Bill & Kristi Gaultiere

As Christian psychotherapists since 1987 we shepherd souls with Christ.

Our nonprofit ministry is called Soul Shepherding because we help the pastors, pastors’ wives, missionaries, leaders, and care-givers who help others.

In counseling and spiritual direction we meet with ministry leaders to listen, encourage, and pray. In groups, seminars, and retreats we teach them how to connect deeply with Christ and one another through Scripture meditation, reflective prayer, soul talk, and other spiritual practices.

The result of Soul Shepherding is that leaders, communities, and whole organizations are learning to be with Jesus and become like him, doing all that they do in his kingdom. When [...]

Continue reading Welcome

Usually its better to slow down!

By Bill Gaultiere © 2010

I was coming down the stairs this morning with my arms full and heading out to an appointment that I was going to be late for when I spilled my cup full of cereal all down the stairs and across the entry! This is a parable…

Most pastors and leaders that my wife Kristi and I minister to have the same problem I had this morning – they’re carrying too much and they’re moving too fast. They’re under tremendous stress and have difficulty making time for the intimacy with Jesus that they crave and [...]

Continue reading Hurry to Spill Mercy

When someone criticizes you are you defensive? Or do you get angry? Many people I talk to have a hard time responding to criticism because they take it inside and feel bad or they protect themselves by shutting down emotionally, which leaves them isolated and depressed.

I can relate. For much of my life I felt inadequate whenever someone criticized me. So I put pressure on myself to succeed and to try to get people to think well of me. That created a lot of anxiety!

I have learned another way. It’s expressed in a favorite little prayer of mine [...]

Continue reading Use Your Christ Shield

Life is precious and brief. How can we “redeem the time” before our days on earth slip away? (Ephesians 5:16).

The ancient devotional masters were helped to live each day for Christ by meditating on their dead body being put into a tomb. Probably you haven’t done that before! Most of us today try not to think about our death!

But actually this is a Biblical practice. Long before the monks and spiritual writers of the past the Psalmist was praying about the brevity of life in order to live each day for God. This has been very helpful for me to [...]

Continue reading Like a Flower in the Father’s Field

What refreshment awaits you! What joy! All we have to do is to pause and appreciate Christ in our midst as we do whatever we’re doing – like right now!

Psalm 73 is a great help along these lines. This prayer of Asaph is a deep well that offers us Living Water for our thirsty souls. His heart for God is infectious. By praying his words we can grow in our devotion to the Lord. And when we submit our whole selves to God heaven opens up to us! Whole-hearted dedication to love God in all things is the key to [...]

Continue reading Drink from a Deep Well of Devotion

Is your heart smiling? Are you appreciating that God is with you? The risen Christ is beside you as you read these words and he breathes his Spirit into you. So take a deep breath to behold Christ… Smile as you breathe out!

What joy it is to pause and appreciate Christ in our hearts! What grace comes to us and others as we pray the name of Jesus Christ! Try praying with me the name of Jesus in Psalm 73:26:

Lord Jesus Christ

Be the strength of my heart

And my portion forever.

Try praying for God’s [...]

Continue reading Smile with Jesus in your Heart!

Most every day I talk to someone who is afraid or anxious (which is generalized fear). Maybe you fear what people think of you… Not having enough money… Public speaking, flying, being far from home, or spiders… Failure or rejection… Losing a loved one… Disease or pain… Death…

We all long for more of God’s peace in the midst of the stresses of our lives!

It’s been said that there are 365 “fear nots” in the Bible, one for every day of the year. This is a wonderful thought, but is it true? Most people say no. Indeed, there is not a version of [...]

Continue reading “Fear Not!” 365 days a year

What do you do when you’ve been mistreated and God doesn’t seem to answer your prayers? How do you pray when God seems distant and unconcerned about your pain? We all go through these trials. They don’t mean that God is angry with us or that we’re not good Christians. It may be a dark night of the soul.

In dark night trials we tend to feel alone, but we’re not! The Psalmist understands and in Psalm 44 he shows us how to pray in the dark. Many of our Bible heroes went through these times, most notably Jesus in the [...]

Continue reading The Other Side of Deep Darkness

By Bill Gaultiere © 2007, 2010

I awoke early one morning. It was quiet after a night’s rain. I recited Psalm 23 again and again and talked to Jesus, the Good Shepherd – my Soul Shepherd. What joy to appreciate Psalm 23 anew!

For three thousand years David’s prayer has been offered by people of various faiths and cultures. Jesus himself prayed Psalm 23 – more than that he fulfilled it. And he helped me to paraphrase it into words that restored my soul.

I’m sure that you also need for the Lord to restore your soul each day – there’s no better way than by [...]

Continue reading The Lord Jesus is my Soul Shepherd

Answered prayer. Success. Victory. We all want to be blessed, to achieve great things, and to overcome our challenges. But when we reach for these desires we can never quite grasp them. The pursuit of happiness never makes anyone happy.

That’s why years ago my spiritual father, Ray Ortlund, encouraged me to “Be all and only for Jesus!” He wanted the best for me. And so he liked to pray Psalm 20 for me. Recently, Psalm 20 inspired me to write a “Benediction of Devotion.”

I’d like to share this short prayer of blessing with you. It’s meant so much to me [...]

Continue reading The One Benediction You Need