What is spiritual direction?

. Spiritual Direction is the practice of sharing your life with a spiritual companion/guide who helps you slow down and notice where God is present and at work in the ebbs and flows of everyday life. This sacred space gives you time to recognize, receive, and respond to God’s love, guidance and wisdom.

Or as author Alice Fryling so beautifully writes:

"In spiritual direction, we look at the truth of our present situation and experience. The question asked is not 'What should be happening in my life?' but 'What is happening in my life?' We look for God here, now. This is where God meets us. This is where spiritual direction occurs."

I can help you:

• recognize the different ways God might be communicating with you
• explore contemplative postures and practices that help you engage your whole person as you seek to connect more deeply with the Sacred
• process and explore questions and concerns you may have about your relationship with God
• awaken and cultivate the 'spirituality center' of your brain that can lead to greater resilience against anxiety and depression and help you be more creative and collaborative in your work and life
• understand and navigate times of dryness in your relationship with God
• slow down and respond to inner invitations for healing, growth, and maturing that arise in your journey with God

While the title Spiritual Director might lead you to think my role is to 'direct you' as in giving advice or instruction on what to think or believe, in reality, it is quite the opposite. Alyce Fryling describes it like this, "My role is first and foremost to listen. Intentional listening is active and engaged. It is more about asking questions than giving answers. The intent is to continually draw you back to the question 'Where is God in this?'"

It is my desire to foster a safe  environment where you feel free to  honestly explore wherever God's spirit is leading. Together we will listen for the voice of  love and goodness in your life.

To open our time, I often light a candle to remind us that the Holy Spirit is with us and is our ultimate guide. Then we may spend a short time in stillness and silence to quiet our minds and bodies. From there, you can talk about anything that is on your mind or heart, whether that topic feels directly spiritual or not. If you're not sure what to talk about, I will ask a question  to get the conversation going. As you share, I will listen deeply and occasionally ask questions or offer reflections on where I see God at work. The rest is determined by the prompts of the Holy Spirit.

There is a mystery to the unfolding of a session that refuses to be put into a formula. This is work done in real time within a real relationship between you and God with me as your companion. This mystery is one I respect and enjoy. I hope you will learn to trust the process and look forward to it as well. 

Counseling is often short term and crisis driven. It focuses on finding solutions to specific problems with mental health, addictions, compulsive behaviors, and relational conflict. In spiritual direction it is natural for stressors and hurts to surface, but the focus is less on solving those problems and more on understanding a person's experience with God. Spiritual direction is an ongoing process that can span over a period of years, or throughout different seasons in a person's life.

Coaching helps people to set and realize their goals to advance their life or work. In spiritual direction, the goal is to seek God's 'voice' and guidance and deepen your relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

Everything we talk about in a session is confidential with two exceptions:

• I am a mandatory reporter. This means I have a legal duty to report abusive situations and immediate danger to self and others.
• I meet regularly with a peer supervision group. If I feel the need for advice regarding our direction time, I may ask for input for your benefit and to help me grow as a spiritual director. This group is bound by confidentiality as well.