Get in touch with what you want most and then get there with Catholic Spiritual Direction and Discernment Coaching

 

Background image from Camino de Santiago pilgrimage 2019

 

 

 

 

Hi. I’m Luke, a certified life coach, spiritual director, and retreat director. My approach to spiritual direction and retreats focuses on noticing and being open to the presence of God, and is grounded in the spirituality of Saint Ignatius of Loyola. I meet my clients wherever they are in their life and faith journeys. Yet I do so from a Catholic view of reality that sees all people, along with the entire world, as God’s creation and, therefore, as good.

Most of my clients are either Catholic or mainline Protestant. Yet, if you are not among that group, please don’t feel left out. I’m privileged to work with people from a variety of faiths.

As a discernment coach, I specializes in helping people make God-centered decisions and flourish through the major transitions in their lives and careers.

I have used God-centered decision making (spiritual discernment) to make the major decisions in my own life. For instance, I discerned a call to enter the Jesuits and, eight years later, I used it again to identify my deepest, most authentic desires, which led me to leave religious life. A few years later I tapped into discernment again in making my decision to marry into a ready-made family of three children, who were preteens at the time. I thank God every day that I did.

Together with my wife, I enjoy sunrise walks along the Clark Fork River, just a stone’s throw from our condo in Missoula, Montana.

For 15 years I was a mission executive in the National Office of the largest Catholic health system in the country.

I hold a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and a master’s in theology from Gonzaga University.

Three times my wife and I have walked the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, a 560-mile pilgrimage route across northern Spain. Insights gained from our first trek were the impetus for my published book about the Camino.

Now imagine a middle-aged man in a blue 1948 Chevrolet pickup, his wife nestled beside him, listening to oldies while waiting for a romantic comedy to begin at a drive-in theater. The guy is wearing a gray sweatshirt and jeans. There are a couple of spirituality and biographical books in the glovebox, beneath several travel brochures. That man is me. (However, the classic pickup is just a figment of my imagination… at least for now).

I’m eager to learn about you and how I can help you. Please click here to schedule your FREE consultation call. I look forward to hearing from you soon. 

Spiritual Direction

Spiritual direction is meeting with a trained and experienced director to reflect on how God is present and active in your life right now, and how God is calling you into deeper relationship. The content of the direction session is simply your life: whatever aspect, story, or experience you wish to bring to prayer and reflection.

As your spiritual director, I will listen and help you to notice the relationship you have with God. Depending on your needs, I will help you with discernment, methods of prayer, spiritual practices and, at times, I might suggest scripture and other spiritual reading to enlighten your path. I will be a compassionate and respectful companion through the joys and sorrows of your spiritual journey.

Please click here to schedule your FREE  consultation call.

 

 

Discernment Coaching

Whether you are facing an important decision, or you are simply asking yourself, “What do I really want to do with the rest of my life?”, I offer discernment coaching that will get you to where you really want to be.

In the process of discernment, you partner with the Holy Spirit and with me, your coach, in making important decisions about such things as marriage, family, higher education, relocation, religious vocation, second career, retirement, etc.

As a result of discernment coaching:

  • You will determine what you want most, recognize what’s holding you back, and then move ahead with momentum, clarity and confidence.
  • You will have a greater sense of purpose and direction in your life.
  • You will avoid many of the pitfalls and uncertainties associated with major decision making.
  • You will be prepared to implement your decision with a stress-free and positive frame of mind.
  • You will improve your ability to make significant decisions in the future.
  • You will sleep again at night!

I will guide you through the five steps of the decision-making process at your own pace. When you’re ready, you’ll send me your responses to each of the five modules through your secure and confidential Private Client Portal. Then, at the end of each of the five modules, we will schedule a coaching call in which you’ll receive personal, best practice discernment coaching.

Please click here to schedule your FREE  consultation call.

Schedule Your Complimentary Consultation

In this FREE, 20-minute exploratory call you’ll learn how spiritual direction or discernment coaching can help you achieve your goals faster and with greater confidence. Before our call, you’ll receive thought-provoking questions that serve as the basis for our conversation. Many find that this alone helps them make significant progress.

