Course Description
The focus of this course is to help students identify the Christian foundations to bringing life transformation through counseling and ministry programs. The focus of this course is to develop a comprehensive theological and philosophical basis for all of a ministry’s programs. This course will integrate the following four perspectives on bringing life transformation as shown in the slide below: psychological, theological, spiritual formation and ministry program perspectives. In this course, you will synthesize a major doctoral project combining theoretical and practical research related to Christian Approaches to Counseling and Life Transformation, specifically for your context.
Course Outcomes
- Evaluate a ministry’s core theology and worldview distinctives.
- Write how a ministry’s theological anthropology influences its understanding of causes of and potential solutions to client problems.
- Develop an approach to determining truth and evidence-based practice uniquely aligned with a ministry’s values.
- Develop detailed plans to integrate Christian concepts and practices into counseling and programs including: sin, confession, forgiveness, spiritual formation, spiritual disciplines and other spiritual interventions.
- Articulate a ministry’s unique approach to life transformation and translate that into specific programmatic and community elements.
- Develop a comprehensive program staff training manual explaining the unique approach that a ministry takes to counseling and life transformation.
DOLI Degree Program Outcomes
Degree outcomes are the overall skills and knowledge we expect you will have after successfully completing a degree program at City Vision University. This course supports the following program outcomes, marked with an (I) for Introduce, (D) for Develop and an (M) for Mastery. After completing the degree, you will be able to do the following in each of the listed domains:
- Research methods. Apply action research methods to practical research topics in the field.
- Diffusion of Innovation. Utilize technology and relational networking to help diffuse innovations within a community of practice.
- Values Alignment. To develop a theological vision and to align your organization’s strategy, culture and systems with that vision to avoid secularization and mission drift.
- Strategy. To develop a synthesis to integrate a wide range of business skills into a strategic plan for starting or growing an organization.
- Social Entrepreneurship. Develop strategies and plans to effectively use technology and innovation to achieve organizational goals.
- Action Research Project. Synthesize action research with theory and practice to solve a practical challenge facing your organization and/or the larger field.
Concentration Outcomes
- 7a. Executive Leadership & Fundraising. Develop and implement plans to grow an organization in its impact, financial health and relational health.
- 7b. Nonprofit Program Leadership & Social Entrepreneurship. Improve the effectiveness of nonprofit programs by implementing best practices. (M)
- 7c. Education Leadership and Innovation. Apply disruptive and continuous innovation principles to designing courses and programs to provide radically affordable and practical online education. (M)
- 7d. Organizational Culture and Change Management. Develop and implement plans to improve organizational health and adapt to change.
- 7e. Trauma-Informed Counseling Management. Develop and implement plans to establish trauma-informed culture of health throughout an organization. (M)
Broad Institutional Doctoral Outcomes
- I1. Knowledge (Head). Apply a wide range of tools to help solve society’s great problems by shifting from a single lens/tool/discipline to a multiple lens, multifaceted Biblical understanding of reality.
- I2. Skills (Hands). Develop the skills you need for the next position in your development as a leader by shifting from mastery & understanding of a division in an organization to a comprehensive systemic mastery/understanding needed to lead across the organization.
- I3. Attitudes/Character (Heart). Develop the character and discipline needed to step into greater leadership roles by losing the bias of your old position to gain broader perspective and intellectual humility needed to accelerate your commitment to lifelong learning.
Syllabus
Course Materials & Tuition
| Entwistle, D. N. (2015). Integrative approaches to psychology and Christianity: An introduction to worldview issues, philosophical foundations, and models of integration (3rd ed.). Wipf and Stock Publishers. ISBN: 9781498223485. | $6.00 |
| Johnson, E. L., & Myers, D. G. (2009). Psychology, Theology, and Spirituality in Christian Counseling. Tyndale House Publishers. | $15.00 |
| Hedlund, C. W. (2017). More than a Homeless Shelter: A Perspective on Residential Rescue Ministry Programming. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform. | $25.00 |
| Tuition | $ |
| Total Cost of Course: | $ |