Daniel Beck_BIBL415_Strategic Counseling Plan
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Strategic Counseling Plan: Bill’s Case
Daniel E. Beck
Regent University
BIBL 415: Pastoral Counseling
Dr. T. A. Powell
01/31/2024
Strategic Counseling Plan: Bill’s Case
This strategic counseling plan will contain the strategic counseling plan that I recommend
for one parishioner. The parishioner is Bill, who seems to be angry with and bitter towards the Christian company that fired him. Bill expected more out of the company because he expected Christians to behave as Christians. He did not feel that way, as he felt lied to about being fired. This situation created distance between Bill and God. This plan will outline my main goal in working with Bill, which of the four elements I feel he needs the most, and a clear breakdown of Benner's three stages of strategic pastoral counseling: encounter, engagement, and disengagement.
1
Bill: Primary Elements
In Bill's case, out of the four primary elements described by Benner, sustaining and reconciling are the two he would benefit from the most. Even though there is no way I could change Bill’s circumstances with his former employer, I can still support and care for him during
this time. Bill had expectations that the Christian company would behave like Christians. Bill felt
he was lied to about why he was fired because they hired someone else to do something like what he was doing. This caused Bill to allow distance between himself and God unconsciously. The main goal of this session is to support Bill during his frustration and reconcile his relationship with God, closing the distance. This could be done by forgiving his former boss, as Bill understands what the Bible says about forgiveness and how it works.
1
David G. PhD Benner, Strategic Pastoral Counseling: A Short-Term Structured Model
(Baker Academic, 2003), 73.
The Encounter Stage
The encounter stage is the first stage of pastoral counseling. In this stage, the pastor and Bill meet for the first time and begin to build a relationship. The Pastor will typically start by asking the counselee to share their story and describe the problems that they are facing. For example, I would ask Bill how he is doing at his new job, and Bill replies that the job is going well, but he is still upset about how his last job ended. I would ask Bill what has got him upset. Bill says, “This is not the place and time, but I can come by sometime soon to talk about it; it should not take long.” I told Bill that I would call him later to set up a time so he could come by. During the encounter stage, the pastor will also set boundaries. In this case, I would tell Bill that I have an hour tomorrow if he can come to my office, and we can talk then.
I will explore his central concerns once Bill and I have established a relationship and set boundaries. This would involve me asking Bill to describe the current situation.
Once I understand Bill’s central concerns well, I will begin to develop a pastoral diagnosis. This is a process of identifying the underlying causes of the counselee's problems. The counselor will then work with the counselee to create a mutually agreeable focus for counseling. In Bill’s case, this would be spiritual, as he feels distant from God because of the situation.
The Engagement Stage
The engagement stage of the session would be exploring the affective, cognitive, and behavioral aspects of Bill’s problem and identifying the resources for coping or change.
2
Bill stated that he feels that
the situation with his job hiring someone else to do something similar, if not what he was doing, caused distance between him and God. Also, Bill stated that he has tried forgiving him and understands that he needs to forgive his employer but continued to feel angry at him. I would ask Bill to write a letter 2
David G. PhD Benner, Strategic Pastoral Counseling: A Short-Term Structured Model
(Baker Academic, 2003), 74.
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explaining exactly how he felt and, after that, throw it away. Then, I would offer to pray with Bill to ask God to help him forgive his employer. Forgiveness would start the right direction for the anger and close
the gap between Bill and God.
The Disengagement Stage
In the last stage in strategical pastoral counseling, I would evaluate progress, address any additional concerns, arrange a referral if applicable, and terminate the counseling.
3
The counseling addressed the primary concern since this is a one-hour, one-time session for Bill to get things off his chest. Next Sunday, I will ask Bill how he feels since the session. According to the study, the session was a success, as Bill stated that it was beneficial and did not need anything else. At that point, the counseling sessions would be terminated.
3
Ibid.
References
Benner, David G. PhD. Strategic Pastoral Counseling: A Short-Term Structured Model
. Baker Academic, 2003.