Jeffrey S. Gaines, former director of Spiritual Directors International offers this definition:

"Spiritual direction [also referred to as spiritual friendship or spiritual companionship] can mean different things to different people, but in my understanding it is the art of Christian listening carried out in the context of a one-to-one trusting relationship. It is when one Christian is trained to be a competent guide who then "companions" another person, listening to that person's life story with an ear for the movement of the Holy, of the Divine."

A spiritual director can encourage us to listen deeply and pay attention to the movement of God's spirit in and through our lives. That person can be one of our companions on the journey of discernment of call.

To learn more about spiritual direction and how to find a spiritual director, check out the following links:

www.sdiworld.org (Spiritual Directors International)
www.shalem.org (Shalem Institute)