We know that when we sit across from our counselees, there is far more behind the scenes than just the presenting issues. There is frequently a complex web of beliefs and experiences that lead our counselees to view life and to respond to situations the way they do. If we are not careful, it is easy for us to compress our counselees and see them two-dimensionally – only in the ways that they suffer or only in their sinful responses. Doing so will keep us from responding to the depths of their experiences and from helping them reorient their lives around God’s Word. In Saints, Sufferers, and Sinners: Loving Others As God Loves Us by Michael R. Emlet, the author lays out a framework to understand the people we encounter in life more robustly and enables us to apply more skillfully the healing balm of the Word where they need it the most. He encourages us to see our counselees as saints, sufferers, and sinners.
The author divided the book into five parts. “Part 1: Understanding People” is an introduction to the book and makes a case for why we should see people as saints, sufferers, and sinners. Parts 2-4
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