TEAM-CBT

How Biblical is Psychology and TEAM in particluar?

Coaching/therapy works because it gives you the focus to make specific goals that are real and attainable, it empowers you to accomplish those goals through education and skill development, all the while helping you work through the challenges that impede the success of goal attainment.

TEAM-CBT for Christians:

Job 15:11,12 “Is God’s comfort too little for you? Is his gentle word not enough? What has taken away your reason? What has weakened your vision,” Reason often goes out the window in times of severe stress or emotional crisis, such as King David when we was so ashamed of his sin against Uriah and Bathsheba. 2 Samuel 12:18, “Then on the seventh day the child died. David’s advisers were afraid to tell him. ‘He wouldn’t listen to reason while the child was ill,’”

When someone is in emotional crisis we first use T & E of TEAM. Testing, see where they are at, and E, empathy. “You must be compassionate, just as your Father is compassionate.” Luke 6:36. We must be neutral and loving, using positive therapeutic regard, “Do not judge others,” Matthew 7:1; Then we have feeling empathy: Romans 12:15 “Be happy with those who are happy, and weep with those who weep.” Paul writes about thought empathy, 1 Thessalonians 5:11 So encourage each other and build each other up,” Ok, so I’m using some poetic license here, but certainly thought empathy does build up and encourage the other person. And one more, Galatians 6:2, “Share each other’s burdens, and in this way obey the law of Christ.”

Then we can move onto agenda setting. We use God’s word to reason with others. Acts 17:2 “As was Paul’s custom, he went to the synagogue service, and for three Sabbaths in a row he used the Scriptures to reason with the people.” Of course God’s word is NOT exclusive of scripture. God speaks to us in many ways. For thousands of years there was no Bible and yet there were men of God. We can use the concepts in scripture to reason with others. And since “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father” James 1:17 and “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28, NIV. Then we can help others see the positives, and as such do positive reframing.

Once we do agenda setting it’s on to methods. Psychoeducation on self-talk and distorted thinking is the first method we use. (As seen on the DML and BMS) Teaching clients self-talk gives them power or self-control if you will. Acts 24:25 “As he reasoned with them about righteousness and self-control…” We use self-talk and self-control to deal with distorted, untruthful thinking. “We use God’s mighty weapons, not worldly weapons, to knock down the strongholds of human reasoning and to destroy false arguments.” 2 Corinthians 10:4. Thus we see we need truthful thinking, “And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:32.

There you have an overview of TEAM-CBT from the Bible. Verses are New Living Translation (NLT) unless otherwise noted. To take a deeper dive, read my booklet “The TRUTH will set you free.”