Take Your FREE Spiritual Self-Assessment

How do I know if I’m spiritually healthy? How can I identify areas of spiritual health and wellness?

In response to these kinds of questions, I’ve developed this FREE spiritual self-assessment.  If it sounds like something you might be interested in, take a look!

What Clients are Saying

“Being an entrepreneur, I often confront uncertainty. What path should I take?  What amount of effort and resources should I expend? I needed a personal coach and decision making methodology to guide me through some tough decisions. I chose Luke, not only because of his experience in professional coaching, but also because of his grounding in Ignatian discernment and spirituality which offers over 450 years of history in leading people to make informed decisions based on their most authentic desires. Luke’s processes and guidance helped me to focus my efforts and gave me great confidence in the choices I made.”

Tom McGuigan, Chicago, Illinois

“I needed someone to be objectively invested in my personal and professional development, who understood my values and would hold me accountable to them during a time of transition.  Even though I was working diligently on achieving my goals, I didn’t have the confidence to attain them on my own.  Then a friend suggested that I contact Luke. Immediately I sensed Luke’s integrity and spirituality. I knew he could be trusted. When I read his biography, I saw that he also has the professional credentials that are important. Luke truly cares. He helped me to attain my goals and launch a new career that is providing a quality of life I had only dreamed of.”

Deborah Keefe, MSW Educator/Speaker/Consultant – Music as a Therapeutic Intervention in Healthcare

“I was trying to discern what I would like to be doing post-retirement, and had somehow managed to turn my retirement into a career crisis. Did I want to directly leverage my corporate career, or try something completely different? How to choose from several possible paths? Weighty stuff, this, and too important to go it alone. I wanted someone to bounce ideas off, and to challenge my thinking. 

I really enjoyed the quick rapport I had with Luke. His approachable, empathic personality drew me out, and his questions were both supportive and challenging. I also found that preparing for our calls helped me organize my thinking in ways not possible when I had been trying to do this on my own. As a result of decision coaching I have embarked on a new career, one that affords the opportunity to counsel people one-on-one, which is enormously satisfying at this stage in my life”

Garrett Adie, Independent Financial Advisor, New Hampshire

“It was as the Director of Talent Development Programs for one of the largest Catholic health systems that I came to know and appreciate Luke Larson’s giftedness as a coach. Luke coached dozens of our high potential CEOs, vice presidents and directors across the system, always within the framework of our mission and values. Without exception, they lauded Luke’s remarkable ability to get them to see things from other perspectives. Whether you are seeking coaching or spiritual direction, I highly recommend Luke Larson.”

Carolyn Foss – MBA, MCA, ACC
Executive Director at The Physician Leadership Institute™ Center for Transformation and Innovation

“I’ve been consistently impressed with Luke’s gentle and intuitive style, and how he very quickly generates trust in his client relationships. Luke reminds me of a master artist or professional athlete with whom you can watch them at their craft, and it seems so fluid and easy, all the while knowing the discipline and skill behind the practice. As has been Luke’s life, he lives a spiritual practice and brings that strength with him in his work, so that lives, spirits, and hearts are touched and emerge far better for having known and worked with him.”

Joy Goldman – RN, MS, PCC, CPC
Healthcare Executive and Physician Leadership Coach

 “I was already working with Luke in a coaching capacity, which was incredibly fruitful. When he offered me the option to pivot our work toward a more spiritual framework it felt right and ordained. In our work together, I “found” graces, answers and epiphanies vastly beyond those I was originally seeking. I am a changed person. I now possess a crystallized understanding of who God is, who I am and what His will is for me. Because the emphasis of the retreat is spiritual work undertaken in my “everyday life”, the deepening of my relationship with God continues despite the end of the retreat itself.  The weekly “homework” that Luke provided was educational and transformative, but it was through the weekly phone calls where my real life change happened. During our conversations, I was able to mine Luke’s deep spiritual experience and education without ever feeling hesitant or embarrassed to ask simplistic questions. The SEEL retreat was an unforgettable experience and Luke is a singular guide whom I now consider a friend.”

Spiritual Exercises in Everyday Life Retreatant in Portland, Oregon