Spiritual direction must be one of the best kept secrets around. A lot of people still think it’s only for clergy or other religious professionals who are stressed out or in crisis.
Far from it.
First of all, I wish more clergy (stressed out or not) were in spiritual direction. They and their faith communities would be a lot healthier. But more importantly, I wish spiritual direction could be seen for the positive, life-affirming practice that it is—and that all spiritual seekers regardless of profession, background or beliefs—knew about spiritual direction and had it available to them.
My goal in life is to demystify this practice called Spiritual Direction. I want to bring it out of the dusty offices of monasteries, retreat centers and a few churches and into the public square.
Simply put, spiritual direction is a way of putting your energy toward listening to God, every day.
This blog, Spiritual Direction 101, is designed to help you do that in the context of a relationship with a guide who is trained to help you focus attention on God. I’ll outline what you can expect when you seek a director and enter spiritual direction. Later on, I’ll also show you how to search for a training program if you are interested in becoming spiritual director, and will include a lot of what you need to know to become a spiritual director.
It’s a peek behind the veil of a practice that many people find to be a helpful way to grow and deepen spiritually. So if you don’t know what spiritual direction is right now, that’s OK. You’re in good company and we’re going to rectify that. Spiritual Direction 101 is in session.
Next time, I’ll tell you more about what spiritual direction is and some definitions you may hear for it.
For more about spiritual direction as I practice it, check out my website. If you have questions or comments about the content of Spiritual Direction 101, let me hear from you in the reply section below.