You came home from the retreat changed — and then ordinary life began to dim the fire. Or maybe there was no single mountaintop, just a steady sense that there is more to your life with God than you've found. Spiritual formation at Banner is the path forward: structured formation coaching and open-ended spiritual direction that walk with men and women from a moment — or a quiet hunger — into a rooted, durable Christian life. Every path begins with a free conversation with our Care Coordinator.
Or call us: 318.396.8152
You don't have to be in crisis to sense there's more
Most people who come to formation work aren't in crisis. They arrive one of two ways.
You went away — a retreat, a conference, a weekend that pulled you out of the ordinary — and something real broke open: a first honest reckoning, a sense of God you couldn't explain away. Then you came home to the same job, the same patterns, the same weight, and within weeks the fire began to dim.
The mountaintop was never the problem.
The absence of a path down from it was.
Or maybe there was no single moment at all — just a steady, low sense that your life with God is meant to go deeper than it has, and you're done waiting for it to deepen on its own.
Both are good places to begin. What you need now is structure, honesty, and someone to walk it with you.
What is spiritual formation?
Spiritual formation is the long, deliberate work of becoming a different kind of person; someone whose interior life, daily habits, relationships, and work are increasingly ordered by Christ. It isn't a class you finish or a feeling you chase. It's a path you walk, with structure and with company. At Banner, it's the heart of our coaching: the work of the stability and strength stages, for people who are no longer in crisis but know they aren't yet who they're meant to be.
Rescue
In crisis. Coaching isn't first — our counseling team is.
Stability
Unmoored, not in crisis. Formation begins here.
Strength
Grounded and growing. Formation deepens and reaches outward.
Formation is never only personal. A person formed in Christ brings that wholeness home, into their marriage, their family, their community. The work starts with you. It doesn't stop with you.
If you're in crisis right now — a marriage collapsing, an addiction winning, the floor falling out — coaching is not what you need first, and we'll tell you that plainly. Our counseling team is the place to begin; formation starts once the ground is steady.
Two ways to work one-on-one
Most formation work happens inside one of two relationships. People confuse them constantly, and the confusion costs you, because they're built for different things. Here is the plain difference.
Formation Coaching
Formation coaching is structured, goal-oriented work on your life with God. It has an arc, a cadence, and an endpoint — this is not open-ended.
A typical engagement moves through three phases: discernment — naming where you are and where God is leading; formation — the real work of identity in Christ, honest inventory, sacred rhythms of prayer and practice, and the gifts you've been given; and forward movement — testimony, accountability, and a clear set of next steps. You leave with more than insight. You leave with a way of living you can sustain.
It's for the person with momentum who needs a path — home from a retreat, transitioning out of therapy, or simply done drifting.
Goals and accountability · Structured arc
Spiritual Direction
Spiritual direction is something older and quieter than coaching. It's open-ended, contemplative accompaniment in your life with God — an experienced guide helping you notice where God is already at work in you, and respond.
There is no curriculum and no finish line. You meet regularly, usually monthly, and talk honestly about your interior life — your prayer, your desires, your resistances, the seasons that feel dry and the ones that feel alive. A director doesn't fix you or set your goals. They listen, ask, and help you pay attention to what God is doing. The unhurried pace is the point.
It's for the mature Christian who wants presence, not an agenda — often in a season of discernment, transition, dryness, or deepening.
Monthly · Open-ended · Contemplative
Formation coaching is for building, establishing the rhythms, character, and direction of a maturing faith.
Spiritual direction is for deepening, discerning where God is moving in a walk already underway.
Both are available in person or virtually. Not sure which fits? A conversation with our Care Coordinator will help you find the right starting point.
Or call us: 318.396.8152
When men are ready to do this together
Some of this work goes deeper in the company of other men walking the same road. That's what The Path is.
Our flagship cohort
The Path
A six-week, team-taught group for men ready to turn a retreat's momentum into lasting change. Six consecutive weekly gatherings in the Monroe area — honest conversation, real brotherhood, and a clear path forward, from identity in Christ to a story you can tell and a way ahead you can hold onto.
Learn about The PathGoing deeper
Formation isn't only for finding your footing — it keeps going. For those who are grounded and growing, the strength stage is about maturity and multiplication: a deeper, personally shaped rule of life, and learning to walk alongside others well. It includes advanced formation work and a cohort for practitioners — people who counsel, coach, pastor, and mentor — being equipped in a sound, grounded method. If that's where you are, ask our Care Coordinator what's taking shape.
Formed by people, not a program.
AndrewDodson
JohnMabray
WhitBass
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How to Begin
One conversation. Free, twenty minutes, with our Care Coordinator.
The first conversation
A free 20-minute conversation with our Care Coordinator. You'll talk through where you are right now, what you're oriented toward, and how you work best.
Your match
You leave the conversation with a specific recommendation: a named coach, a clear format, and a concrete next step. No vague “we'll be in touch.”
The work begins
Your first session with your coach. Everything from here is purposeful and structured around where you are and where you're going.
Or call us: 318.396.8152
No obligation follows the conversation. If what you need is our counseling team, or something we don't offer, we will tell you that directly.
A word about cost
Banner charges real prices for real work — coaching that is prepared, structured, and accountable. Rates vary by engagement and are discussed openly when you speak with our Care Coordinator, who can speak specifically to what you're considering.
Frequently asked questions
Spiritual direction, formation coaching, or therapy — which do I need?
Therapy treats clinical conditions — depression, anxiety, trauma, addiction, marital crisis — and is the work of our licensed counseling team. Formation coaching is structured, goal-oriented work toward a rooted Christian life, with an arc and an endpoint. Spiritual direction is open-ended, contemplative accompaniment, usually monthly, with no curriculum and no finish line. A rule of thumb: if you're in crisis, start with therapy; if you have momentum and want a path, formation coaching; if you want unhurried presence in your life with God, spiritual direction. A conversation with our Care Coordinator sorts this honestly.
Is formation coaching or spiritual direction available virtually?
Yes. Both formation coaching and spiritual direction are offered in person in Monroe or virtually by video, so distance doesn't have to be the reason you wait. The Path, our group cohort, meets in person only.
Is coaching at Banner only for men?
No. The Path, our group cohort, is currently a men's program. Our one-on-one work — formation coaching and spiritual direction — is open to anyone seeking it.
Do you offer marriage or family coaching?
Our coaching forms the individual — and a person formed in Christ brings that wholeness home. We'll help you grow toward a fuller, more Christ-centered marriage and family life. This is formation, not clinical marriage counseling; if what you need is counseling for your marriage, our licensed counseling team is the right place to begin, and we'll point you there.
Do I have to be a Christian to work with a Banner coach?
Most who come for spiritual formation are already walking with Christ, but we don't require it. We're forthright about our foundation: every coach works from Christian conviction. We've found that honesty serves clients of every persuasion better than vagueness does.
How much does coaching cost?
Rates vary by engagement — a formation arc, a group cohort, and ongoing spiritual direction are priced differently. We discuss cost openly when you speak with our Care Coordinator rather than posting a single number that won't fit most situations.
One conversation. Twenty minutes. A clear next step.
Or call us: 318.396.8152
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300 Washington Street, Suite 310
Monroe, LA 71201