Hope-Focused Marriage Counseling

Guiding troubled couples is so difficult because divorce is so easy. But it can be done. Everett Worthington, one of today's most widely respected and widely published Christian counselors, offers a comprehensive manual for assisting couples overcommon rough spots and through serious problems in a manner that is compassionate and effective yet in a brief amount of time.His hope-focused (rather than problem-focused) approach enables couples to see that change is possible and gives them a newoutlook on the future. Combining this with a brief approach that addresses the realities of managed care and tight budgets, Worthington shows how to be strategic in each counseling situation by including teaching, training, exercises, forgiveness, modeling and motivation.At the heart of the book are dozens of interventions and homework assignments a counselor can choose from, including

- drawing on central values
- promoting confession and forgiveness
- strengthening communication
- aiding conflict resolution
- changing patterns of thinking
- developing intimacy
- cementing commitment
With over one hundred options presented, counselors, pastors and social workers are given the flexibility they need to address the specific situation of each client. Moving couples closer to what God intended their marriage to be is not easy, but it is possible.

Everett L. Worthington Jr. (PhD, University of Missouri) is Commonwealth Professor Emeritus at Virginia Commonwealth University. He is a licensed clinical psychologist and former executive director of the Templeton Foundation's A Campaign for Forgiveness Research. He was the founding editor of Marriage and Family: A Christian Journal, and his many books include Handbook of Forgiveness, Hope-Focused Marriage Counseling, and Couple Therapy.