Spiritual Friends provides a biblically relevant training manual and relationally practical workbook for relating God's truth to human relationships. Spiritual Friends is for the layperson, pastor, or professional Christian counselor. It will equip the reader to master the personal ministry of the Word and spiritual friendships with thousands of illustrative interactions and hundreds of skill-building exercises.
About the author
Robert W. Kellemen, Ph.D., LCPC, served for over a dozen years as chairman of the master of arts in Christian counseling and discipleship (MACCD) department at Capital Bible Seminary. He is now professor-at-large in that department. Through the MACCD, Bob has equipped thousands of pastors and professional counselors for biblical ministry. In his three pastoral ministries (one as senior pastor and two as associate pastor), Bob has equipped hundreds of lay people as biblical counselors and spiritual friends. In each church, Bob launched and led the LEAD Ministry: Lay Encouragers and Disciplers. In his role as founder and CEO of RPM Ministries (rpmministries.org), Bob is known for his Christ-centered, comprehensive, compassionate, and culturally-informed approach to equipping local churches for biblical counseling and spiritual formation. Through RPM Ministries, Bob has consulted with scores of churches and para-church groups, walking them through his "4E" model for launching and leading lay equipping ministries. Bob is the executive director of the Association of Biblical Counselors' Center for Church Equipping. He also serves as the launch director for the Biblical Counseling Coalition. Bob is a book reviewer for Discerning Reader. He's also the biblical counseling and pastoral ministry reviewer for The Gospel Coalition.Dr. Kellemen received a B.A. degree in pastoral ministry from Baptist Bible College (Clarks Summit, Pa.), he earned a Th.M. in theology and biblical counseling from Grace Theological Seminary (Winona Lake, Ind.), and he received a Ph.D. in counselor education from Kent State University (Ohio). Bob is a licensed clinical professional counselor in the state of Maryland. Bob has authored more than 75 published articles. He is also the author of five books: Soul Physicians: A Theology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction (BMH Books), Spiritual Friends: A Methodology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction (BMH Books), Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direction (Baker Books), Sacred Friendships: Celebrating the Legacy of Women Heroes of the Faith (BMH Books), and God's Healing for Life's Losses: How to Find Hope When You're Hurting (BMH Books), scheduled for release in March 2010. Bob and his wife of twenty-nine years, Shirley, live in Crown Point, Ind. They are parents of two adult children. Josh is 25, married to Andi, and is in his second year in law school. Marie is 21, and is a senior at Purdue University, majoring in chemistry. In all his free time, Bob runs daily, plays in a men's softball league, and coaches high school wrestling.
