"How lovely is your dwelling place, Lord Almighty! My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord...Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young - a place near your altar, Lord Almighty, my King and my God. Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you." - Psalm 84:1-4
My name is Carrie Everson, and I am a Spiritual Director with Dwell in God, a non-profit that I started this past July. I have worked for a couple of different non-profit ministries over the years, but I never dreamed I would start my own. It all started when I began training to become a Spiritual Director in 2019. As soon as the training program began, our instructors asked us to start meeting with people to practice Spiritual Direction. I was so nervous and unsure, but from my first awkward, yet beautiful session, I was hooked! I was amazed at how much I loved sitting across from another person and witnessing the Lord's work in their life. I saw transformation happening before my eyes and I felt so much joy!
I continued meeting with young adults from my church (where I was serving as Director of Young Adult Ministries), and this soon became my favorite part of my ministry, even though it technically was not part of my job description. I wanted to do more of it, and, in 2023, through conversations with my supervisor and others, I felt the Lord leading me to step down from my position with young adults and to make myself available to all ages and stages for the ministry of Spiritual Direction!
So here I am, trusting the Lord’s leading and waiting and watching for what He will do. This has been a leap of faith, as I only had seven “directees” (as we call them in the business) in July, and my goal is to have at least thirty. But I am carrying on day by day, trusting God that He will provide the people He is calling me to walk alongside in their journey with Him.
If you have never heard of Spiritual Direction, it is a monthly hour-long meeting between me and one other person. In each session, I am prayerfully listening to the other person, while also listening to the Holy Spirit, looking for signs and glimpses of God’s activity and presence in their life. In this way it is a conversation between three – me, the directee, and God. Spiritual Direction is a sacred space, set aside to come away from the busyness of daily life, and to slow down to meet with God. In stillness and quiet, and in focused attention, we can hear God in ways that we cannot when we are running around at a frenzied pace, surrounded by noise and distractions. This is my vocation, my calling, in this season, and perhaps for the rest of my life! I love it and feel privileged to be able to do this amazing work. If you want to know more, please check out my website: http://dwellingod.org.
I plan to post here regularly, to share my musings on faith, Spiritual Formation, and other related topics. Thank you for reading this! Feel free to leave a comment if you would like! May the Peace of Christ be with you today, and always. Amen.
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