Meet Our Lay Counselors
Jim Heckman
Jim serves as a Ruling Elder at Good Hope Presbyterian Church, where he partners with fellow Elders in providing spiritual governance and oversight of the congregation. In this capacity, he helps guide the church’s mission, nurture its members’ faith, and uphold the biblical and confessional standards of the Presbyterian Church in America.
As the leader of the church’s Outreach and Integration Team, Jim directs efforts to welcome newcomers, strengthen member involvement, and engage the broader community. The team’s purpose is twofold: to assist individuals in becoming fully integrated into the life and ministry of the church, and to communicate the church’s presence and activities to those outside its walls. Jim’s heart for evangelism is reflected not only in this leadership role but also in his experience teaching classes on sharing the gospel and building relationships rooted in Christ’s love.
Jim and his wife, Kathy, have been blessed with four children, whom they raised to know and follow the Lord. During their children’s formative years, Jim supported Kathy in homeschooling, fostering an environment that emphasized faith, learning, and family unity. He also invested in the lives of young people beyond his family—coaching youth soccer teams, teaching Sunday school classes, and helping lead a boys’ battalion program that encouraged spiritual growth and leadership among boys and young men.
Jim’s ministry involvement has extended beyond Good Hope Presbyterian Church. He was part of the founding team that established a Celebrate Recovery ministry at a local PCA congregation—a Christ-centered program designed to help individuals overcome hurts, habits, and hang-ups through the healing power of the gospel. Jim served as a small group leader in that ministry for ten years, walking alongside participants as they pursued transformation and renewal in Christ.
In 1984, Jim earned a Master of Science degree in Occupational Therapy from the Medical College of Virginia at Virginia Commonwealth University. Over the course of a 37-year career, he worked in hospital-based mental health settings, providing both individual and group therapy. His work focused on helping patients regain purpose, stability, and hope, demonstrating his lifelong commitment to the well-being of others.
In recent years, Jim has advanced his knowledge in biblical counseling by attending the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation’s (CCEF) annual conferences, and reading many of their publications including books and journal articles.
Throughout his personal, professional, and spiritual life, Jim has consistently exemplified a servant’s heart. His dedication to Christ, his family, his church, and his community reflects a deep and enduring faith.
Christina Severinghaus
Christina Severinghaus has been an active participant on Christian conciliation teams since 2010 and is a Certified Christian Conciliator. Her experience includes conflict coaching and mediating for churches, marriages, neighbors, business partners, and community members. Additionally, she speaks and educates churches, parachurch organizations, and educators in the art of peacemaking and is passionate about spreading the good news that peace in relationships is possible.
Currently residing in Maryland, she maintains an active biblical counseling and peacemaking practice, meeting clients in person and via Zoom.
She brings an awareness of multicultural and cross-cultural effects on relationships as she was born in Sweden and has lived overseas. She and Bob have been married for over 25 years and have lived in numerous locations while he served in the U.S. Navy. Christina has also spoken nationally about classical education pedagogy and was the primary educator of their two sons.
Christina holds a Bachelor of Science in Marketing and Spanish from Albright College, a Master of Business Administration in Finance from St. Joseph’s University, and a Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics from the University of Pennsylvania.
She became a Certified Christian Conciliator in 2015 and has since pursued advanced training in trauma responses, marriage, and church conflicts. She is a certified Biblical Counselor, 2020, through the Institute of Biblical Counseling and Discipleship (IBCD), completed Mental Health Coaching certificate through American Association of Christian Counselors (AACC) and has completed intensive coursework in the field of Domestic Violence.
Certifications and Trainings
- ACBC Annual Conference 2022
- Advanced Coaching and Mediation
- Biblical Counselor Certificate
- Certified Christian Conciliator™
- Christian Reconciler™ Coach
- Christian Reconciler™ Foundational
- Christian Reconciler™ Specialized
- Coaching People Through Conflict
- Domestic Violence Advocate One Year Training Program
- Dynamics of Conflict
- Group Reconciliation Assistance – Team Leader
- Group Reconciliation Assistance – Team Member
- Mediating People Through Conflict
- Men of Peace Self-Paced Course
- PeaceWorks Conference Live 2021
- Peacemaking Practices I
- Peacemaking Practices II
- Peacemaking Principles
- Reconciling Husbands and Wives
- Redeeming Church Conflict
- Redeeming Family Conflict
- Teaching Conflict and Reconciliation
- The Heart of Domestic Abuse: Step by Step Abuser Intervention for Biblical Counselors
- Transformative Care
- Transformative Skills
- Trauma Conference – The Body Keeps the Score
- Foundations of Mental Health Coaching
- Mental Health Coaching Skills
- Mental Health and Behavioral Health Disorders
- Foundations and Applications of Trauma Care
Bob Severinghaus
“During the pandemic, I was approached by a friend in my church who wanted support for going through a divorce. Through that 2 year experience, I realized the seemingly good relationships we see briefly in church can hide core issues that destroy families. As a result of that time of informal counseling, I researched “the basics” of biblical counseling and then completed IBCD training. Since that time, I’ve counseled couples with my wife, Christina, been a more attentive small group leader and deacon/lead deacon in my local church. Sharing “the basics” of spiritual growth through personal bible study, prayer and small groups are my current means of counseling others. In 2026, the theme of grieving has been an important part in my spiritual life and counseling.”
Certification: IBCD Care and Discipleship Course, Level 3
Continuing education: 2022 IBCD Summer Institute conference, 2026 AACC Grief and Loss Counseling 2.0.
Life experience: My wife, Christina, and I have been married 27 years and raised two sons. I have had a 20-year military career as a pilot and program manager. I have advanced education as an engineer, and have been a university lecturer full time for 5 years. We have lived throughout the United States and travel frequently. Currently, my work is as a systems engineer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
Kathy Heckman
Kathy is a dedicated member of Good Hope PCA Church in Fulton, Maryland, where she has held several leadership positions. For the past 13 years, she has successfully led a Women’s Precept Bible Study, fostering spiritual growth and community among participants.
Kathy began her journey as a follower of Christ in 1992, after which she started volunteering at a Crisis Pregnancy Center in 1999, as a crisis hotline counselor. Her commitment deepened as she transitioned to the role of pregnancy care counselor, providing one-on-one support to women seeking assistance at the center.
In 2007 and 2009, Kathy, along with a team, traveled to Ukraine with Luci Freed, the author of A Season to Heal. During these trips, they hosted week-long post-abortion seminars followed by individual counseling sessions conducted through interpreters.
Currently, Kathy volunteers at Laurel Pregnancy Center, where she has been providing after-abortion care since 2017. She enhances her skills through quarterly training sessions at the center.
Additionally, Kathy trained as a small group leader in the PCA church ministry “Celebrate Recovery,” a 12-step program, where she served for ten years, guiding participants through their recovery journeys.
Kathy is committed to her personal development in the field of counseling, having completed Biblical Counseling courses through the Christian Counseling & Educational Foundation (CCEF). She actively participates in their annual conferences and regularly engages with their quarterly journals to stay informed on the latest in Biblical counseling practices.
Kathy and her husband, Jim, married in 1978 and are proud parents of four grown children and nine grandchildren.