A living steam: spiritual direction within the Pentecostal/Charismatic tradition.

Charismatics and Pentecostals have a relatively brief history and tradition. In the short span of just over one hundred years for Pentecostals and fifty years or less for Charismatics, there are a number of characteristics that have emerged. Charismatics and Pentecostals have sought renewal but may, in their desire to return to their initial spiritual experiences of believing and Spirit Baptism, have missed more opportunities for reflection. Their spiritual directors have been diverse but close to the community of believers. The closeness of the community has seemed like a family as much as a spiritual movement. The implications of the Pentecostal/Charismatic spiritual pursuit, the history of spiritual directors, and methods of spiritual direction are explored in this article with recommendations for further investigation and reflection.

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Pentecostals and Charismatics, along with other groups, emphasize the work of the Holy Spirit within the life of the believer. Historically, Pentecostals and Charismatics have a relatively young tradition. The Pentecostal movement began at the beginning of the twentieth century. The early Pentecostals usually lived on the poorer side of town, in rural hamlets, and various impoverished pockets of the world. Since their modern beginning, Pentecostals have continued to develop as a stream of spirituality within the landscape of Christianity. Charismatics, breaking out within various denominations and independent groups, have been a more recent movement with boundaries that are still in formation. (1)

As fellowships, churches, church groups, movements, and denominations, Pentecostals and Charismatics focus much of their activity within the worship setting of the church. Spirituality is frequently defined within the context of a church service, more than a devotional closet. Both private and public spirituality within Christendom as a whole has taken many forms. While the focus of Charismatics and Pentecostals includes the work of the Spirit within the heart, Pentecostals and Charismatics "love to have church." The work of the Spirit with its demonstration of gifts in n worship service is often emphasized more than the Spirit's individualized work within each believer.

Spirituality for Pentecostals and Charismatics centers on a continual quest to recapture a person's original reception of the Spirit. This backward look for a fresh move of the Spirit sets up a dual consciousness that at times is helpful but at other times may be a form of denial. Particularly for Pentecostals who have a multi-generational heritage, references to the Spirit may be in the past tense more than in the flow of the present. Pentecostals may feel that the worship was better in the days of the early revivals of the movement. They may hold the perception that people were more fervent in their worship and there were more miracles in that earlier time.

The Spirit of God sends believers in all traditions on a remarkable journey. At its very origin the genesis of spirituality is a powerful experience, giving birth to a lifetime journey with God. The beginning of one's spiritual journey is like the headwaters of a stream. The headwaters are the source. At the swirl of these beginning headwaters the new believer first tastes of the spiritual waters that fill, carry, and guide one on this remarkable pilgrimage. For Pentecostals and Charismatics, the initial experience of the Baptism of the Spirit is a headwaters experience. Also, there are subsequent experiences of the Spirit that mark fresh beginnings.

The believer testifies of these first experiences as initial believing, recalling the purifying power of God or telling others about first coming into an awareness of the work of the Spirit. These experiences are "firsts" not only in order but also in their power to revive the flow of God's Spirit in our lives. They also can include redemptive experiences of God's grace at crisis moments of our finitude, when the world caves in upon us. During tragedy the Spirit of God forms a wall of mercy by the Spirit that holds back the deluge of the world and supports one through the floods of tragedy.

For many believers, drinking of the Spirit is a reminder of the Gospel message. However, for others, including Pentecostals and Charismatics, the goal of spirituality becomes reviving rather than building upon the past. Before one revival ends in some Pentecostal and Charismatic fellowships, the next one is being planned. Some fellowships even call themselves, "Revival Centers," desiring a constant state of renewal. Descriptions of spirituality are more rehearsals of the past than celebrations of the present. Consumption with the beginnings and renewals of the work of the Spirit create special therapeutic issues for Pentecostals and Charismatics that will be discussed later in this article.

