Healing and hope: using life-coaching principles within the context of pastoral care

This article is the product of a qualitative, trans-disciplinary study that aimed to explore the use of life-coaching principles within the context of pastoral care. The research relied on the theoretical underpinnings of pastoral theology and life coaching. The problem that the article considers is that, while pastors are equipped with counselling skills, most of them are not equipped with the life-coaching skills necessary to assist people with personal and spiritual growth. We argue that pastors can enhance the pastoral care process by using basic life-coaching principles. Furthermore, we propose a pastoral care process that, on the one hand, focuses on counselling that addresses the coachee’s past as part of a healing process and, on the other hand, on life-coaching principles that look to the future while encouraging growth, as well as personal and spiritual development. GENESING EN HOOP: DIE GEBRUIK VAN LEWENSAFRIGTINGSBEGINSELS BINNE DIE KONTEKS VAN PASTORALE SORG Opsomming Hierdie artikel is die produk van ‘n kwalitatiewe, trans-dissiplinêre studie wat ten doel gestel het om lewensafrigtingsbeginsels binne die konteks van pastorale sorg te ondersoek. Die beginsels van Pastorale Teologie en Lewensafrigting het die vorm die teoretiese onderbou van die studie. Die artikel besin oor die probleem dat, alhoewel pastors oor beradingsvaardighede beskik, hulle meestal nie met die nodige lewensafrigtingsvaardighede toegerus is nie en dus nie bekwaam genoeg is om mense met persoonlike en geestelike groei te help nie. Ons redeneer dat pastors die proses van pastorale sorg kan versterk deur van basiese lewensvaardigheidsbeginsels gebruik te maak. Verder stel ons voor dat die proses van pastorale sorg nie net fokus op berading waar die person wat berading ontvang se verlede in ag geneem word nie, maar ook op lewensafrigtingsbeginsels wat kyk na die toekoms, terwyl groei, asook persoonlike en spirituele ontwikkeling aangemoedig word.