It’s an odd expression, isn’t it!  It may conjure up visions of a psychic, or some religious person telling other people what to do.  Thankfully, it’s not that! Spiritual direction is a discipline that comes from a very old, wide tradition of finding deep roots in God’s activity in our lives. It happens through listening and noticing together in focused conversations.

Here’s what I mean:

God is always working to communicate with all of us. God wants to love us, heal us, help us become who He made us to be – all through our lives.  God initiates it.  He uses all kinds of things to get our attention:  Scriptures, nature, relationships, ideas, emotions, words, all kinds of experiences of life. 

So coming from God’s side, our days are full of calling cards, invitations to find Him.

On our side, spiritual direction is “turning the direction of our attention” toward God’s invitations. It’s “noticing,” paying attention to what’s happening.  Our lives are full of all kinds of ideas, activities, impulses, thoughts, feelings.  What could God already be doing in your life, right now? to invite you, encourage you, heal you, deepen you for real life in the real world?

Spiritual direction is
turning the direction of our attention,
noticing what God is already doing
in your life right now.

Practically speaking, “spiritual direction” is a series of hour-long, confidential focused conversations between you and God. I’m here to listen with you and to help those conversations happen.

Spiritual direction conversations are like being invited by God to a calm, quiet place. You come as yourself, to yourself, to the kind of stillness where your heart can meet God. If you’ve ever needed a safe place to speak without being criticized for it, this is it. God has actually been here, and understands how hard it can be to find your way. The agenda is not to “fix you.” It’s to bring you and God together, so you can get acquainted with the One who knows you the best and loves you the most. It’s like you’re a branch, getting plugged into the life of the Vine.

In our reflective spiritual direction conversations you can notice and explore what God is doing to bring nourishment into your life. You can linger and savour the effects of being with God as your life grows in new ways.  One of my mentors says, “Spiritual direction isn’t therapy – but it is therapeutic!”

“Wait a minute – I’m not a religious person.” Doesn’t matter!  God’s always reaching out to build bridges, even to you.  How would you like to learn how to hear Him and respond to Him? What good could come into your relationships, your daily life, your future? as you love and work and live from a deeply-rooted place with God?

“Wait a minute – doesn’t the Bible tell us what God is doing?” Sure.  In spiritual direction we ask:  “Of all those things the Bible says about God and what He does – what is He doing in your life, right now?” 

Of all the things the Bible says
about God and what God does …
what is God doing in your life,
right now?

So, in spiritual direction my task is simply to provide an opportunity, to hold an open space, to listen with you to your life, to help you meet God and find God’s work in you.

Here’s a simple chart to compare different kinds of soul work:

If you’d like for me to share some ideas about how to believe or what to do, that’s good, too. But that’s a different kind of conversation:  call it spiritual consulting, spiritual education, mentoring.  We can do that, too.  Just ask!

Speaking of asking … I offer a free introductory conversation. And you can ask whatever questions. I’ll do my best.

What I’ve written here is pretty basic. Click here for an even better description of spiritual direction from Jeff Imbach, a founder of SoulStream.