Are you in the midst of decision-making and wish for someone to prayerfully listen as you seek to discern your way? Do you ever long for someone who will compassionately hear and carefully hold the stories that you hesitate to tell others, bringing them before God? Are you longing to know and grow in God more deeply, and to more often recognize God's Presence in the midst of your day-to-day life, no matter the circumstances? I offer the ministry of contemplative spiritual direction to accompany you on your journey, contemplative in the sense that, while knowing that words are important so, too, is the silence that allows for space and time to hearken to the Spirit's voice.
For those who are feeling invited towards the Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius of Loyola, I am also trained as one who accompanies others on that journey.
A bit about me...My husband and I share our rural life with 3 goats, 6 chickens, a seemingly infinite number of native bees, butterflies and birds, frogs, salamanders and wild mammals who come to our abundant gardens and small pond, evidence of my calling and heart's desire for restoration and nurture of the land, as well as people. While steeped in contemplative Ignatian spirituality, the prayers of the ancient Celtic Christians that recognized and experienced God in the mundane and uncertainties of everyday life, in the wildness of the natural world, and in the close Presence of Jesus, have become my soul's native language.
My church background has been varied. God called me into faith as a high schooler and, in fits and starts, that faith has grown through the years, including a 3 year assignment with Mennonite Central Committee in Botswana, raising my three home-educated children in the Brethren in Christ (an evangelical Anabaptist denomination), serving at the altar in a small Episcopal church in the Washington DC area, and more recently, moving back to rural south-central Pennsylvania.
I am a contemplative, a naturalist and a gardener, making space for God's creatures to thrive and for people to find God's Presence in the peace and quiet that surrounds our home.
What is Spiritual Direction?
Simply put, Spiritual Direction is a time set apart with a spiritual director for the purpose of listening for and responding to the Presence of God in one's life and self.
A Christian spiritual director is a trained listener who accompanies you as you share about your spiritual journey, helping you to notice God's Presence and activity along the way, as well as your personal reactions and responses. Hospitable, confidential and grounded in Biblical truth, spiritual direction is a ministry that helps you to grow in your awareness of God, in prayer and in living into your calling as a follower of Christ.
Whether you seek a spiritual director during a specific season of your life or engage with one as part of your regular spiritual practices, spiritual direction can be helpful in various ways and can connect you in relationship with :
- Someone with a perspective outside your normal circles
- Someone who reminds you of the basics - God's love, care and constancy through all of life's circumstances
- Someone to stay awake with you on the road when you are spiritually weary
- Someone who keeps the faith when yours feels weak
- Someone who lifts you before God when you struggle with issues that are not solved quickly or easily
- Someone to celebrate God's work of transformation with you and in you
- Someone who values and loves you and enjoys giving you that gift as an extension of God's care.
What To Expect
- I meet with people via Zoom, Skype, and over the phone and in-person at my south-central Pennsylvania home.
- Sessions usually lasts about an hour and generally take place about once a month.
- My requested fee is between $35 and $60, as one is able.
- I offer a no-charge, initial, exploratory meeting for the purpose of getting to know one another and discerning whether the fit between us seems right to both of us. Because I believe that it is God who calls directors and directees together, there is no pressure to continue to meet after that initial session or at any time afterward.
- Every meeting is confidential and I guide the dialog through attentive listening and thoughtful questions.
Comparisons With Other Care Ministries
Spiritual direction is not meant to replace other forms of helping ministries such as Biblical, pastoral or psychological counseling. It differs from counseling ministries primarily in its focus: the intention in spiritual direction is not to help solve a problem, but rather to look for God's activity within problems and within the rest of a person's life experience. This perspective invites you into a deeper relationship with God in the midst of whatever you are experiencing. Spiritual direction is designed to compliment rather than compete with these other vital ministries.
Setting Up A Direction Appointment
I can be contacted through my email address (thistlebrook@gmail.com) and I will respond to answer questions and schedule a mutually agreeable time for an initial time together.
In Closing
My spiritual direction training has been through Oasis Ministries for Spiritual Development and Evangelical Seminary. I am a member of several spiritual direction umbrella organizations including:
Coracle https://inthecoracle.org/
Evangelical Spiritual Directors Association https://www.graftedlife.org/
Oasis Ministries for Spiritual Development https://www.oasismin.org/
Spiritual Directors International https://www.sdicompanions.org/
I have experienced enough grief and struggle in my life to know that none of us gets to heaven unscathed and know the value of spiritual direction and having someone walking with God alongside us. Whether you come for particular, immediate needs or are looking for a long-term spiritual direction relationship, you are welcome. May God guide you on your journey.
(Portions of the above information have been taken from https://www.graftedlife.org/spiritual-direction/about-spiritual-direction)
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