I am a Board Certified Coach (BCC) and a Certified Professional Coach (CPC). I am also a Licensed Professional Counselor in Texas and Louisiana. Whereas mental health counseling usually deals with a client's past and often is accompanied with a formal diagnosis, life coaching/relationship coaching deals with a specific, current issue that a person is concerned about. Coaching is more client driven. The client and the "life" coach work together to discover the clients: Goals, Opportunities, Obstacles, and what the client is going to Do. (This G.O.O.D. paradigm is the brain-child of Dr. Jeffery Auerbach (the owner and director of College of Executive Coaching).
I am a person of faith and believe that when this aspect is important to a client, we can integrate their spiritual beliefs into their coaching/counseling journey. It can be a powerful source of positive perspective and energy. All of this depends, of course, on each individual client and their personal belief system.
The main thrust of coaching is to help a client go from where they are at present, to where they want to be in the future.