Spiritual direction is prayerful companionship—a quiet, sacred space where your soul can breathe and your story is received with care.
It’s not a “fix me” appointment. It’s a place to slow down long enough to notice what’s already true: God is present, you are loved, and your life is not random. Over time, spiritual direction helps you become more attentive to the invitations of the Holy Spirit—especially in the places that feel confusing, tender, or stuck.
A simple picture
Think of spiritual direction like walking with someone who helps you pay attention.
Not attention as performance (“Am I doing it right?”), but attention as communion:
Where is God in this? What is God like here? What is happening in me? What might faithfulness look like in the next small step?
Spiritual companionship (what it is)
Despite its name, spiritual direction is not about someone telling you what to do. It’s about walking alongside you and helping you notice God’s movements in your life.
Emily P. Freeman says it well:
“Spiritual direction is a counter-cultural practice of co-listening.” — Emily P. Freeman
“Co-listening” means we listen together—to your lived experience, to Scripture and story, to your emotions and body, to longing and resistance, and to the gentle voice of the Spirit.
My posture as a director
I aim to be a non-anxious presence—someone who can hold your story without rushing to solve it. I’m listening for the story you’re telling… and the story underneath: desires, grief, fear, hope, and the narratives you’ve inherited about God and yourself.
One of the most important questions spiritual direction asks (quietly, over time) is this:
What is your functional picture of God?
Not what you’d say in a statement of faith—but what your nervous system believes at 2 a.m.
Because as A.W. Tozer wrote,
“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”
What we actually do in a session
Every session looks a little different, because your life is not a template. But most sessions include some combination of these:
Silence and prayer
We begin by arriving. We make room. We breathe. We pray simply—sometimes with your own words, sometimes with a fixed prayer that helps you settle into God’s presence.
Listening deeply
You share what’s been stirring: a moment, a season, a question, a tension, a grief, a desire. I listen for patterns, places of consolation or desolation, and the “threads” that keep showing up.
Gentle questions
Not interrogation—more like opening windows. Questions like:
- When did you feel most alive this week?
- Where did you feel constricted, numb, or reactive?
- What are you telling yourself about God in that place?
- If God is truly good, what might be possible here?
Discernment without pressure
Discernment isn’t a forced decision. It’s learning to recognize what aligns with love—and what doesn’t. We’re not trying to manufacture certainty. We’re practicing honesty, clarity, and consent.
Practices that fit your season
Sometimes the session includes a small practice, like:
- Breath prayer (especially for anxiety and overwhelm)
- Lectio divina / imaginative prayer (slow, relational Scripture)
- The Examen (reviewing your day with God)
- Embodied noticing (what your body is carrying, what it needs)
- Simple blessings and listening prayer
If a practice isn’t fruitful, we don’t shame you—we try a different doorway.
What spiritual direction is not
Spiritual direction is supportive, but it has a specific purpose: attending to God and the life of your soul. That means it has boundaries.
Not therapy
Therapy is often diagnosis-and-treatment oriented and can focus on mental health symptoms, trauma processing, relational systems, and clinical goals. Spiritual direction can complement therapy beautifully, but it’s not a substitute for it.
Not advice-giving
You’ll get very little “Here’s what you should do.” Instead, we listen for what is wise, loving, and Spirit-led for you. (If you’re used to being told what God wants, this can feel both unfamiliar and deeply freeing.)
Not performance-based
You don’t need a “good spiritual report” to bring. You don’t need to impress God, or me. You can show up messy, tired, skeptical, grieving, numb, angry—honestly.
Spiritual direction is not about being a “better Christian.”
It’s about becoming more deeply grounded in belovedness and more available to transformation over time.
Who spiritual direction is for
Spiritual direction is for people who want to live their real lives with God—not just think about God.
You might be in the right place if you’re:
- Burned out or spiritually tired
- Deconstructing, questioning, or reimagining faith
- Carrying church wounds
- Longing to experience God as genuinely good
- Navigating a transition, loss, or discernment season
- Feeling “stuck” and not sure why
- Hungry for a more embodied, less anxious spirituality
You don’t have to be certain. You don’t have to have perfect theology.
You just need enough willingness to be honest and to pay attention.
What you can expect over time
Spiritual direction is usually slow work—more like formation than fireworks.
Over time, many people notice:
- More clarity about what’s actually happening inside them
- Less shame and self-management
- A steadier sense of God’s nearness
- Greater freedom from the “angry God” narrative
- A more grounded capacity to discern next steps
- A deeper, kinder honesty with themselves and God
Or to borrow a line that’s become an anchor for me:
God’s kingdom is strong and unshakable—never in crisis.
And as that settles into your bones, your inner world begins to steady too.
A gentle next step
If you’re curious, you don’t need to be 100% sure. Curiosity is often the beginning of guidance.
You can come exactly as you are—and we’ll practice co-listening together.