Belong
Group Spiritual Direction for Christian Friendship and Communal Discernment
Published October 2025
By embracing the rich tradition of early Methodist class meetings, early monasticism, and Ignatian and Quaker traditions, this book offers practical guidance on spiritual direction for your community. Readers learn how to navigate conflicts with grace and create a space for genuine community and spiritual wholeness. Relatable stories and practical guidance illuminate how authentic connections, both with each other and with God, can light the way to richer relationships and renewed purpose, nurturing belonging and spiritual growth while gathering people together.
Creating an environment where spiritual exploration leads to real, lasting change and empowering individuals to help others become more faithful, joyful followers of Christ, Melanie Dobson’s group spiritual practices foster unity and consensus on the journey towards God’s preferred future, where connection brings us together as one in faith and love, sowing seeds of belonging in a world filled with loneliness and division.
An appendix with guidelines, schedules, and more provides helps for implementation, is available online with purchase.
About the Author
Melanie Dobson
The Rev. Dr. Melanie Dobson is an assistant professor and the Lefler and Wohltmann Chair in Methodist Studies at Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary (LTSS) of Lenoir-Rhyne University. She directs the two-year Spiritual Direction Certification Program at the seminary, a non-degree program open to anyone interested in deepening their spiritual life and learning the practice of spiritual direction. Dobson also directs the Methodist Studies program and supports connections between students, the South Carolina Annual Conference, and the seminary. She teaches courses in Methodism, Christian Ethics, Spiritual Practices, Leadership and Mission, and Theology. Her scholarly interests include intersections of theology, health and healing, spiritual direction/practices, and racial justice.
Dobson became an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church in 2005 and is a Western North Carolina Annual Conference member. She has served as a pastor in rural, suburban, and urban contexts and in churches of all sizes, from small to medium to mega. She trained at the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation and is a certified spiritual director. Dobson also is a registered yoga teacher and incorporates yoga into her ministry and community service.