Biblical Counseling Insights

Life Discipleship Resources from Dr. Henry Brandt

Trust in God

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An old scenario goes this way: fear knocked at the door; faith answered; no one was there. In truth, the answer to worry and fear in all their forms is faith in God.

George Müller, director of a network of orphanages in nineteenth century England, could have wasted much energy worrying about how he would provide for the two thousand orphaned children under his care. But instead he operated on the faith principle. He refused a salary and trusted that his material needs and those of his orphanages would be met entirely by seeking God in prayer. And do you know what? That is just what happened. Müller once said, “The beginning of anxiety is the end of faith; and the beginning of true faith is the end of anxiety.”

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Peace Does Not Come in Capsules!

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Dr. S.I. McMillen spent many years studying Jewish and Christian writings in search of Biblical principles and directions for living. As a result of this research, he wrote the bestseller book, None of These Diseases, which describes the physical consequences of wrong living. He pointed out that there may be sin in the picture when aches and pains show up: [Read more…]

Deception

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Charles Cook was anxious and restless. He found it hard to concentrate. When he sat down, he could never relax, so he got up frequently to pace the floor, to get a drink of water, to check the time or to look out the window. Cordial and friendly, Charles was the type of person who made you feel that, in him, you really had someone who cared about you and your problems.

“Give me a call–anytime,” he would say cheerfully to everyone visiting his office. Or, “You’ve got to come over to the house and tell me more about it.”

Some people took him up on his offers of hospitality. And there was the rub! His friendliness was an act. He didn’t really mean for business associates to call him–let alone drop in at his home. He was just making conversation. [Read more…]

Competing Spouses

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When the Dolans, a Christian couple, came to see me, they had not spoken to each other for several weeks. The tension had become unbearable.

The issue was over dancing in gym class. Hal Dolan had said flatly that their son should not participate.

Melissa Dolan had agreed in front of her husband, but privately gave their son permission to participate. Hal found out about it through a conversation with a neighbor who had visited the gym class.

[Read more…]

Choices

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My wife and I were driving along I-95 through Florida on a beautiful, sunny afternoon. We were chatting pleasantly. The cruise control was set at 55 miles per hour and we were in the middle lane. A car on the left whizzed past us and suddenly swerved into our lane. I had to stomp quickly on the brakes to prevent a nasty accident. My wife didn’t see the car but she felt the effect of the brakes, which caused her body to lurch forward. I calmly told her what had happened. Together we watched that car weave in and out of different lanes until it was out of sight. [Read more…]

God’s Comfort

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I remember getting together with Al and his wife at dinner one Saturday night. The next Saturday night, my wife and I were in a funeral home because Al’s wife was in a coffin. This was one of the first times that anybody truly close to us had died.

Al came running to me, looking distraught and frustrated. He said with such pleading eyes, “Henry, tell me something I need to hear.”

I had the time that it takes to walk from the coffin to a couch to figure out what to tell him. I needed to pray! The question was, did God have something to say to him in this difficult time, using me as His instrument? [Read more…]

Speaking the Truth

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“And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works” (Hebrews 10:24).

 

I was the guest speaker at a church conference and was attending one of those family-style banquets where they pass the platters of food and you eat whatever you want. I was sitting next to the minster of a local church. He filled his plate with a pile of potatoes, smothered it with gravy and all the trimmings, and ate it all. That is not what impressed me. He did it all over again! I could not get my eyes off that second plate.

Finally, he leaned over to me and whispered, “You know, Doc, I am a compulsive eater.” [Read more…]

Consistency

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Marilyn and Charles had been having trouble for several years. The trouble was not fights or noisy arguments, but playing cat-and-mouse over Marilyn’s changing moods.

The couple would plan to go to a Sunday school class party or a family gathering, but Marilyn would beg off at the last minute. She just wasn’t up to socializing. Charles would feel sorry for her, change the evening’s plans and stay home. After several weeks of staying home, he would become blue. Then she would feel guilty for causing him to give up his social life and she would start going out. But he knew she was doing it just for him, so he would feel guilty and stay home more. It was a vicious circle, actually a battle of wills, his versus hers. [Read more…]

A Divided House

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“Oh no, not another family fight,” groaned 16-year-old Carole, and she fled to her room in tears.

Carole had asked her mother if she might go roller skating with the church youth group, and Mom had replied, “No. You were at Bible Study last night and you studied late the night before.”

Just then Dad had come in and urged, “Let her go. She’s young only once.”

“But Carole needs her rest,” Mom insisted. Then the seesaw argument began, and both her mother and father were soon angry. [Read more…]

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