Companion LeShalom Centre

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Director's Sharing

5^th April, 2024

Dear LTS Friends, Brothers and Sisters in faith,

It is my pleasure to express my gratitude to you for walking this path and growing in faith together. May the Lord continue to use our lives as channels of love and compassion for those around us.

As we enter April, I am reminded of the Companion LeShalom Center (CLC)’s opening and thanksgiving ceremony in 2018. It brings me joy to reflect on how the “Companion Counseling” Program has positively impacted over 300 students since its beginning in 2015. I thank the Lord for blessing countless lives through the program.

Train the Trainers Scheme

You then, my child, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me through many witnesses, entrust to faithful people who will be able to teach others as well. （Timothy 2: 1-2）

To continue and expand Companion Counseling’s vision, we have set new horizons and milestones. Just as Apostle Paul commanded Timothy that we should nurture ourselves and aim to cultivate faithful individuals who can nurture others (2 Timothy 2:1-2), we are excited to announce the “Train the Trainers Program,” which will cultivate more high-quality professional and group mentors to inherit the caring ministry of Companion Counseling.

Our aim is to promote Companion Counseling training and services to benefit more people, strengthen their inner selves, and walk with others and God. The plan includes integrating the experiences of Companion Counseling accumulated over the past ten years, systematically organizing them, and putting them in written form, i.e., two books, hoping to achieve the purposes of cultivation and inheritance more effectively.

Our three-year “Train the Trainers” program has the following goals:

Equip six professional Trainers for Christian Counseling.
Train 18 companion group mentors.
Provide approximately 1,500 short-term peer counselling training to believers and seekers.
Publish training materials and textbooks on Christian Counseling.

Thanks to the abundant grace of the Lord, the Companion LeShalom Center successfully applied for the “Lund Missionary Society” (Sweden) fund in March this year to support the first-year funding of the “Train the Trainers Program,” five hundred thousand Hong Kong dollars (HKD 500,000). We are forever grateful and give glory to the Lord.

We kindly ask for your prayers for the success of the “Train the Trainers” program:

Pray that the Lord prepares and selects suitable full-time staff to join the team to serve.
Pray that the Lord prepares and selects suitable and potential trainees to participate in the inheritance plan.
Pray that the Lord grants all co-workers, volunteers, mentors, and students health, wisdom, and ability to establish their lives and mission.
Pray that the Lord prepares and provides the funds needed for the second and third years of the “Train the Trainers Program.”

Now to him who by the power at work within us is able to accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine.

(Ephesians 3: 20)

Thank you so much for your continuous support and prayers. May the Lord bless each of you abundantly.

Dr. Angel Lam

Dean of Counselling Studies and Ministry

Director of Companion LeShalom Center

Companion LeShalom Centre (CLC)

Companion LeShalom Centre (CLC) was established in 2018 with the vision and efforts of the Board of Trustees, professors, alumni, and believers of the Lutheran Theology Seminary (LTS), to match with the development of their counseling programs. CLC provides an internship platform for the students taking its counseling courses so that they can sharpen, deepen and apply what they have learned in class through clinical supervision and internship.

Moreover, CLC supports the professional personal growth needs of the seminary students, alumni, pastoral staff, and assists the strengthening of the Christian counseling and caring ministry of the churches.

Background and Vision

Founding Background

The establishment of CLC started with a vision - the vision for Christian Counseling is to strengthen one’s inner life. Through personal growth counseling, clients can become more aware of, and accept, themselves. No matter what happens, they will be able to have a strong heart and be capable to face any challenges and difficulties in life. Walking with their own self means so as to have a more harmonious relationship with self, others and God.

This vision was conceived by Lutheran Theological Seminary (LTS) in 2015 to start the "Helping Oneself and Others-Companion Counseling Diploma". The purpose of this Peer Counseling is to equip believers to become a self-help person. It also assists the caring ministry in church community. With the support of the Lutheran Theological Seminary TEE Committee, the first milestone was thus laid. This is the first milestone of our mission.

Our Lord let us see the needs of equipping Christian professional counselors so as to provide quality professional individual and group counseling services as well as to assist pastors in the pastoral counseling and caring work in the church community. We started the “Advanced Diploma in Christian Counseling”and “Master of Arts in Christian Counseling” Programs in 2017. This is the second milestone of our mission.

In order to match the development of counseling programs in LTS, “Companion LeShalom Centre” was established in 2018, located in the center of Kowloon. The center provides a practicum platform for students to deepen their learning through clinical supervision and internships, to achieve the goal of combining knowledge and practice. In addition, the centre renders also support to students, alumni, pastors, and believers in personal and psycho-spiritual growth, strengthening the church’s pastoral care and counseling ministry. This is the third milestone of our mission.

“I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love.”

Ephesians 3:16-17

Vision

The mission of CLC is built on the Lord Christ, emphasizing on walking with the Lord, self and others. Through personal growth counseling, more people can experience healthy spiritual and personal growth. As the saying goes, preventing is better than curing. Thus, strengthening people’s inner self can help them to face different challenges in life. They will not easily stumble. Even if they are knocked down, they can recompose themselves quickly. Our society will be different and changed for the better if everyone has a healthy inner self.

Goals

Nurturing professional counselors -building up a team of“Christian Counselors”
Nurturing pastors and church workers-strengthening their inner selves
Being the partner of the churches-providing professional counseling services for the church community
Responding to the need of society-promotion mental health education in community

Service Philosophy

Our counseling service focuses on personal growth, accompanying individuals to experience life renewal, establishing goals and regaining motivation. When one’s life is strong, one will not easily stumble. Even if we slip, we are able to stand up again. We can then face different challenges, such as emotional distress, pressure of work, interpersonal conflict, family problem and growth challenges, etc. in a more efficient and effective way.

Our Christian professional counselors help their clients to have a more harmonious relationship with themselves, with others, and with God.

Five cores of Christian counseling: walking with the clients in:

Personal Growth – accompanying them to have a truer and deeper awareness of their inner self, so as to achieve a better understanding of getting along with their own self, with others and with God;
Emotional Renewal - inspiring them to have insights and renewal of their own emotional patterns so that they can get along well with themselves in a harmonious way;
Overcoming Difficulties - helping them to explore their strengths and resources in facing various challenges in life, and thus attaining personal growth through difficulties;
Seeking God - guiding them to seek God's guidance and will while walking with God in life;
Referral - assessing their mental state, and making appropriate referral to different professional help when necessary.

Meaning of Name and Logo

"Companion LeShalom Centre" is named after our vision, expressing the meaning of walking together and growing together. The word “Companion” expresses the core value of the center which is to emphasize walking with people. Shalom is a Hebrew word which has rich meanings of peace and well-being. The word “Le” placed in front of “Shalom” is to point out that the purpose of this center is to establish a harmonious relationship among oneself, others, every creature on earth and God.

The logo is designed with the first three letters of the center’s English name, CLC. As shown by the logo, three persons moving forward together, expressing walking with self, others, and God. This is the basic concept of Christian counseling. The composition gives people a sense of moving forward towards the left, expressing mutual support, mutual watching, love and care. It can also be seen as three persons kneeling down together, looking up to God praying, as well as walking together and growing together.

（Ephesians 3:16-17）