How to Care Like Christ:

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How to Care Like Christ Changing Lives with
Christs Changeless Truth
1 Thessalonians 28
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How to Care Like Christ Changing Lives with
Christs Changeless Truth
1 Thessalonians 28
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How to Care Like Christ Changing Lives with
Christs Changeless Truth
1 Thessalonians 28
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Knowing What to Do After the Hug Can Feel Like
Being Lost Without a GPS
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Ever Feel a Little Lost?
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Ever Feel a Little Lost?
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Need Some Directions?
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Some Signs Are More Helpful Than Others
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Some Signs Are More Helpful Than Others
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Some Signs Are More Helpful Than Others
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Some Signs Are More Helpful Than Others
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Some Signs Send Conflicting Messages!
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Some Signs Send Confusing Messages
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We Need a Spiritual Friendship GPS
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Sharing Scripture and Soul
1 Thessalonians 28 We loved you so much that we
were delighted to share with you not only the
Scriptures, but our own souls, because you were
dear to us.
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Speaking the Truth in Love
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How to Care Like Christ
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Pastor Carls Story

• Where would you start with Pastor Carl and
• why?
• How would you minister to Pastor Carl in his
• suffering?
• How would you minister to Pastor Carl in his
• struggle against sin?
• What map or model would guide you?

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Why Are We Here? The Big Idea
Everyone wants to do biblical counseling and to
be a spiritual friend, but what does it actually
look like in practice? Well learn how to use
Gods Word to bring Christs hope to peoples
suffering. Well explore how to offer sustaining
care for discouraged people by weeping with those
who weeplearn how to empathize with peoples
hurts. Well discover how to offer healing
comfort for suffering people by exploring
Christs hope in the midst of grieflearn how to
encourage people by relating Christs truth to
their daily lives.
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Our GPS Suffering and Sinning
Pastoral care is defective unless it can deal
thoroughly both with the evils we have suffered
and with the sins we have committed.
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Our Soul Care GPS Sustaining and Healing for
Suffering

• Sustaining Its Normal to
• HurtEmpathize (Romans
• 1215)
• Healing Its Possible to
• HopeEncourage
• (Genesis 5020)

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Our Spiritual Direction GPS Reconciling and
Guiding for Sinning

• Reconciling Its Horrible
• to Sin, but Wonderful to Be
• ForgivenEnlighten
• (Romans 520)
• Guiding Its Supernatural
• to MatureEmpower
• (Philippians 310)

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Our GPS Sustaining, Healing, Reconciling, and
Guiding
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Soul Care Comfort for Suffering

• Comfort Co-fortitude
• Parakaletic Called along side to help
• Sufferology and Sanctification God is good
• even when life is bad.
• Find God even when they cant find relief.

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Sustaining

• Its normal to hurt.
• Permission to grieve.
• Life is bad.
• The earthly story.

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Listen to Their Earthly Story
It was in the fall of 1879 that I met Charlotte
Brooks. I have spent hours with her listening to
her telling of her sad life of bondage in the
cane-fields of Louisiana.
Do Not Be Ignorant of One Anothers Suffering 2
Corinthians 13-8
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Empathize with Their Earthly Story
Poor Charlotte Brooks! I can never forget how
her eyes were filled with tears when she would
speak of all her children Gone, and no one to
care for me!
Climb in the Casket!
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Empathize with Their Earthly Story
Aunt Charlotte, my heart throbs with sympathy,
and my eyes are filled with tears, whenever I
hear you tell of the trials of yourself and
others.
Compassionate Commiseration
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Olaudah EquianoComfort Them in Their Earthly
Story
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Comfort Them in Their Earthly Story
The only comfort we had was in being in one
anothers arms all that night, and bathing each
other with our tears.
People Need Our Silence More Than Our Speeches
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Comfort Them in Their Earthly Story
Are the dearest friends and relations still to
be parted from each other, and thus prevented
from cheering the gloom of slavery with the small
comfort of being together, and mingling their
sufferings and sorrows?
Shared Sorrow Is Endurable Sorrow
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Enter Their Earthly Story
Happy should I have ever esteemed myself to
encounter every misery for you, and to procure
your freedom by the sacrifice of my own!
Incarnational Suffering
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Point Them to Jesus in Their Earthly Story
La, me, child! I never thought any body would
care enough for me to tell of my trials and
sorrows in this world! None but Jesus knows what
I have passed through.
Jesus with Skin On!
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Engage in Sustaining Trialogues

• Trialogues

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Engage in Sustaining Trialogues

• Pastor Carl, Im so sorry for all that youre
• going through with your daughters illness
  and
• this unjust criticism.
• I can only begin to imagine what you might be
• feeling.
• If it were me, I think I might be feeling
  _______.
• How does that relate to how youre feeling?
• Who has been a source of comfort for you?
• Who has wept with you in your weeping?