MARKING THE HEADWATERS: DEFINITION OF SPIRITUAL DIRECTION

The search for renewal has taken Charismatics and Pentecostals from Tulsa to Toronto, from Pensacola to Azusa and back to the local church again. From revivals to renewal conferences, study pamphlets to cassettes and back to the prayer closet again, Pentecostals and Charismatics have sought to experience the freshness of the Spirit. Though their search has taken them to different places, there are a few common elements that mark their experience. These elements are not exclusively Pentecostal or Charismatic. They are and have been experienced by other believers in various traditions of Christendom (Burgess & McGee, 1988).

Spirit Baptism or the filling of the Spirit is an expression used by Pentecostals and Charismatics to describe an experience that includes the recipient speaking in unknown tongues. Traditional Pentecostals believe speaking in unknown tongues is the initial evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit. Biblical references for both Pentecostals and Charismatics concerning the experience of unknown tongues include Acts 2, Acts 10, and I Corinthians 12-14. The person speaks in a language that is unknown to her or him. The language may not be traceable to any known language. At exceptional times, some have spoken a language not known to them but identifiable as another known language. The language may be identified as a language of "heaven" (I Corinthians 13:1) and whether similar to an earthly language or heavenly, the full meaning of what is spoken is known only by God (I Corinthians 14:1-3).

Spirit Baptism is also marked by a sense of being overwhelmed emotionally and at times physically. Persons may experience a flood of emotions. They may react physically, waving their arms, running, or jumping. Pentecostals and Charismarics draw upon descriptions such as that found in Acts 2:15 in which the disciples are described at Pentecost as appearing to be drunk. Accompanying physical effects include those mentioned earlier as well as swooning, laughing, and crying. Recipients report a heightened awareness of the Holy Spirit. Other recipients may even report a loss of some awareness of their surroundings. Pentecostals and Charismatics refer to Scriptures such as Acts 2:25-26, a text that Peter used on the day of Pentecost, as an explanation of their experiences. In that text, David reported an Old Testament experience of the Holy Spirit in which God was felt to be "face to face" with him. As a result, David describes himself speaking with a "glad tongue."

Charismatics and Pentecostals describe "yielding" or "surrendering" to the Spirit as an important part of the process of spirituality. Yielding to the Spirit is part of many aspects of Christian spirituality in general including initial believing, exercising faith, pursuing holiness, and many other dimensions of the believer's walk. Pentecostals and Charismatics describe yielding to the Spirit as part of one's participation in corporate worship. A person would yield to the Spirit and exercise a gift of the Spirit in that setting. Yielding to the Spirit is also described as what a person would do in order to carry out special directions in fulfilling God's will. It also would be part of opening oneself up to the feelings and actions that would accompany laughter, swooning, or other experiences in the Spirit.

The spiritual experience of Pentecostals and Charismatics, as with all believers, is to naturally want more. Having drawn from the flow of living water, they want to stay in the flow. But more does not mean farther or deeper. Rather, at times to Charismatics and Pentecostals it means more of the same. Drifting downstream in the journey of Christianity, they desire to go back to the refreshing source. Their perception is that recapturing initial experiences of the Spirit are purer, fresher, and more enriching. At times genuine spiritual renewal is experienced. At other times, a place, a time, an experience, or even personal power is actually at the heart of the desire. Nevertheless, having drawn from the origins of Christian experience and the believer's life in the Spirit, Pentecostal/Charismatics want more from the source (Land, 1993; Moore, 1991).

A HISTORY OF MOTHERS, FATHERS, AND GIFTED LEADERS: HISTORY OF PRACTICE WITHIN MOVEMENT

Within the movement of Pentecostals and Charismatics, the history of spiritual direction has been one of spiritual siblings, parents, and leaders. The qualifications of directors are informal, non-academic. The history of the movement at times may have steered itself away from forms of the academy while seeking only that a spiritual director have been to the headwaters of initial Spirit Baptism and renewal.

