Counterfeit Counseling

A comparison of counseling philosophies

Lecture

60 minutes, 2012 

Rating: 8/10

A good friend with a bad father was, as a young man, sent by his church to a local Christian counseling center to get help controlling his anger. But instead of addressing what he could do about his anger, the counselor had my friend talk again and again about how bad his father was. There might have been some need for the counselor to get a basic understanding of my friend's history, but there was no need for the counselor to encourage him to repeatedly rehash the sins of his father. This was a violation of the fifth commandment and something that simply should not have been part of any Christian counseling.  But as Bard Bigney explains in this DVD lecture, most of what goes by the name of Christian counseling is nothing but secular psychology baptized with a few Bible verses. 

Many years ago, after planting a church, Bigney was overwhelmed by the number of people who needed help with their problems. So he went looking for a good counseling center he could partner with.

I went to the YellowPages.... picked out a dozen or 15 Christian counseling ministries.... And I made myself a list of good questions..... "What is your understanding of man's condition, from birth?" You would be shocked at what Christian counselors were saying! Why? Because they've been trained more in psychology and Freud and Maslow and Skinner than God's Word.... And they would say, "basically good." I'd say, "Basically good? That's not what the Bible says!"

Best of YouTube: You've Got Thumbs

Douglas Wilson does a rendition of "You've Got Thumbs"

The Heart of Texas

Documentary

60 min, 2009

Rating: 8/10

Online reviews this documentary are exasperatingly vague: "an astonishing true story of tragedy and forgiveness" "a beautiful story of how God wants us to... forgive even what seems to be unforgivable." But what is it about? Most reviewers seem determined to leave it a mystery, explaining that if you go in without knowing what to expect, the emotional impact will be all the greater.

However I am going to divulge what's at the heart of The Heart of Texas because, even though this is a wonderful film, I know some will find it too hard to watch.

It is about a family that lost their 4-year-old daughter to a hit and run driver. That is tragic and the nightmare of every parent. But what happens next is amazing. Grover Norwood, the little girl's father, forgives the man who killed his daughter. And he not only forgives him, he empathizes with this man, Ulice Parker, who had no idea he had hit a person. Grover Norwood is concerned about the guilt the man is feeling. So he invites Mr. Parker to the funeral and seats him in the front row, right next to himself and his wife. The forgiveness he shows is absolute, beautiful, and almost unbelievable. As the IMDB.com synopsis puts it: "one man chooses an extraordinary and far-reaching path of forgiveness that the world has never seen."

But is this forgiveness the like of which the world has never seen? No. As Grover Norwood makes clear, what he has done is only a reflection, a shadow of what God has done for us. And that is why this is such a powerful film – this is a man trying to be Christ-like in circumstances in which we might excuse him for displaying the worst sort of behavior towards Mr. Parker. Instead, even as he grieves the loss of his daughter, he reflects God's grace and mercy in reaching out to Mr. Parker.

This is a remarkable story, and a well-produced film. It is important to say again that this is a documentary – it is a true story, not some made for Hallmark script. It is also important to note that these are not Reformed Christians, and some of what is said has an Arminian underpinning to it. So some minimal discernment is needed to evaluate what is expressed here verbally. But you are not likely to see Christ-life forgiveness demonstrated better in action. What God enables Grover Norwood and his wife to do is stunning, awesome, and so very beautiful.

Amazing Grace: The History and Theology of Calvinism

Documentary
257 minutes, 2004
Rating: 8/10

This particular documentary surpasses most every other we have in quality and depth, but also in length too. It could make a great resource for a small group of friends who want to spend two or three evenings together exploring the wonder of God’s grace.

CONTENT

Eric Holmberg, a one time Arminian, hosts this discussion of the roots and theology of Calvinism. Production values are astonishing, and the people Holmberg chooses to interview are top notch – D. James Kennedy, R.C. Sproul, Kenneth Talbot, Walter J. Chantry and others. He manages to get them to distill huge ideas and dynamic concepts in only a few short sentences at a time.

CAUTION

This focuses on TULIP Calvinism, to the exclusion of any other dimensions. So it is a good introduction to Calvinism, but only an introduction.

CONCLUSION

It is brilliant, but at over 4 hours long it takes some endurance to make it all the way through. This is a valuable study resource for anyone but particularly for the average Reformed believer who was raised as in the Church and may never have had Calvinism systematically presented to him or her. It is a beginners' introduction to Calvinism that has enough depth to it that long-time Calvinists will still learn a lot.

Best of YouTube: Purity matters

In this 1:30 video the folks as the Apologetics Group make a crystal clear point about one of the more practical reasons sex in marriage is better. And they do it in a very striking, entirely G-rated way.

There's Something Funny In the Water

Animated, Children

Rating: 8/10
27 minutes, 2005

Life at the Pond is a series of five videos that have a lot in common with the VeggieTales. Both combine simple animation with sophisticated humor – these are children's videos that parents can appreciate too. Both teach moral lessons that line up with what God teaches.

But while many of the VeggieTales videos "sanitize" familiar biblical stories (ex. David's descent into murder and adultery is turned into a story about wanting someone else's rubber ducky) The Pond steers clear of any disrespectful treatment of Scripture by setting their stories in the present day.

The location is, of course, a pond, and the four stars are all aquatic:

• Bill the Duck is a regular joe; we are Bill the Duck
• Tony the Frog fills the role of wisecracking comic relief
• Floyd the Turtle is the most child-like, and often the straight man setting up Tony's zingers
• Methuselah the Alligator is older, and a voice of biblical wisdom

In the first video, There's Something Funny In The Water, we get two 15 minutes stories. Bill the Duck hides the fact that he is afraid of heights, because he doesn't want to be made fun of, and, in the second story, Bill, Tony and Floyd all learn that it is important to keep promises, even when they cut into our fun. These are stories kids can relate to, and they are told with humor that parents will enjoy too. One example: the video begins with the familiar FBI warning against copying the film and Bill and Tony walk in from the sides to take a look.

