As a kid I watched Bob Newhart nearly every Saturday night.  In fact, because of him I briefly thought it might be cool to become a psychologist, and do counseling for a living.  But that idea soon faded. After further thought I wondered if it would be something I was particularly suited to do. So how ironic is it that, as a pastor, a fair portion of my time is spent in counseling?

While counseling can be very, very rewarding, when those I work with seem to make progress, at other times it can be very frustrating. I wonder if I am helping at all.  My nature is to assume there is something I am missing, some insight I am overlooking, some sage advice I am failing to offer.

So, I was excited when I ran across this video of Bob Newhart counseling a client. He shows me how to be clear and focused when addressing a persons issue, and how to be direct in his counsel. Watch and learn:

While this sketch is funny, and does represent how some pastors and church leaders occasionally feel, David Powlinson, of CCCF, offers some poignant insight about the difference between Bob Newharts methods and the objective we should embrace in the church.