A Pentecostal/Charismatic may be moved more to follow a gifted leader with a momentary word of the Spirit than promise allegiance to a creed or a director's lifetime of knowledge. As a result, spiritual direction has been very immediate and gratifying but may have lacked depth and the continuity of lessons learned from others. When there were exceptions, they would be in the context of the familial bond of the Spirit. When a person's knowledge and wisdom was accepted, it was because of the common blood of spiritual experience that was shared.

Two forms of spiritual direction among Pentecostals and Charismatics have been the oral traditions of prophecy and testimony (Ellington, 2000). In church services, prayer meetings, and small groups, spiritual directors have been like oracles speaking in these two non-traditional forms. Manifestations of these forms have included practices described in I Corinthians 12-14 such as public tongue speaking, interpretation of tongues uttered in groups, the word of wisdom, and the word of knowledge. In these there have been both gifted leaders who have given episodic leadership along with spiritual fathers and mothers who have been followed with family loyalty within the history of Pentecostals and Charismatics (Burgess & McGee, 1988; Synan, 1971).

Gifted leaders as spiritual directors have also taken the form of evangelists. Evangelists gained attention as they drew people back to a renewal of initial believing and experience. By means of tent meetings, evangelists have given spiritual direction to Pentecostal/Charismatic followers. Included as evangelists would be spiritual leaders who had gifted ministries emphasizing healing. Especially during worship services, even today, devotees loyally listen to the spiritual direction given by evangelists. Attendees from time to rime may be singled out in the service, even brought to the front of the church auditorium to openly receive spiritual direction.

Another form of spiritual direction among Pentecostals and Charismatics has been spiritual deliverance. Drawing upon Scriptural texts such as Ephesians 6, trouble and despair are interpreted in spiritual terms. Individuals come to special meetings or prayer services for deliverance, sensing that spiritual forces-bind them. Consequently, through prayer, exhortation, the recitation of Scripture, and other means directors intercede for the spiritual deliverance of those in need. One name identifying these spiritual directors is "prayer warrior." At times, evangelists or pastors are sought for spiritual deliverance.

Counselors, psychologists, and therapists also work as spiritual directors within the Pentecostal/Charismatic tradition. That model at various times has included elements of the prophetic and the charismata. This has meant that directors function as gifted men and women who minister with an immediate sense of God speaking to the individual and community of faith as potentially part of therapy. They do so using gifts bestowed upon individuals within that community (Land, 1993). Ever with this model of spirituality is the sense that anyone within the community of believers can claim to have been to the very source, God Himself, for spiritual direction at any moment.

DRINKING FROM THE WATERS: DESCRIPTION OF THE PROCESS OF AUTHENTIC TRANSFORMATION

Authentic transformation for Pentecostals and Charismatics has meant changed lives. Change has occurred for them at different levels, different times, and in different ways. Pentecostals have held two dominant views of transformation. These views are evidenced in separate but perhaps complimentary theologies of sanctification. One group of Pentecostals that has included the Church of God (Cleveland, Tennessee) and the International Pentecostal Holiness Church has believed that sanctification occurs instantaneously in a person's life. Another group of Pentecostals that has included the Assemblies of God has believed that sanctification occurs as a process over time. These two groups have in recent years tended to merge their views in a combined view in which sanctification and transformation is spontaneous in its beginning but is lived out and grows over the course of time.

One important aspect of the process of transformation for Pentecostals and Charismatics is the experience of Spirit Baptism. The experience occurs many times in the context of a worship service. The music and order of service set an atmosphere of surrender to the presence and work of the Holy Spirit. Pentecostals and Charismatics believe they are personally experiencing the Pentecost event as it occurred in the lives of the believers in Acts 2. They do not experience what had sounded like wind and looked like tongues of fire. They do experience glossolalia (i.e., speaking in other tongues), peace, joy, and other manifestations of spirituality.

