COUNSELING - Counseling often looks at the past to help you better understand the present. Counselors are trained to diagnose, and tend to look at relationships from more of a medical model where they diagnose and prescribe (give advice).
At One Flesh Ministries we refer addictions, abuse, mental health issues, and depression to counselors who are trained to deal with these un-coachable issues.
COACHING - Coaching (marriage) focuses specifically on helping a couple better understand one another and move to creating agreements about what they will do differently to get different results. Coaching addresses listening to understand, anger, bitterness, forgiveness, resolving conflict, solving problems, dealing with differences, intimacy and moving forward.
Coaching takes you from where you are to where you want to be. Coaches help you determine what will work for you. By nature, coaching is a recurring assignment. Also, coaching is more practical & hands-on than consulting.
Coaching is confidential and coaches only address what you bring up. The couples who see the best results are those who are open and honest. Coaches cannot help you create solutions to issues that are not discussed.
A Christian relationship coach is a spiritually mature friend and accountability partner who gets real with you and points out sin and weakness, while also encouraging your strengths and growth. They help you stay on the path of God’s purpose for you.
Both counseling and coaching provide solutions to get you closer to the life you want to be living. Some say that counselors work on the “why” of the problem, whereas coaching focuses on the “how” to get out of the problem; they also say that counselors will look at the past and coaches will look at the future.
CONSULTING - Consulting involves solving a specific problem of a couple. By nature, consulting is a one-time activity or assignment.