What is Spiritual Direction?

The purpose in a man's heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out- Book of Proverbs 20:5

Definition

Spiritual direction can be defined as “help given by one Christian to another which enables that person to pay attention to God’s personal communication to him or her, to respond to this personally communicating God, to grow in intimacy with this God, and to live out the consequences of the relationship.” (From The Practice of Spiritual Direction by William Barry and William Connolly, 1982.)

Desire

The desire behind those who seek spiritual direction is to give caring attention to their relationship with God, accompanied by the prayerful presence of someone who helps them listen well to God.

What does it involve?

This practice is considered a spiritual discipline in Christian tradition. It includes some of the following features:

Entering in an intentional and regular relationship that fosters union with God.
Opening your prayer life and experience of God to another for the sake of shared listening.
Listening to your life and the desires God has placed in your heart.
Letting the Spirit set the direction of the conversation.
Living by what God is saying to you.
Allowing another set of eyes and ears to help you interpret your experiences and the voice of God.

What will it produce?

The God-given fruit we hope to bear of the practice of spiritual direction includes:

Walking with a companion who can help you hold your soul before God.
Noticing your experiences of God.
Attending to and recognizing God’s voice in your life.
Mending the split between your head and your heart.
Fostering deeper union with God.
Growing in prayer.
Learning to better discern the Holy Spirit’s movements in decisions you make.
Finding Jesus in the wounds as well as the joys of life.
Receiving deeper inner-healing.

(Adapted from Spiritual Disciplines Handbook - Practices That Transform Us from Adele Ahlberg Calhoun, 2009.)

"Spiritual direction takes place when two people agree to give their full attention to what God is doing in one (or both) of their lives and seek to respond in faith ... whether planned or unplanned, three convictions underpin these meetings: (1) God is always doing something: an active grace is shaping this life into a mature salvation; (2) responding to God is not sheer guesswork: the Christian community has acquired wisdom through the centuries that provides guidance; and (3) each soul is unique: no wisdom can simply be applied without discerning the particulars of this life, this situation." - Eugene Peterson

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