What Is A Spiritual Advisor?

A spiritual advisor is a person deeply connected with their Catholic religion to the point where they are able to help you find and follow your spiritual direction. Your spiritual advisor works with you directly to help you guide your life in the spiritual direction you wish to follow. Rather than individual coaches to help you in different aspects of your life, like a lifestyle coach and a marriage coach, a spiritual advisor is a single entity that will help you in all aspects of your spiritual life to ensure you are on your desired path. A spiritual advisor may be paid or a friend who helps guide you in your spiritual direction. This person is not a psychic, but a selfless person who is dedicated to helping you become the best spiritual person you can be. There is no solid definition as to what a spiritual advisor is; he or she is the person you need them to be to find your spiritual direction. If you meet someone at your Catholic church or spiritual club and you feel like they are someone that will impact your life for the better, it may be a sign that this person is your ideal spiritual advisor. A spiritual advisor is a coach, friend, and mentor to help you achieve your desired level of spirituality and work with you to maintain your spiritual lifestyle.

Spiritual direction is what your spiritual advisor will use to guide you. The definition is assistance from one Catholic to another that helps a person find their deep connection with God and learn how to maintain and grow that connection. Your personal spiritual direction depends on you. Your spiritual direction is a sign of the relationship you wish to have with God, so your spiritual advisor will work with you to achieve the direction you desire. Spiritual direction isn't a direction as much as it is a path, a journey, and a relationship between you and your advisor and you and God.

The simple definition of a spiritual advisor is that he or she gives you spiritual direction and helps you to reach your full potential in your relationship with God. However, how the spiritual advisor actually does this is more complicated. The advisor does not see a simple sign and guide you in that direction. The relationship takes time to develop and mature; both the relationship with your advisor and your relationship with God. The advisor's job is to foster both of these relationships until you too have matured in your Catholic faith.

A spiritual advisor is not a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist, but mental health does play a role in how a spiritual advisor guides you in your spiritual direction. If the guidance you need is related to your personal anxieties and mental anguish, your spiritual guide will help you to treat these anxieties through your spirituality. Just by listening to your concerns and guiding you through your troubles, a spiritual advisor acts as a therapist in some ways, without the licensing and expenses that come with seeking help from a doctor. There is, of course, a place for doctors when spiritual treatment of your troubles does not heal you completely. However, spiritual guidance from an advisor is an alternative for people for whom spiritual direction is a sign that there is light ahead and so mental anguish becomes less intense, and sometimes completely cured, by advancing your relationship with God.

Your spiritual advisor can act as a relationship counselor, too. If you are with someone whose spiritual journey does not match up with yours, your advisor can help you come up with the best course of action for your relationship. He or she may also help you to determine if your relationship with a physical human is negatively affecting your ability to form a lasting relationship with God. If this is the case, your advisor can help you to make sure your relationship with God does not suffer at the hands of your romantic relationships.

Your spiritual advisor is there for you no matter what is going on in your life. He or she wants you to have the best spiritual life possible, so your advisor will try to relate to you and help you in all times of strife and happiness. Because your advisor is more mature in religion, he or she will know the right sign and direction to push you in when you face troubles or when you are perfectly content. This may come in the form of readings for you to use to stimulate your life or a helping hand and companionship when what you need is a friend to confide in. Your spiritual advisor is your lifeline when you stray from your spiritual direction and he or she will help guide you back and protect your relationship with God.

If what you're looking for is someone with a clear vision of the future, who can guide you on how to reach your full potential, then you are looking for a psychic rather than a spiritual advisor! The definition of a psychic is a person who has extrasensory perception. A psychic often uses their power to help other people by guiding them, but their roles are different than a spiritual advisor because an advisor has only their strong relationship to God to offer spiritual guidance, no psychic abilities. Psychics often charge money for their services while many spiritual advisors offer their services for free. This is because spiritual advisors are acting out of a deep connection to God and a desire to share this connection with other religious people. A psychic may have a religious connection, but while a deep religious connection is required of advisors, it is not a stipulation for psychics. If you are looking for someone with extrasensory abilities to guide you, then a psychic is what you need. If you are looking for someone who is based in your religion and seeks to guide you in spiritual direction towards a strong relationship with God, you are looking for a spiritual advisor.

The best place to look for a spiritual advisor is through your church or other religious groups. This is because you know that the people you meet at a religious meeting are already involved in your faith and so are more likely to be of the same spiritual mind as you are. It is important that you find a spiritual advisor who feels the way you to about God and religion because they will be guiding you in your relationship with God and you don't want someone who might lead you astray. Talking with members of your church about their spiritual advisors may help you to make a connection with your own advisor. If you have strayed from your religion or you practice outside of a traditional religious setting, it is still possible for you to seek guidance. Word of mouth is the best way to make connections, so talking about your desire for spiritual direction will help you find someone to speak with. Consider attending religious talks in your town, outside of regular church ceremonies, to meet with like-minded people about your journey. Someone may know someone - or there may be an advisor at the meeting - who can help you. It is important that you spend time getting to know potential advisors before seeking out this type of relationship. While it is often easy to tell quickly whether a person's feelings and opinions about religion and spirituality align with your own, it may take a few conversations before this becomes clear one way or the other. By taking the time to get to know your advisor before they enter into this role, you will find that you are able to form a deeper connection because you have confirmed you have similar lives and paths and so they can connect with you in a way others couldn't.

If you would like to enter into the position of helping other people in their spiritual direction, you should follow the same path as someone seeking out a spiritual advisor. Attending religious meetings and events to meet people is a good way to gain knowledge and experience while also making connections. In order to be a spiritual advisor, you must spend time maturing your own relationship with God and becoming familiar with all aspects of religion. This means extensive meditation and contemplation as well as reading of religious texts outside of church services. In order to guide someone else in spirituality, you must have reached a high level of spiritual maturity first. Once you have reached that level, begin by discussing the possibility with those seeking an advisor. After finding the perfect match, you can share your knowledge with your peer and guide them towards the spiritual lifestyle you have already achieved.

Whether you feel lost in your spirituality or you feel a strong desire to continue on your own spiritual journey, a spiritual advisor is for you. Having an advisor will benefit all aspects of your life by bringing your spiritual direction to fruition. You will find that you have someone to talk to who understands you and can help you find an answer in God and your religion beyond the answers that doctors and non-religions friends are able to give you. An advisor is more than just a teacher and a guide, he or she is a friend that wants you to live your best spiritual life and have a strong relationship with God. This means that your advisor wants you to succeed and so will always be rooting for you in life. Having an advisor can only mean a better life for you and a stronger relationship with religion, especially with God.