Peter Giokas

Peter Giokas (M.Div, MTS) started his career as a Child and Youth worker. He then worked at Mission Services of Hamilton in a variety of leadership roles. Ordained with the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec, Peter later pastored a church in East Hamilton for several years. More recently, he studied spiritual direction with the Emmaus Formation Centre and, as a spiritual director, he finds delight in seeing people recognize and respond to the Spirit as He draws them into deeper faith, greater freedom and fullness of life. Peter has three grown sons and loves being married to Sandy. He is a student of old and new monasticism and is a member of the Order of the Mustard Seed.

Doug Horst

Doug Horst is a spiritual director with GOHOP and YWAM. In his 29 years with YWAM, he has been to many countries with short-term missions teams. Bilingual, he took his training in Quebec, with an emphasis on the Ignatian tradition, and received his Diploma of Spiritual Accompaniment from St. Paul's University in Ottawa. He is married to beautiful Stephanie and loves spending time with his 7 grandchildren.

As a spiritual director, his delight is to be a spiritual companion for those he accompanies. Together, as fellow pilgrims, led by the Holy Spirit (The True Spiritual Director), Doug and his directees discover truths about themselves, others and God, the good, good Father. Listening well, reformulating, asking good questions, spending time in silence, and connecting with our emotions are useful tools in the process. Doug has no agenda and no answers, but believes that God invites each of His sons and daughters to enter into increased intimacy with Him, and that He has things He wants to say. Typically Doug and his directees will meet once a month, knowing their time together has significance in the eyes of God.

Andy Groen

Andy Groen (M.Div) wears many hats: Husband, father, Executive Director of Greater Ontario House of Prayer (GOHOP) and small-business owner. As a "comtemplative-charismacademic," Andy is student of rich diversity of Christian traditions and has grown and benefitted from a variety of teachers and mentors in the school of prayer. Andy trained as a spiritual director in Tyndale Seminary’s Spiritual Formation program and has over 10 years of experience helping others grow in their relationship with Jesus. Andy and his family live in the Sherman neighbourhood in Hamilton, Ontario.

Meagan Tutti-Peters

Meagan Tutti-Peters is a spiritual director from downtown Hamilton, Ontario who was trained through Emmaus Formation Centre in Mississauga, Ontario. She leads from a Franciscan spirituality but has studied others and loves to see how they connect. She gets excited when people start to discover their true selves and wants to sit with people while they explore their spirituality through invitation, imaginative prayer, and conversation with themselves and God, to find their true self, centre, purpose, and fulfilment in Christ. Meagan is married to JP and together they have two little boys.

Diane Albert

“We were never meant to walk the journey to intimacy with God alone. As a Spiritual Director, I trust the Holy Spirit to guide as I offer my Directees the opportunity to explore where God may be at work in their lives. For years I have been coming alongside my friends on their life-journeys toward God, so it felt so natural, when the opportunity came, to train formally at Emmaus Formation Centre. 

When together, we can explore what spiritual disciplines might be helpful in your formation process.  God speaks to us in various and unique ways, for example in our dreams, so together we will hold space to look at how He might be active in your life. My desire is to provide a contemplative space where two things will happen: honest reflections, and listening to God.” 

Diane is ordained and has been in ministry for over 15 years with extensive experience in cross-cultural, international missions. Diane has been actively mentoring, discipling, and teaching people throughout her ministry. Her formal training in Spiritual Direction is with Emmaus Formation Centre.

She and her husband, Widmark , along with our two married children and their (“adorable”) grandson, live in Southern Ontario, Canada.

Kathy Gust

Kathy Gust is a spiritual director trained at Emmaus Formation Centre. The focus of Kathy’s spiritual direction practice is to offer a welcoming context for people to recognize and reflect on God’s movement in their lives and explore their response to God. As her clients are given room to voice their faith, doubt, and experience of God, it is Kathy’s hope that they will realize an increased measure of self awareness, God awareness, and vitality in their lives. A typical spiritual direction session can include practices such as prayer, silence, reflection, conversation, and formational reading of Scripture.

In addition to her spiritual direction practice, Kathy is a leader of the Barnabas Group. A mother of 4 children who has been married for 21 years, Kathy values family, friendship, authenticity, and learning. She likes to experiment with different creative expressions, enjoys colour, and loves all forms of skiing.

Nadine Gascho

Nadine is a certified spiritual director through Soul Stream, Canada and has an MA in Spiritual Formation.  Nadine is married, a grandmother of nine, and has spent much of her life in missions.  In this season, she continues to offer spiritual direction and life-coaching through video conferencing to individuals around the world.

For Nadine, spiritual direction focuses on deepening one’s relationship with God, while receiving His tender love.  As a spiritual companion and fellow-pilgrim, her desire is to provide a safe space for individuals to share their story, while exploring the journey of the heart.  With the focus on listening for how God is present, she looks to the leading of the Holy Spirit (as the true Spiritual Director).  Sharing openly, honestly, and with transparency becomes an opportunity to grow in the knowledge both of God and of oneself.  Nadine will not attempt to fix, heal, or give advice.  Instead, she will continue to point individuals to the One who can and who, ultimately, transforms hearts.

Whether meeting in-person or through video conferencing, the session is an unhurried, contemplative space.  It may include practices such as prayer and Biblical meditation, paying attention to emotions and physical responses, while pausing to listen in silence.  In response to God’s invitations, there may be a key scripture to take home and ponder or a spiritual discipline to practice between sessions.  Her specialty is coming along side those in missions or in a cross-cultural context.  

As a life-long learner, Nadine values connecting with others through ethnic foods, books, and cozy coffee shops.  Taking time to notice the beauty of nature, while capturing it on camera, gives her much joy.