SINGAPORE, 19 NOVEMBER 2008 — The Effective Counseling elective held on the afternoon of 19 November 2008 by Mike Connell was certainly a popular choice for many pastors and church leaders as about 4,000 members and delegates gathered in Expo Hall 8 to learn the basic skills of counseling.
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Connell is the Senior Pastor of Bay City Outreach Centre and he moves powerfully in the prophetic, deliverance and inner healing gifts. His love for people has enabled him to minister effectively and bring healing to the hurt and broken, making him the perfect speaker for this elective.
Connell shared three important points for effective counseling, namely how to identify problems plaguing our counselees, recognizing hindrances and exploring issues faced by counselees and encouraging change in the life of our counselees. The lively session was infused with plenty of personal experiences and anecdotes.
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| PHOTOS: Desmond Tan |
The highlight of the session was undoubtedly the Q&A section. Many delegates took the opportunity to raise specific problems they encountered in their ministry. For example, questions like how to counsel a homosexual and how to deal with counselees between the ages of seven and 15 were raised.
The session ended with Connell reiterating the need to implement Biblical methods in the process of counseling while maintaining the balance of allowing counselees to make their own personal choices.
