Presence of God in Spiritual Direction

The primary ways in which I understand God to be present in spiritual direction are (1) Presence and (2) Guide. First, I understand God to be present both within and beyond every aspect of the spiritual direction relationship – just as I understand God to be within and beyond every part of Creation. This means that God is part of what forms and maintains a spiritual direction relationship – as well as the seen (and unseen) effects of that relationship.

Second, one of most important ways in which God is present (especially from the perspective of the spiritual director) is as a Guide. In the spiritual direction relationship, God is the true director – thanks be to God! I hope to become increasingly sensitive to the ways that God is moving in the spiritual direction relationship – specifically in the ways God speaks through the mind, feelings, and body.

Cognitively, many different thoughts and images occur to me during a spiritual direction session. It has been helpful (as was suggested in class) to bracket a concept the first, and even second, time it occurs – only saying it aloud to your directee if the thought or image arises a third time. This allows time to discern if an idea is from God or merely a projection of one’s desire to be wise or helpful.

Emotionally and somatically, the situation is subtler. But there are times in direction when I experience a deep, empathetic emotion, which can be a signal from God to invite the directee to explore the affective dimension of her experience further. Similarly, when a directee says a particular word or phrase, I sometimes feel a brief blunt force (almost like a gust of wind) against my chest or in my gut. My internal response is usually something like, “Woah. There’s something there.” But aloud I would only repeat the word or phrase as a way of inviting the directee to delve deeper into that part of her experience.