Bill: Has the video started?
Tony: No it's just the FBI warning.
Bill: And after this, what? CIA warning? FDA? NRA?
Tony: The NRA puts up a warning, I pay attention!

One caution that should be mentioned: while this first video, and the one that follows it, The Little Things, Trust Starts Small, are gentle enough for even three year olds, the last three – The Alligator Hunter, The Rise And Fall of Tony The Frog, and Big Mouth Bass – are more intense. My three year-old didn't like Big Mouth Bass, because this fish was mean at the beginning. Even though she turned nice by the end it didn't matter – she was mean, so that made her scary. However what's scary for a three-year-old won't be for a five or six-year-old, so the whole series is well worth checking out.

You can find a trailer for The Little Things below and you can but a copy at Amazon.com by clicking here..

The Privileged Planet

Documentary

60 minutes, 2005
Rating: 8/10

CONTENT

This hour-long documentary makes a compelling case that we live on a privileged planet. Were Earth a different size, in a different location, or were the moon’s orbit to shift ever so slightly, many of the most important scientific discoveries we’ve made about space could never have happened. It’s clear, then, that not only has Earth been designed for life, it has also been equipped for those living on it to discover all that is going on around them.

CAUTION

The only downside to this “Intelligent Designer” presentation is that our triune God is never specifically given his due credit as that Designer.

CONCLUSION

Stunning graphics accompany a strong argument. This is a superior documentary that will appeal to anyone interested in the way God has designed the solar system, the Milky Way, and our planet Earth.

You can watch this for free online (in 12 parts) below, or buy a copy at Amazon.com by clicking here.

I Like Adoption

This is beautiful. Christians know we are all adopted, which is the reason all Christian couples should at the very least consider adoption. Not all of us would be able to manage things as wonderfully as happens in this family – not all of us are called to do it. But if we are serious about being Christ-like we should all think long and hard about whether we can "redeem a child."

i like adoption from GenerousChurch on Vimeo.

Free online film: THE LOST BOOK OF ABRAHAM

Documentary
57 minutes; 2002
Rating: 8/10

The Book of Abraham is one of five parts of the Pearl of Great Price, which is one of the the four books in the Mormon scriptural canon (the other three being the Bible, the Book of Mormon, and Doctrine and Covenants).

Joseph Smith, the founder of Mormonism, claims that the Book of Abraham came into his possession as a papyrus scroll which he bought from a traveling antiquities dealer in 1835. He said it was a work by Abraham, the father of the world's three main monotheistic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. This papyrus was in Ancient Egyptian hieroglyphic and hieratic text, which at the time no one in the US was able to translate. But with divine help, Smith claimed, he was able to do it.

While no one back then was able to read Ancient Egyptian, many people today can. So how well does Joseph Smith's translation work measure up? The Lost Book of Abraham makes a compelling and thorough case that Smith's translation work was completely wrong. As the film shows in a methodical fashion, egyptologists, both modern and contemporary to Smith, disputed the authenticity of his translation work.

This has some devastating implications for the Latter Day Saints. If this is the type of translation work Joseph Smith did on the Book of Abraham, where we can today check his work, why should we believe he did any better with the Book of Mormon, where we can't? Joseph Smith claims that the original source for the Book of Mormon - golden plates - were taken back by their angelic guardian, leaving us nothing today to examine. We simply have to take Joseph Smith's word that his translation work was correct.

This is a well produced, engaging and thought-provoking documentary. A great one to watch and share if you have any Mormon friends.


For more, check out their website at www.bookofabraham.info

The Three Investigators in The Secret of Skeleton Island

Family/Drama
91 minutes, 2007
Rating 7/10

The Three Investigators started as a book series that ran from 1964-1987 and included more than 40 books. I own many of them, and hope to pass them to my kids, so when I discovered there was a movie, I knew I wanted to see this one. It lived up to my expectations.

Jupiter Jones, Pete Crenshaw and Bob Andrews are a team of juvenile detectives that "have never lost a case." Jupiter is the "Sherlock Holmes" of the group, always able to put the pieces together. Pete is the athletic, fearless "muscle" (or, at least, as much as a 13-year-old can be) while Bob is the researcher extraordinaire, their very own version of Google, always ready with a pertinent fact. The team has their headquarters secreted away in Jupiter's aunt and uncle's salvage yard, complete with secret entrances and research materials and old case files.

When Pete's dad invites them to come visit him at his new job site building an amusement park on an island in South Africa, the Three Investigators set out on what they think will be a nice vacation. But, like the book series, events quickly take what seems to be a  supernatural/mystical turn - a fearsome mythical beast appears to be haunting Skeleton Island. But, again like the books, there turns out to be a logical explanation, and it is up to Jupiter Jones and his team to figure out what sort of beast it might be, and what secrets it is hiding.


Cautions

In films starring children, parents are mostly absent, and that holds true here too. While the Three Investigators are only 12 or maybe 13 or 14, they are portrayed as smarter and more capable than the adults around them. And because they are smarter this gives them a reason to ignore parental authority - Pete's dad orders them home, but they decide they have to keep investigating instead. So this is a not so subtle challenge to parental authority, and authority figures overall.

There is minimal violence (some folks get scratched by the beast and a man is hit in the head with a flower pot) but there is enough peril and tension to make this a film that would scare children. I would recommend it for young teens, and no younger.

Conclusion

This will be enjoyed by anyone who grew up reading the Three Investigators series and now wants to point their kids to it. The feel and spirit of the books is captured quite effectively, even if the film doesn't have that much to do with the book of the same title.