To better introduce the concept of Spiritual Direction I offer an adapted great summation by noted author and founder of Renovaré, an infrachurch movement committed to the renewal of the Church, Richard Foster...

"While the phrase ​“spiritual direction” may sound a bit lofty, it is simply a relationship through which one person assists another in attending to the presence and call of God in all of life. Though not always called by this name, spiritual direction has been a vital ministry in many streams of the Church for hundreds of years. Spiritual direction is for anyone yearning for God. Sometimes this desire appears as a sense of longing for something greater or a sense of discontent with the status quo. For others this pining is more focused, rising from a clear understanding that a sense of God’s presence is missing from particular parts of life. The basis for spiritual direction is that God — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit — is actively drawing us into the Eternal Presence. God is the one, true ​“director,” working constantly, actively, powerfully in the very midst of our ordinary, everyday routines and life circumstances."

​Some Definitions for Spiritual Direction:

1. Spiritual direction is help given by one believer to another that enables the latter to pay attention to God’s personal communication to him or her, to respond, to grow in intimacy with God, and to live out the consequences of the relationship

2. Spiritual direction is an interpersonal relationship in which we learn how to grow, live, and love in the spiritual life through a process in which one person helps another person understand what God is doing and saying. 

3. Spiritual direction is a time-honored term for a conversation, in which one person consults another about what it means to live with God in mind...it is focused not on problem-solving or intervention but on relationship with God, questions about suffering, the true self, and vocation.

4. Spiritual direction is, in reality, nothing more than a way of leading us to pay attention to the real Director—the Holy Spirit hidden in the depths of our soul.

5. Spiritual direction is the practice of being, one with another, in such a way as to honor, investigate, and tend a relationship with the Divine.

​Often times, major life transitions, such as a death, a move, a job change, an empty nest, going off to college, a new baby, a chronic illness, retirement, and/or relational challenges, can be an impetus to seek additional spiritual clarity for next steps in life. Sometimes a faith crisis, or spiritual restlessness, or spiritual lethargy, or a sense of being stuck can stir us into seeking new practices to assist us in moving forward with God.

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Three years of practical training by the Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids, MI. combined with five years of experience in providing spiritual direction has equipped me to help others find spiritual clarity in their faith walk and cultivate a deeper connection to God's Spirit.

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