What is Christian Counseling?

Christian counseling is a holistic approach to therapy that integrates evidence-based psychological practices with biblical principles. At Holistically Divine Counseling (HDC), Christian counseling is about healing the whole you as opposed to perfection or performance. We provide a sacred, nonjudgmental space where your faith is honored, your mental wellness is prioritized, and your curiosity is welcomed.

Christian Counseling is the Integration of Faith and Therapy

Christian counseling bridges clinical insight and spiritual truth. It acknowledges the complex relationship between mental, emotional, and spiritual health. At HDC, our approach affirms the power of Scripture and prayer while utilizing psychology, neuroscience, and trauma-informed practices to support healing and growth.

Core Principles of Christian Counseling

Christ-Centered Healing
Rooted in the love of Christ and the fruits of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. We believe true healing flourishes when these spiritual qualities are nurtured within the therapeutic process.

Compassionate Care
Trauma-informed, culturally competent, and nonjudgmental. Our counselors walk alongside you with empathy and grace, honoring your story without shame or assumption.

Whole-Person Wellness
Addressing the mind, body, and spirit with intentionality. We believe your healing journey should honor every part of who you are, including your biology, your beliefs, and your becoming.

Faith + Psychology
We combine therapeutic tools grounded in psychological research with biblical wisdom, offering an integrated approach that honors both faith and evidence. Healing isn’t either/or, it’s both/and.

Benefits of Christian Counseling

• Restoration of hope through faith
• Alignment between your beliefs and mental wellness goals
• Healing from religious trauma with compassion and grace
• Spiritual maturity and resilience in life’s transitions
• Personalized care rooted in both clinical excellence and spiritual integrity

A Faith-Based Approach to Healing and Growth

Christian counseling is about coming home to yourself and to God. It’s a journey of unlearning the limiting beliefs you’ve internalized about yourself, and rediscovering how God truly sees and loves you. It’s also about unlearning distorted images of God shaped by human brokenness, and learning to see Him as He is—a loving, faithful, and compassionate Father. This sacred space invites exploration of doubt, identity, pain, purpose, and healing. It challenges shame-based narratives and invites you to reimagine your faith not as a source of fear, but as a wellspring of strength, grace, and renewal.

Finding Alignment with Your Values and Beliefs

At HDC, we help you identify what matters most. Whether you’re navigating deconstruction, faith transitions, or a desire to grow deeper in your walk with God, our therapists support you in aligning your actions with your values.

Spiritual Support and Guidance

From prayer and Scripture integration to personalized spiritual practices, our sessions invite you to be seen and heard as a whole person. We walk alongside you, providing clarity and care as you discern God’s voice in your life.

Issues Addressed in Christian Counseling

Relationship and Marriage Counseling

Faith-based guidance through conflict, disconnection, betrayal, communication challenges, and conflict resolution. We help couples discern God’s voice individually and collectively, fostering emotional safety, spiritual alignment, and deepened intimacy.

Anxiety and Depression

Healing through faith-informed cognitive and emotional support, honoring your lived experiences with compassion. We offer tools to regulate emotion, challenge unhelpful thought patterns, and find rest in God’s promises.

Grief and Loss

Find peace in pain and purpose in your healing. Whether you’re grieving a person, a dream, or a season, we walk with you to make meaning and reconnect with hope.

Addiction and Recovery

Breaking cycles with grace, truth, and accountability. We help you understand your patterns without shame, reframe your identity in Christ, and walk toward lasting transformation.

Spiritual Direction and Faith-Based Challenges

Navigating doubt, trauma, identity, and divine calling. We create space for the hard questions and support you in exploring your relationship with God, even when it feels uncertain or painful.

In all of these areas, we offer nonjudgmental support and compassionate guidance. We believe God doesn’t call you to judge yourself harshly, but to assess and understand the season you’re in spiritually. Through this process, you can gain clarity in your relationship with yourself and with Him.

What to Expect in a Christian Counseling Session

Sessions are client-centered and Spirit-led. You can expect:

• A respectful, collaborative relationship
• Integration of prayer, Scripture, and spiritual reflection when clients ask and when appropriate
• Evidence-based therapeutic techniques
• A space to wrestle with spiritual questions without fear of judgment

The Therapeutic Process in a Christian Context

We begin with understanding your story, your faith journey, and your goals. From there, we co-create a path forward using interventions grounded in grace, evidence-based support, and your spiritual foundation. Counseling is paced with your readiness and rooted in trust.

Integrating Scripture and Prayer

We invite spiritual tools, such as prayer, journaling, Scripture meditation, and discernment practices, into sessions when welcomed. This is your sacred space, and you guide the level of spiritual integration.

Confidentiality and Ethical Practices

Our counselors uphold the highest ethical and professional standards. Confidentiality is a cornerstone of care, ensuring a safe and secure space for transformation. However, all licensed professionals are mandated reporters. This means we are legally and ethically required to break confidentiality in specific situations, such as when there is a risk of harm to yourself or others, or if there is suspected child or elder abuse. In such cases, our primary responsibility is to ensure safety and protection while continuing to offer care and support.

Finding a Qualified Christian Counselor

Credentials and Qualifications to Look For

• Licensed Clinicians/Social Workers and Rising Clinicians under Supervision (LPC/LSW, LCPC/LCSW, LMFT, PsyD, etc.)
• Special training in Christian counseling or pastoral care
• Experience integrating faith and mental health
• Trauma-informed and culturally responsive

Questions to Ask a Potential Counselor

• How do you incorporate faith into sessions?
• Are you comfortable addressing spiritual doubt or religious trauma?
• How do you support someone’s relationship with God within the counseling process?
• What is your background in psychology, and how do you integrate that with a client’s spiritual journey?

Key Differences Between Christian Counseling vs. Traditional Counseling

The Role of Faith and Spirituality

Christian counseling brings God into the healing process. Christian counseling focuses on transformation through and with Christ. The therapist creates space for clinical and spiritual support. Spirituality also creates space for deeper connection with self, with others, with nature, and with the presence of God in all things. For many, it is a pathway to reconnecting with peace, purpose, and a greater sense of belonging in the world.

When to Choose Christian Counseling

• When you want your faith to be central to your healing
• When you’re wrestling with spiritual questions or religious pain
• When you seek alignment between therapy and biblical values