Many Pentecostals and Charismatics are newly converted. Often their biological families are unchurched (Burgess & McGee, 1988). The headwaters of spiritual experience may be sought initially, but the cares and surprises of life have them in unfamiliar waters with little recourse but to pursue uncharted waters. Though the experience is new, faith is developed as the flow of the waters of human encounter and grief takes them further downstream into tragedy and spiritual questions. The questions are about things unfamiliar. Questions include why there is a disease that is not healed, a loved one who remains unemployed, or a wayward son or daughter who continually rebels against God. Growth occurs but with unanswered questions. As a result, spiritual transformation is frequently resisted (Gernert, 2000; Hayford, 2001; Maachia, 1998; Moore, 1995).

Eventually, after initial surprise and even resistance to new paths of spiritual depth, denial gives way to discovery. Gradually, through a critical step of engagement, Pentecostals and Charismatics begin to embrace unfamiliar waters. Engagement involves integration of new truth and experience that appears contradictory to previous experience. A critical compass during this time of engagement has been spiritual guides (more commonly referred to as "prayer partners," "intercessors," or "more mature believers"). "Guides" as opposed to "directors," seems a more fitting term because the term director may indicate a more definite path given by someone else where as guide allows room for a personalized process of spiritual formation (Del Colle, 2000). But regardless of the title or particular identity, within the family of Pentecostals and Charismatics, spiritual guidance has occurred during times of grief and confrontation.

ALL IN THE FAMILY: ROLE OF THE DIRECTOR

The role of the spiritual director (this specific term is very rarely used) begins with being perceived as a member of the spiritual family of faith. Therapists can also function as a member of the spiritual community or family. This is difficult for the professional who is not part of a client's community of faith (Parker, 1996). It may be even more difficult if the spiritual guide is not generally perceived as being part of any community of faith. With these potential difficulties in mind, developing that sense of trust and faith within the context of the counseling hour is vital. The counselor-client relationship becomes spiritual community for the Pentecostal/Charismatic. The counselor as spiritual guide assumes the role of a fellow family member of faith.

With a relationship of trust established, the counselor can--under certain specific circumstances--function at times in a similar role to a spiritual director or guide (Moon, 1996). Ongoing, spiritual guidance is crucial. The client may resist growth and process issues. There may be a desire for only episodic experiences of Spirit baptism rather than sustained experiences of spiritual growth. The struggle is between personal freedom and structure. The spiritual director must embrace the tension, willing to work with the client's frequent desire for spiritual renewal while helping the client through longer processes of growth. A spiritual director may be engaging, much like a persistent family member. But the therapist will also be objective as any ethical professional, giving the Pentecostal/Charismatic the freedom to which he or she is accustomed.

STRUGGLING TO REMAIN NEAR THE SOURCE: INDIRECT INDICATORS OF MATURE SPIRITUALITY

Maturity from the Pentecostal/Charismatic perspective is nor easily defined, at least using traditional definitions of maturity. Stages and frameworks for achieving maturity may be resisted or reshaped by Pentecostal/Charismatics because of their preference for initial experience, unattached to structured definitions of spiritual experience.

The boundaries of spiritual development have been defined by both mainstream and Pentecostal/Charismatic writers (Batson & Ventis, 1982; Foster, 1978, 1998; Hayford, 2001; Malony, 1977; Tan & Gregg, 1997). More traditional virtues have been identified as meditation, prayer, fasting, study, simplicity, solitude, submission, service, confession, worship, guidance, and celebration (Baker, 1995; Foster, 1978).

Pentecostal/Charismatic authors have identified these and other critical virtues of spiritual formation such as community/group critical reflection, yielding and confession, witness, solitude and silence, committing to hear God's voice and live in the power of Baptism (Boone, 1996; Hayford, 2001; Johns, 1993; Johns &Johns, 1992; McMahan, 2000; Tan & Gregg, 1997). All of these are authentic and real. However, Pentecostals and Charismatics, because of some resistance to nominal structures, may emphasize the process of spiritual formation itself, unattached to things that from their perspective may attempt to confine the work of the Spirit to a step, a principle, or a guideline. Therefore, one of their indicators of spiritual maturity is to be continually searching, paddling upstream, looking for an experience in God. For the spiritual director, this calls for an openness to a spiritual search for an experience of God rather than a lesson about or direction toward God (McMahan, 1997; Yang, 1996).

