome our obstacles (p. 47); further stating “those who pray often tend to experience more purpose in life, greater marital satisfaction, religious satisfaction, and a general sense of well-being” (p. 66). McMinn (1996) focus is on the use of healing. The goal is to produce a healthy sense of self to resolve issues of brokenness, sinful acts, and needful materialism.…
After establishing the background of his book McMinn (2011) begins to discuss several theological topics related to intra-disciplinary integration. The first theological them McMinn (2011) discusses is prayer. Despite the fact that many students are not adequately trained in theology or possess the necessary spiritual discipline to effectively integrate prayer into counseling, McMinn (2011) believes that prayer is essential to achieve mental and spiritual health. McMinn (2011) also mentions the ethical issues a counselor may come across when using prayer with their clients. McMinn (2011) then offers his readers with several techniques to incorporate prayer into their practice. With each technique that McMinn (2011) describes he also mentions the risk that exist if misused by individuals who have failed to be properly trained in each technique. McMinn (2011) then focuses his reader’s attention to the use of Scripture in counseling. As with prayer, if a counselor is not properly trained in the use of Scripture it can also be ineffective and posses a risk to client. McMinn (2011) points out that the Christian…
9 “So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given you; search, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened for you.…
Part One of Elmer Towns’ Concise Bible Doctrines introduces Christian theology by outlining the key pieces of the doctrine to help the reader understand Christianity and faith. Towns begins by saying that the main purpose of Bible doctrine is to communicate the gospel to the people at a point of need. Every man has the same need because every man is cut off from God. Man is born with a sin nature, and because he is less than holy, he is isolated and alienated from God. Death is imminent for everyone, but God communicates through the Bible that through Jesus Christ, man can be saved. The word “gospel” means “good news.” It is the responsibility of every Christian to reach out in relationships to the unsaved in sharing this news, and to other Christians in fellowship. Christians are called to seek God, and study the Bible to learn to know Him better, and worship Him always. Proper worship of God requires faith; the source of which is the Bible. Doctrinal faith is the beginning and the test of Christianity. If our statement of faith is wrong, than our faith is misplaced. Our faith must be grounded on correct knowledge of God. However, intellectual knowledge of God is not enough. Emotional expression and volition are equally important. The Holy Spirit acts on behalf of Jesus Christ to plant faith in a Christian’s heart. He indwells us, and helps us exercise our faith daily. We can grow in our faith by studying God’s word, seeking the Lord, confessing sin, actively following biblical principles, and constantly communicating with God. Faith is ultimately a reliance and trust of God, and the Bible teaches us to rely on Him for everything.…
McMinn wants to empower the reader to explore their own Christian faith and how it can be incorporated successfully into therapy sessions with their clients. By educating the reader on a sense of a healthy self, he explores how prayer can be effective in sessions and also provides different methods for implementation. He stresses the importance of prayer and what it means at different times in relation to a counseling session he states, “We pray as we breathe,…
A thorough assessment may determine the need for the healing power of prayer. McMinn (2011) emphasizes the importance of prayer in and out of a counseling session and the benefits of assisting a client to improve their relationship with God. “The prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective” (James 5:16). Prayer can be effective for the client to strengthen their relationship with God. Prayer can lead to a sense of self-identity and prepare a broken client to create a closer, healing relationship with God (McMinn, 2011).…
In all three parts of the book, Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home, Richard Foster addresses seven different types of prayer in each section. The first kind of prayer that Foster addresses in part one is the Simple Prayer. The Simple Prayer is essentially exactly what the name says it is. Foster calls it the most basic and primary form of prayers. He also says that is the most common form of prayer found in the Bible. The Simple Prayer is where we come before the Father with our sins and mess-ups and just talk to Him. Foster summarized the Simple Prayer brilliantly when he said, “In a very real sense we are the focus of Simple Prayer. Our needs, our wants, our concerns dominate our prayer experience.”…
Through his book, Prayer: The Timeless Secret of High-Impact Leaders, Dave Earley proposed guidance to help his readers to renew and to improve their prayer life. He wakes up our desires as spiritual leaders to be more effective and give more influence for the people of their thirst for God. Throughout the book, we can find that the method he offered provides challenge for those who read his writing.…
(191) The greatest tradition in our worship can become meaningless unless they effectively communicate God’s truth to the people who we are communing with. Therefore, relevancy is just as important as being rooted. What may be relevant in one church may not be relevant in another church. The important thing is to make sure that the story of God’s redemption can be clearing understood and accepted by those who are seeking to be touch by the…
Question 1: Scot McKnight discusses the importance of both “praying in the Church” and “praying with the Church.” Describe what he means by each type of praying. Where in Scripture can we find examples of both kinds of prayer? Further, what is the relationship between the two types, and how might they contribute to one’s spiritual life?…
This passage is about meaningful prayer in order to form a spiritual bond with God. Often times people would use prayer as a means of receiving praise. They would purposely go out in public to draw attention to themselves so others would think highly of them. However, Jesus spoke against this, encouraging everyone to go somewhere private to pray and use prayer as a means of meditation and to strengthen ones relationship with God, not their social status. The original people hearing this understood it rather clearly as Jesus did intend this triad to be interpreted literally giving them thorough instructions on how to pray.…
11.Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will for us and the power to carry that out.…
The adoration relationship that devotees have with their God is exhibited through our consistent studying about him in the consecrated writings. We are continually studying more about him through the way toward concentrating on, seeking, learning, and exploring his oath in the Bible. Also, the best interpretative guideline, Armstrong contends all through her chronological investigation, is exercising sympathy and discovering it in the God we read about in the Scripture. Furthermore, she argues that it is difficult to experience what the Bible planned to communicate without praying frequently and sitting tight hopefully for the transcendent God to show up (Armstrong,…
Therefore, it is a quest for seminarians to serve God, we have to serve him fearlessly to be able to see God's work for our life to grow in every situation (29 Wolpert). Prayerful life helps to build the foundation of our live and it helps us to get closer to the life empowered with spirit.…
We can pray to God every day, all day, because our faith is universal. Our freedom helps us in making frequent acts of faith. Freedom is expressed and increased by praying for an increase of faith, by studying the truths, by living according to God’s will, by choosing friends and acquaintances wisely, and by reading or viewing only good things, avoiding anything against the teachings of the Church. Our freedom is the only way we can achieve any of these things.…