Marjorie Thompson, in her book, Soul Feast, suggests that when selecting a spiritual director/guide, one should:
- Look for Christians with a mature/maturing faith
- Look for person who knows that he or she is not perfect
- Seek out a director/guide who is patient and is an attentive listener
- Look for someone who invites trust
- Look for directors/guides who place their trust in the grace of God.
Needless to say a spiritual director should also have a regular prayer/devotional life, respect confidentiality, and be open to expressions of spirituality other than their own. They should also be in spiritual direction themselves.
I particularly like what Henri Nouwen had to say about this topic:
“Spiritual direction does not mean that one spiritual person tells another, less spiritual person what to think, say, or do in order to become a more spiritual person. It is not the knower speaking to the ignorant. Spiritual direction means that two or more sinful, broken, struggling people come together to listen to the direction of the Spirit.”
