The Way We Care for Our Soul

Spiritual Direction is a form of soul care, a time where the Spiritual Director meets with the directee in a trusted, non-judgemental space, to explore together the directee’s relationship with God and how God is working in their life. A Spiritual Director is not a counselor or an advisor, but a facilitator to guide the directee to listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit. Through spiritual practices like contemplative prayers, Lectio Divina, Gospel Contemplation and more to discern the presence of God in our daily lives.

“ The assumption of spirituality is that always God is doing something before I know it. So the task is not to get God to do something I think needs to be done, but to become aware of what God is doing so that I can respond to it and participate and take delight to it.”

Eugene Peterson

Why do we need Spiritual Direction

God is always active in our lives and He is always drawing us closer to Him by His active grace. God also created human beings to be wholistic beings, with a balance of the body, mind and soul. Often times, Christians have a lot of knowledge about God, but may not actually have a personal relationship with God or have a very hard time to feel the presence of God in their heart and soul. The process of Spiritual Direction is to help the directee to move their understanding of God from the head into the heart, discern how God is working in our lives and surrender to God.

The Goal of Spiritual Direction

Grow in intimacy with God - To increase awareness of God’s presence in our daily lives and mature in spiritual growth.
Discernment of God’s voice - By applying the wisdom and spiritual practices accumulated in the Christian communities through the centuries, one learns to discern the voice of God, be transformed in their being and apply these new insights into their daily lives.
Return to our true self- Being true to where our spiritual journey is at, be renewed and reconcile with God. Everyone’s walk with God is unique and it can be difficult through all of life’s suffering, pain, despairs, anxieties, and doubts. Spiritual Direction is a safe, non-judgemental space to explore the different feelings and emotions in one’s relationship with faith and God, and ultimately, be renewed and reconciled with Him.

“The best spiritual directors are not people who give spiritual advice but those who, by virtue of their training and personality, are well equipped to walk with others as companions on the journey toward spiritual maturity, health and wholeness. Joseph Wong is such a spiritual director and is someone to whom I refer those seeking spiritual accompaniment with deep confidence. His accompaniment of others on the journey of spiritual unfolding is psychologically grounded, shaped to the uniqueness of each person he works with, and guided by wisdom, empathy, and the authenticity and richness of his own journey and personhood.”
David G. Benner, Ph.D.
Founding Director, Mentor, Teacher
Cascadia Living Wisdom