Despite the Pentecostal/Charismatic propensity to subjectivism, spiritual maturity is also marked by the ability to be part of the family of the community of faith. Even though Pentecostals and Charismatics cherish the individual nature of their experience of God, they also respect and embrace those whom they perceive as being a part of their family of faith. A characteristic of spiritual maturity is being able to attain a level of seeking an experience in God, while at the same time being able to remain with the community of faith and share one's experience with others.

Another mark of spirituality according to Penrecostals and Charismatics has tended to be Charismatic giftedness. Persons with special ability, at times miraculous, would be considered spiritually mature. These individuals are seen as having been to the renewing sources of spiritual maturity and as having experienced the reality of spirituality enough that he or she bears the gifts that come from those experiences. This is not without problems because charismata is not necessarily the same as spiritual maturity. Giftedness needs to be based in the demonstration of the fruit of the Spirit (Ingram, 1996). Giftedness is an effective part of service and ministry, but a person may still be spiritually immature (Decker, 1996; Gilbert & Brock, 1985; Vining, 1992, 1995b).

All believers share in the fruit of the Spirit. For Pentecostals and Charismatics, the fruit of the Spirit has been and can continue to be a means of defining spirituality and maturity. Especially appealing for them is the fact that these are the result of the presence of the Holy Spirit in a person's life. Further, the fruit of the Spirit emphasizes the believer's walk in life rather than just the church worship service.

The spiritual director must deal with Pentecostals and Charismatics who mark their spiritualities with miraculous milestones. Certainly, charismata and gifts are a reality of the church and faith. Therefore, spiritual directors can be effective with Pentecostals and Charismatics by being open to spiritual giftedness and the streams that flow from them (McMahan, 1995). This includes openness to the work of the Spirit in the life of the client and their own lives as therapists. At the same time, spiritual guides have to model mature and ethical behavior that strives for maturity, even when spiritual gifts are not apparent (McMahan, 1997, 1995).

Another mark of spiritual maturity for Charismatics and Pentecostals has been ministry to the spiritual community at large, including non-Pentecostal/Charismatics. Pentecostals and Charismatics seek fulfillment of their spiritual experience through ministry to all believers and the evangelization of non-believers. They desire spiritual growth in others as well as themselves. There have been times in Pentecostal history in which they have seen themselves as an exclusive group (Burgess & McGee, 1988; Synan, 1971). Charismatics have generally been inclusive as a movement (Burgess & McGee, 1988). Indeed, openness of faith toward all believers is now seen by both as a mark of spiritual maturity.

Spiritual maturity for Pentecostals and Charismatics has been, for some, seen in terms of an openness to those outside of the community of faith. Though Pentecostals and Charismatics treasure the bond of spiritual community, they are empathetic to suffering, regardless of a person's religious orientation (Burgess & McGee, 1988). They are caring regardless of culture (Yang, 1996). Many Pentecostals and Charismatics are advocates of social justice, no doubt, because they have at times been marginalized (Cox, 1994, 1995; Land, 1992). In this sense, spiritual directors can more frequently observe adaptability and social sensitivity with Pentecostal/Charismatic clients (Yang, 1996; Yong, 1999).

DISCOVERING THE BREADTH OF THE STREAM: CONTRASTS AND SIMILARITIES WITH TRADITIONAL PSYCHOTHERAPY 

The distinctives of Pentecostal/Charismatic spiritual maturity offer several implications for counselors and therapists. Therapists and spiritual directors when working with Pentecostals and Charismatics would do well to foster a bond of community and mutuality within the counseling hour. Therapists must be careful of dual role relationships and ethical violations, but be ready to move into the role of spiritual "kin," borne of the Spirit rather than assuming a rigid distance.

