Pastors Corner
Dear Pastor,
I am sure that you are more than aware of all of the relationship issues that exist among members of your congregation. According to research by the founder of our program, 95% of the issues that cause problems in relationships existed before each person reached the age of biblical accountability.
We would like to introduce ourselves. Life Skills San Diego is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, Christian organization based in San Diego. Life Skills offers the “Learning to Live, Learning to Love” curriculum developed by Dr. Paul Hegstrom of Life Skills International. The curriculum is a biblically based, educational program in which men and women are separately taught skills that they need to stop the anger, abuse or addictive behaviors that are interfering with their relationships, careers and Christian walk. These “life skills” include processing feelings of hurt, anger, guilt, shame and bitterness. The curriculum also addresses conflict resolution, communication, bonding, making commitments, stress management, forgiveness, trust and accepting responsibility.
Each class is a small group (10 to 15 people) where participants interact with men or women of similar backgrounds. This allows each student to benefit from the group dynamic during the educational process. The group also provides a safe place for participants to share their feelings and be accepted by others. The classes run for a period of 30 weeks, meeting 3 hours once a week. The community goal of Life Skills San Diego is to complement the pastoral and counseling services provided by your church and other community resources within San Diego County.
We would love to discuss the possibilities of our partnership and answer any questions that you may have. Please contact us by phone, mail or email at the address below.
May God richly bless you,
Ron Clough & Debbie Berry
Directors, Life Skills San Diego
858) 722-1881
STATEMENT OF FAITH
Life Skills San Diego
and
Life Skills International
hold to an Evangelical Christian faith
- We believe that the Bible is the Holy Word of god, without error, infallible and authoritative.
- We believe in one God who exists in the Holy Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).
- We believe that mankind, created by God in the image of God (and therefore has great dignity) is fallen and deserves eternal punishment in hell. The only mediator between God and man is Jesus Christ who, in His own death, paid the debt owed by mankind for sin.
- We believe that all who trust in Jesus Christ alone for their salvation will be delivered into glory at their death, or at the end of time when Christ Jesus returns.
Biblical Foundations of the Life Skills Program
1. We teach what the Word of God says about being child-like (mature) versus childish (foolish). Life Skills calls this arrested development.
2. We teach what needs to happen developmentally in order to receive the Word of God and Jesus Christ as Savior. We combine years of research on the structure and workings of the brain and the Bible as software for the brain. Those who are arrested in their development do not show stability in their thought life or their behavior and deeds, nor do they walk the victorious Christian life.
3. We teach what the scriptures say about the heart; in Life Skills we call it the subconscious.
4. We teach what the Word of God says about the value of a woman.
5. We teach what the word of God says about the edge of leadership of a man and his responsibility as the covering for the family.
6. We teach what the Word of God says about anger, abuse, shame, forgiveness and maturity.
7. We teach - precept upon precept - the skills and the processes required for each person to come to maturity biblically. We re-start the maturing process for a person who is arrested in their development (childish) so that people will grow up to desire Christ or to choose to follow Christ more closely.
8. We teach how God created the brain to operate. When we accept Christ, there is a neurobiological change in the brain. The process of sanctification will change the brain’s structure. We teach the skills and tools that an individual would have learned in a balanced Godly home between birth and eighteen; this enables each person to make choices for themselves instead of living reactive lives. It is those choices that “rewire the brain.”
9. We teach what the Word of God says a balanced, Godly, healthy, functioning family looks like (1 Peter 2).
10. Jesus communicated to the masses at a 3 to 5 grade level using stories and parables. This is our pattern for Life Skills.
11. We teach gender-separate classes in a closed group setting. This provides a safe environment for sharing, healing and encouragement and confessing sins to one another so that each person may be healed (James 5).