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Engage in Sustaining Trialogues

• Pastor Carl, what are you grieving over the
• most?
• What do you think the Bible teaches about
• feeling and expressing anger and even doubt
  in
• a situation like yours?
• The Apostle Paul admitted that he despaired.
• How do his feelings compare to yours?

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• Sharing and Growing As a Soul Care-Giver
• Who has sustained you by helping you to sense
  that its normal to hurt? Who has climbed in
  the casket with you? How?
• 2. How might Jesus sustain Pastor Carl?
• 3. How could you use the principles of sustaining
  to empathize with and comfort Pastor Carl?

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Healing

• HealingIts possible to hope.
• Encouragement to grow.
• God is good.
• The eternal/heavenly story.

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Stretch Them to the Larger Story

• When Life Stinks, Our Perspective Shrinks.
• Crop Christ Back into the Picture!
• Ask What is God up to in this?
• Celebrate the Empty Tomb!

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Stretch Them to Gods Story
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Stretch Them to Gods Story

• Written expressly for Gods honor and
• peoples encouragement.
• They were exhorting the people, warning them
• to remember the judgment of God.

Cling to Our Image of Gods Holy Love
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Stretch Them to Gods Story

• Perpetua followed with a quick step as a true
• spouse of Christ, the darling of God, her
• brightly flashing eyes quelling the gaze of
  the
• crowd.

Cling to Our Image of Who We Are in Christ
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Stretch Them to the Eternal Story

• Her friends were equally sad at the thought of
• abandoning such a good friend to travel alone
  
• on the same road to hope.

Travel Together on the Road to Eternal Hope
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Stretch Them to the Eternal Story

• The day of their victory dawned, and with
• joyful countenances they marched from the
• prison arena as though on their way to
  heaven.
• If there was any trembling, it was from joy,
  not
• fear.

Weave in the Truth We Are More Than Conquerors!
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Stretch Them to the Spiritual Story

• Perpetua was singing victory Psalms as if
• already crushing the head of the Egyptian.

See Life with Faith Eyes
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Stretch Them to the Scriptural Story Engage in
Healing Trialogues

• Pastor Carl, Gods timing and ours are often
• light years apart. What are you experiencing
  as
• you wait on God?
• Satan wants to use your suffering to suck the
• life out of you. How can you connect to
  Christs
• resurrection power to find new zeal for God?
• How can you not only survive, but thrive?
• How could you relate Pauls perspective on his
• suffering in Romans 817-39 to your life? How
  
• could taking on his perspective alter yours?

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Stretch Them to the Scriptural Story Engage in
Healing Trialogues

• Pastor Carl, what might God be wanting to
• accomplish in your life through your
• circumstances?
• God is all-powerful, holy, and loving. What
• impact do these attributes of God have on you
  
• as you face this?
• How have you been able to worship God in the
• midst of this?

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• Sharing and Growing As Soul Care-Givers
• Who has joined you in the healing process by
  helping you to sense that its possible to
  hope? Who has celebrated the resurrection with
  you and stretched you to God? How?
• 2. How might Jesus heal Pastor Carl?
• 3. How could you use the principles of healing to
  encourage Pastor Carl to see life from Gods
  perspective?

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Whet Your Appetite
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www.rpmministries.org rpm.ministries_at_gmail.com We
binar
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Competent to Share Scripture and Soul
Romans 1514 I myself am convinced, my brothers,
that you yourselves are full of goodness,
complete in knowledge, and competent to counsel
one another.
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How to Care Like Christ Changing Lives with
Christs Changeless Truth
1 Thessalonians 28
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How to Care Like Christ Changing Lives with
Christs Changeless Truth
1 Thessalonians 28