Besides legitimacy based on relationship, recognition of the reality and challenges of seeking the renewal of Spirit Baptism is important. While spiritual directors may automatically desire to see growth and maturity occur, Pentecostals and Charismatics already seek growth. They are already motivated to grow, to experience more of God. What they need is someone to assist with defining and clarifying the integration of life and spirituality. The spiritual director can seek to cultivate the implications of spiritual direction along with the clinical desire to see growth (McMahan, 1995).

Spiritual directors can use the fact that the Pentecostal/Charismatic may frequently want to return to familiar beginnings, the places where they first knew the Lord, where they first encountered the power of God's might, and many other benchmarks of their spirituality. The Pentecostal/Charismatic can be overly consumed with a quest to simply relive the past rather than look at it introspectively (Burgess & McGee, 1988). Reflection and integration may be less desirable than putting on a proven perception. Spiritual direction would facilitate discernment and insight. Traditional psychotherapy might be limited to memory and history while a spiritual guide could spiritually probe and reflect upon basic assumptions about one's spiritual past that may have changed. The headwaters kind of experience may change and a spiritual director may be necessary to do spiritual reflection about that experience as well as probing other aspects of one's past.

Counselors and therapists would also do well to recognize the propensity of some Pentecostals and Charismatics to over-spiritualize and emotionally interpret their personal problems. Pentecostal/Charismatic therapists have endeavored to bring a balance to this tendency (Dobbins, 1995; Gilbert & Brock, 1985, 1989). They have also integrated traditional psychotherapeutic methods such as cognitive, behavioral, systemic, and contextual approaches to correct over-spiritualizing and emotionalizing (McMahan, 1995). Also, Christian spiritual disciplines have been formalized into psychotherapeutic techniques in approaches such as intensive prayer counseling.

During times of introspection, Pentecostals and Charismatics may resist attempts to rest in the harbors of reflection. They may be suspicious of anything that departs from immediate experience. Spiritual directors may have to use immediate, sensory, and awareness methods rather than automatically and clinically requiring an in depth look at a person's past (Gilbert & Brock, 1985, 1989; McMahan, 1995).

Spiritual directors may also find it helpful to identify which of life's circumstances may be moving the Pentecostal or Charismatic further downstream. Embracing the grief, living in the midst of tragedy, and feeling the pains of life may be the spiritual agenda. What is the comfort level of the client? How can these life experiences be seen for their spiritual dimensions? Who can the client trust when life itself becomes untrustworthy? Some psychotherapeutic approaches embrace such spiritual paradox while others deny it. Spiritual directors working with Pentecostals and Charismatics may do well to use interventions involving spiritual paradox as they may be the key that takes the client deeper and further. Spiritual directors may help clients learn from pain as they experience God in the midst of suffering rather than just wanting to quickly sweep it out of the conscious mind.

At the transition points where Pentecostals or Charismatics encounter questions that have upset their spiritual identity, spiritual guides can assist with identifying possible stages or transitions. The client may be embracing the rough waters of spiritual change. During this time the structure of the clinical process may have to be paradoxical or crisis oriented rather than just cognitive or behavioral.

Pentecostals and Charismatics may need to be guided away from their individual selves toward an experience of community with others. While traditional therapy emphasizes the private hour between the clinician and counselee, that privatization may further fuel an already too personalized quest for spiritual direction. The spiritual guide may direct the client to other helpers, both lay and professional, who may create the community that the client needs (Tan, 1991). Lay counseling and/or participation in the therapeutic process may be a departure from the clinical or medical model used by some clinicians but may be very effective for Pentecostals and Charismatics.

There are other times when the community may be the problem the client is encountering in developing his or her spirituality. In these cases the spiritual director may opt for more traditional approaches, using the one-on-one client therapist relationship as a rime of healing from community dysfunction or even abuse. Clients may experience frustration with their mental illness because they live in a faith-based community that may demonstrate little capacity for dealing with persistent life and health questions. The spiritual director may provide a sense of community, addressing the client's community and relational issues. The spiritual director may even serve as an advocate in helping the client identify another community of faith to join. This advocacy may be different from traditional psychotherapy approaches that remain within the confines of the professional office or facility.

