Biblical counseling is the Word applied to individual people. Preaching is the Word proclaimed to the larger church community. Together they summarize a pastor’s primary job description, with each informing and strengthening the other.

Preaching certainly affects counseling. The sermons from Sunday, whether I listen to a sermon or preach one, consistently find their way into my face-to-face ministry during the week. But it goes both ways. My counseling also finds its way into my preaching which, I’ve decided, is a good thing. Here are a few thoughts about that.