What We Do

“We meet not to problem-solve, or fix, but to observe life, discover God in that life, and be attentive to his promptings. Our focus is on God and his subterranean work in your inner life.”

— David Nixon Founder, Sustainable Faith

What is Spiritual Direction

Spiritual direction is a prayerful, conversational way of looking at one’s life, paying deep attention to the everyday ordinary places as the canvas for God’s presence. Life is full of ups and downs, good and bad, yet God is present in and to all of it. The spiritual director does not direct, so much as help; you notice along the way. It is a way of experiencing God along the way in your journey...of seeking and finding direction for that journey.

Spiritual direction is not problem-centered like counseling, and not issue-centered like coaching. While similar to these disciplines, spiritual direction looks explicitly at one's relationship with God, to cultivate and grow that relationship. Spiritual direction's purpose is to help you discern God's presence and purpose amid every part of your life, including the struggles and questions.

 

Bending Branches approach

I accompany others on their journey to help them notice what God is up to in their lives. I see myself as a guide journeying alongside fellow pilgrims on the way. Spiritual direction is a thin space God uses to bring his presence into everyday life. I strive for an atmosphere that is loving, welcoming, and as encouraging as possible. At Bending Branches, I promise confidentiality, authenticity, and to listen without judgment.

 

Who it’s for? A note to pastors

  • You do not have to be good at hours and hours of silence to benefit from spiritual direction. An open heart and willingness to look at your life with Christ is all that is required.

  • It can be helpful if you find yourself in a spiritual “desert”, lost along the way, deconstructing, transitioning vocations, entering the second half of life, etc. It can help you grow in discernment in the way you make life decisions. The Director doesn’t provide the answers but helps you create space where you can discern those answers for yourself.

  • Pastors have a difficult task. In my 20 + years of pastoral ministry, I have only seen loneliness, discouragement, and burnout grow in the lives of fellow pastors. I can tell you that I began a beautiful journey of wholeness the day I met my spiritual director. If you are tired, crispy, and struggling to find joy and hope spiritual direction might be a good relationship to begin. The spiritual director is the pastor to pastors.

  • Jesus engages people in deep conversation, usually by asking questions that help the other person discover some vital truth about God and themselves. This is at the heart of Spiritual Direction. Our practice of Spiritual Direction is Christocentric.

“A little over three years ago I had come to a difficult juncture that I just couldn’t seem to get over. As a pastor, I knew there were more tools that could help me become more like Jesus. Meeting Doug and experiencing spiritual direction literally changed my life. It’s my opinion that ALL pastors should be in spiritual direction. ”

— Josh, Worship Pastor, Michigan