Here is a brief table (see Table 1) that may convey some of the differences between psychotherapy and spiritual direction from the Pentecostal/Charismatic perspective.

A QUESTION COME OF AGE: REFERRALS TO MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONALS

Pentecostals and Charismatics as a group are becoming more and more open to mental health referrals. The exceptions are found among conservative Pentecostals who may see referrals as a departure from their search for the spiritual experience, sensing that psychology may be a threat to their doctrinal purity. Exceptions may also be found among Charismatics who may feel that referrals may be unnecessary in light of their faith. Still, as mentioned earlier, the tragedies and pressures of life have gradually confronted Pentecostals and Charismatics with the need for professional assistance. As a result, referring Pentecostals and Charismatics to mental health professionals is not merely a possibility but a certainty, as certain as the reality of the suffering.

Referrals can enhance the spiritual journey of Pentecostals and Charismatics if managed from the harbors of community. Referral becomes part of the spiritual growth of the client when fostered by a spiritual guide who maintains community with the client. The referral becomes part of the river of spirituality. The psychological aspects of the referral become transformed. They remain psychological but they are framed by the relationship forged between the spiritual director, the client, and the Spirit. The communion of the Spirit bears witness to the manner in which the spiritual director monitors the referral and the client follows a new stream of both psychological and spiritual depth.

In the referral process the Pentecostal and Charismatic client is asked to maintain spiritual vitality and experience in the midst of confrontation with psychological need. The referral is the fulfillment of spiritual disciplines such as submission and grace. The spiritual director leads in the referral process, expanding the faith and the experience of the Pentecostal and Charismatic, discovering with the client ways in which the Spirit moves, even beyond experiences like initial Spirit Baptism and subsequent renewals of those beginnings.

HELPFUL BOOKS

A very helpful two-volume set for orientation about the history, theology theories, and techniques of counseling used by Pentecostals and Charismatics is The Holy Spirit and Counseling: Theology and Theory, Volumes I and II, (Gilbert & Brock, 1985, 1989). Though written in the 1980's, these books still provide valuable resource information into the formative concepts and approaches used by Pentecostals and Charismatics in therapy.

Insight into the dynamics of Pentecostal spiritual formation are provided in four volumes, Pentecostal Spirituality: A Passion for the Kingdom (Land, 1993), Deepening Discipleship (McMahan, 2000), Disciplines of the Holy Spirit: How to Connect to the Spirit's Power and Presence (Tan & Gregg, 1997), and Living the Spirit-Formed Life: Growing in the 10 Principles of Spirit-Filled Discipleship (Hayford, 2001). These books provide information about spiritual disciplines incorporated by Pentecostals and Charismatics historically and globally currently and throughout much of their young history.

Contemporary counseling dynamics, particularly the incorporation of Pentecostal/Charismatic spirituality and theology into counseling techniques have been helpfully described in Spirit-Centered Counseling (Vining, 1995a) and Scriptural Counseling: A God-Centered Method (McMahan, 1995). Vining's work broadly addresses the place of Pentecostal therapy in the light of other historical techniques. McMahan formulates a Pentecostal model for applications in a variety of settings and clinical needs.

SUMMARY

As Charismatics and Pentecostals cast a gaze back to the headwaters of their early experiences as believers and their initial Baptism in the Spirit, yearning for a renewal of the work of the Spirit, they stand in the midst of contemporary tragedy and crises. Their backward look is tempered by the demands of the present and the challenges of the future. They are coming to realize that the streams of the Christian faith are ever increasing in their riches as they move further downstream. They are learning that the safe harbors of reflection and the tributaries of new growth are still connected to the headwaters of initial believing and early experiences in the Spirit. They are embracing spiritual direction and developing a spirituality that moves with the flow of Christianity.

