Unique project explores hundreds of everyday issues, as well as ‘adds to the rich biblical literature in the expanding biblical counseling space’
August 16, 2023 — This week marks the release of The CSB Life Counsel Bible—a collaborative effort between Holman Bibles and New Growth Press. The project is unique in how it was designed to explore practical biblical wisdom on everyday topics, and it was also brought to life to assist readers in navigating today’s complex cultural and mental health challenges.
Building on the consistent growth of the biblical counseling space, the project features an outstanding list of contributors (click here for a complete list). Articles were written by best-selling authors and Bible teachers such as Joni Eareckson Tada and Paul Tripp and experts in the biblical counseling community including Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation (CCEF) faculty members Edward Welch, Michael Emlet, and the late David Powlison as well as many other counselors. The Bible includes articles on topics as broad as grief, depression, anger, guilt, and shame, and as narrow as addiction, suicide, bipolar disorder, cutting, adoption, and chronic fatigue.
The CSB Life Counsel Bible explores and brings richness and depth to passages related to marriage, parenting, and hundreds of other day-to-day issues making it an excellent resource for not only pastors, counseling and ministry leaders, and youth leaders, but also couples, parents, and young adults.
“A simple survey of the publishing landscape will reveal that biblical counseling literature has seen a significant increase over the last several years,” said Holman Bibles publisher Andy McLean. “This growth in content not only shows attentiveness to tangible felt needs that exist in the world, but also reflects the church’s call to showcase how the gospel and biblical wisdom speak to personal and cultural challenges that we all face in life.”
The CSB Life Counsel Bible features the highly readable and decidedly reliable text of the Christian Standard Bible® (CSB), known for capturing the Bible’s original meaning without sacrificing clarity, making it easier for readers to engage with Scripture’s life-transforming message and to share it with others.
Other features of the new Bible include:
- More than 150 full-length articles from respected biblical counselors and scholars
- Callout quotes placed near each article providing truth, hope and encouragement
- Over 100 studies focusing on keywords applicable to personal healing, growth, and counsel
- Book introductions including “Circumstances of Writing,” “Structure,” “Contribution to the Bible” and a special “Truth for Healing” section with an overview of key truths related to healing from each book of the Bible
- Wide margins for notetaking and journaling
- A robust page-end cross-reference system with over 25,000 cross-references connecting Scripture from Genesis to Revelation
“Rising rates of mental health struggles, moral confusion, deconstruction of faith—we live in an unsettling and often scary world,” said Barbara Miller-Juliani, Vice President at New Growth Press. “For The Life Counsel Bible, New Growth Press has assembled an experienced, thoughtful, full-of-grace team of biblical counselors who unpack the living truth of the Scripture and apply it to our modern struggles, sorrows, and failings. Pastors and counselors will find direction in how to apply Scripture to their counselees. Parents will be helped to apply God’s Word to their children’s struggles. Husbands and wives will learn about true love. And all will be pointed to Christ—the one who is the only soul anchor that will hold us fast in the storms of life.”
The mental health crisis in America continues to grow as millions of additional people each year report increased stress and anxiety, depression, and other ailments. Collectively, years of anxiety and fatigue around the COVID pandemic, rapid changes in cultural expectations and norms, inflation, and other economic issues are among the greatest contributors to the acceleration of the crisis and the corresponding growth in counseling needs.
Welch believes the project has something to say for everyone. “God,” he said, “… speaks many words to many different problems.”
The Life Counsel Bible will be available at all major retailers. Learn more at www.lifecounselbible.com.
Holman Bibles – a subsidiary of B&H Publishing Group – is the oldest Bible publisher in North America, publishing high-quality Bibles and reference resources that are trustworthy, accessible and useful for the pursuit of lifelong discipleship. Print and digital releases include the award-winning “CSB Explorer Bible for Kids”, the “CSB Tony Evans Study Bible” as well as the “Tony Evans One Volume Commentary,” and the “The She Reads Truth Study Bible.”
