Spiritual Direction
Many people in life transitions find themselves reaching for more…
Many people in life transitions find themselves reaching for more: more grounding and support, more solitude, more wisdom, more community. Often, they seek a greater felt sense that a Creative, Sustaining Energy larger than themselves is holding and healing them as they seek meaning, letting go of what once was and turning toward what is coming into being.
Perhaps they are members of a religious community who seek a more tangible and personal sense of God that fits their current life circumstances and beliefs. Or maybe they define themselves spiritual, though not religious, and want to engage more deeply with what Divine Mystery offers them now.
I offer short-term spiritual direction around particular life events and also long-term, monthly sessions for those desiring a felt sense of the Holy accompanying them through life.
What to Bring to Sessions
To spiritual direction sessions we simply bring ourselves in the present moment: our love and longing, our grief and loss, our celebration of beauty and grace – or perhaps even our anger toward a God who doesn’t seem to respond to our pain as we might like or toward a church that we believe has let us down.
In short, we bring whatever we notice about our lives now: our lived experience, our dreams and emotions, our sensations and intuitions, our impending decisions, our desire to be of service, our need for healing.
Spiritual Direction and Healing
Though the goal of spiritual direction is not specifically to heal, healing often arises in the process. Indeed, spiritual direction fits easily within the US National Institutes of Health’s definition of Complementary and Alternative Medicine. Further, my vocational training in both Inner Relationship Focusing and Intuition Medicine contributes to the healing possibilities of our work together for those who so desire. This complimentary medicine practice is intended to enhance but not to replace traditional medical treatment.
The Fruits of Spiritual Direction
In spiritual direction we find support through all aspects of transition – the letting go, the in-between moment, and the embrace of what is coming into being. We develop a felt sense of Divine Mystery beckoning us in every aspect of life, no matter how joyous or how painful, and we discern ways of responding generously and freely.
We refine our sense of grounded connection to ourselves in the present moment, which allows us to connect more easily to others, to the world, and to the Divine Mystery that imbues all.
We cultivate dwelling in our larger truth, so as not to get tossed around with every emotional challenge we face. We make peace with what is, rather than what we wish were true. We sense possibility unfolding before us.
In spiritual direction, we change. As we do, our relationships change as well – and, ultimately, in navigating these changes we participate with God in transforming not only ourselves but the world.