Contemporary spiritual direction and therapy is formation in the relatively youthful tradition of Charismatics and Pentecostals. As the role of the spiritual director and clinician continues to take shape for and among them, Pentecostals and Charismatics are also affirming their spirituality as one that is responsive to the realities of life. The contribution of Pentecostals and Charismatics within the river of Christendom may be as much in the manner in which they are learning to move with the river, while staying connected to its source, as in any of the specific disciplines of spirituality that they have incorporated.

Table 1

Dimension                  Spiritual Direction

Presenting Problem:  Reconciling unresolved past
                     tragedies with relationship
                     with God.

Goals:               Assist directee in experiencing
                     the reality of God's presence
                     and arriving at a sense of
                     peace with issues of theodicy.


Procedure:           Prayer, instruction, worship in
                     the Spirit including silence,
                     glossolalia, singing, and
                     celebration. Also, reading of
                     Scriptures that speak of
                     persons who endured tragedy,
                     e.g., Job.


Resources:           Scriptures and testimonials
                     that record individuals who
                     were spiritual but nevertheless
                     experienced crises.
                     Contemporaries in the client's
                     spiritual community who have
                     experienced tragedy.

Dimension                     Psychotherapy

Presenting Problem:  Relief of pain and emotional
                     stress brought on by crisis
                     events.

Goals:               Assist the client with
                     understanding the grief
                     process. Also, assist with life
                     transitions resulting from
                     crisis events.

Procedure:           Reviewing the incident(s) of
                     crisis, drawing upon emotional
                     responses, cognitive questions,
                     and options the client may
                     have tried, using face-to-face
                     therapy, homework, and
                     bibliotherapy readings about
                     similar crisis experiences.

Resources:           Literature with instructions for
                     coping with change, especially
                     recovering from critical crisis
                     incidents. Medical assistance
                     with adjustments and
                     responses to crises.

(1.) While there are many similarities between Pentecostals and Charismatics, there are a number of differences, particularly in history, religious practice, and constituencies. Historically, Pentecostals began at the dawn of the twentieth century while Charismatics began in the late sixties and early seventies. Pentecostals quickly formed independent groups that eventually became international denominations. Charismatics began within mainline denominations and have continued in those denominations. Correspondingly, many Charistmarics have formed independent churches, continuing to remain autonomous and congregational in polity and practice, avoiding the creation of denominations. The religious practice of Pentecostals ranges from formal worship to open and non-structured worship. Charismatics generally have been very open and spontaneous in their worship services. Pentecostals have tended to be more conservative in their beliefs about dress, entertainment, and theology. Charismatics have been more open and w illing to change their practices and beliefs. Finally, the constituents of Pentecostals have been among the more impoverished of society while Charismatics have been marked by more affluence. These are broad distinctiQns that have tended to change over time. However, both Pentecostals and Charismatics are knit together in their emphasis upon the work of the Holy Spirit.

REFERENCES

Baker, R. O. (1995). Pentecostal Bible reading: Toward a model of reading for the formation of Christian affections. Journal of Pentecostal Theology, 7, 34-48.

Batson, C. D., & Ventis, W. L. (1982). The religious experience: A social-psychological perspective. New York: Oxford University Press.

Boone, R. J. (1996). Community and worship: The key components of Pentecostal Christian formation. Journal of Pentecostal Theology, 8, 129-142.

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AUTHOR

McMAHAN, OLIVER. Address: Oliver McMahan, PhD, Church of God Theological Seminary, P.O. Box 3330, Cleveland, TN 37320. Title: Associate Dean and Professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling at the Church of God Theological Seminary. Degrees: MDiv, DMin, Brite Divinity School of Texas Christian University in Pastoral Care; PhD, Georgia State University in Counseling and Family Psychology. Specializations: Weslyan Pentecostal Perspective of Counseling; Counseling with Incarcerated Felons; Marriage and Family Assessment.

Correspondence regarding this article should be addressed to Oliver McMahan, Ph.D., Church of God Theological Seminary, P.O. Box 3330, Cleveland, TN 37320. E-mail at [e-mail].