Customer Reviews

Christian Caregiving: A Way of Life

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

The world needs people who care. This book is a practical manual for anyone who has ever felt uncomfortable comforting a friend or acquaintance.

Kenneth Haugk has written this book to address the real-life issues people confront when caring for others. Many find it easier to discuss sex than to discuss issues of their faith and religion. Even if we are comfortable sharing these matters, those with whom we deal may not be.

This practical, well-written book takes the reader beyond theories about the integration of psychology and theology. It strengthens and re-enforces your call to care for those about who you care.

A clear, concise explanation of best practices and pitfalls for those
who would offer caregiving in a compassionate and Christ-like way.
This is no sappy, do-gooder book... and it's no "fix-it" message
either.

This is an excellent book that we have used to teach Christian Care Giving in three churches. It also serves as a text book for the Stephens Ministry basic course. The book is good on its own, but works best when its contents are discussed in a class seting.

It is a must read for every Caregiver that is in the business or volunteering to help in the "Care Industry".

Like many faith oriented books, Christian Caregiving: a Way of Life is a tough read, full of things we should be doing. It is not one of those books one reads for fun, or without a purpose. I am actually currently reading it in a class setting, where it is assigned reading. My classmates and I have found the advice and suggestions made by Kenneth Haugk to be both concrete and helpful. He has a knack for describing situations so that it is easy to see such a scene happening, with some exceptions, and to understand how people might feel or react in that situation, and why. I found Haugk's suggestions regarding how to pray with others were exactly the advice I was asking my teachers for, in fact.

However, Christian Caregiving assumes not only that the reader is Christian, which is reasonable with such a title, but also that all those receiving this care from readers will also be Christians. Given that this book was written for the Stephen Ministry program, which is meant to train Christians how to minister to each other, I can understand this slant, though my classmates and I found it rather unhelpful to not have any suggestions for relating to those of other faiths that we encounter. This weakness aside, the book is neatly organized for quick reference, with bullet points and charts. It is also particularly Lutheran, in an unstated way, as Haugk assumes the reader is not comfortable with talking about faith, a trait not shared by all branches of Christianity, for example, some of the more loud or evangelical churches.

Despite being a book written with a fairly narrow focus and purpose, Christian Caregiving; a Way of Life does have the potential to be useful in a more broad range of applications, provided one is able to take some of the things said with a grain of salt, or add to them. My class is on pastoral care or being a hospital chaplain, and as I said, it is used in training lay ministers in Stephen Ministry, but it could also be used in programs teaching evangelism or becoming a missionary. Even as a personal resource, the book has a lot to say about human relationships and how to address sensitive issues that come up in life.

This is an excellent primer for those who, through vocation, avocation, or circumstance find themselves in a position to give support to another in distress. Written from both a psychological and theological point of view, it provides sound advice from the former erected upon a sound foundation of the latter. Definitely recommended.

I am a Stephen Ministeries Leader and this has proven to be a vaulable tool to use in our continuing education time of our meetings. WONDERFUL!!!

this is a very good like new product and was sent super fast without my asking.Really appreciated as I needed it sooner than planned. all the pages were in good shape no writing or dog-eared pages. much appreciated.

This book is a good conversation starter while you are out and about. When you carry a book many people will start asking what you are reading and why. A minister for the UCC reconfirmed what we are doing as lay ministers by stating that the minister cannot do everything and he was happy to see that there were books out there that others were reading to better understand the how to do things.

An excellent, succinct help for reaching out to hurting members of a congregation. A useful and practical tool for training lay-counselors.