If you feel as though you have reached a plateau in your prayer life, or after many years of active prayer, you feel as though you are suddenly stuck, it may be the Lord is calling you to a deeper encounter with Him. The spiritual life is not static, it moves through different phases. And, like any relationship, if it is going to continue to grow, there must be changes in the way we approach prayer. There eventually comes a time in our prayer life when the Lord takes a more active role, and He needs us to begin to detach ourselves from our usual way of finding Him in prayer. This is a process of the Lord moving from our more comfortable and active practice of meditation, to a more destabilizing but interior practice of contemplation. Our primary response must be surrender and receptivity. In this next phase of the journey to God, we must be willing to allow Him to draw us toward Himself, into a place of quiet serenity. This conversation outlines both the prerequisites for this movement and the disposition the soul must develop in order to continue to make progress.
Books:
“Saint John of the Cross: Master of Contemplation” by Fr. Donald Haggerty; Ignatius Press.
“The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross” by John of the Cross; ICS Publications.
The Act of Oblation to Merciful Love of St. Therese of Lisieux
Consummation of Love: From the Depths to the Heights
Battling Scrupulosity and Aridity in the Dark Night: What the Experience of St. Teresa Margaret Redi of the Sacred Heart Can Teach us
The Lord Thy God is a Consuming Fire: St. Teresa Margaret Redi of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Dark Night of the Spirit
More to Learn about Our Lady, Mother of Divine Grace
Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, "Here I am Lord, I come to do Your Will"
The Glories of St. Joseph with Frances Harry
The Use of God’s Gifts with Deacon Rusty Baldwin
Deus Caritas est
St. Teresa Margaret and the Practice of the Presence of God
For the Return of the Prodigal Catholic
St. Teresa Margaret of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and making our lives a Sacrifice to the Lord (PART 3)
Preparing to Receive Jesus in the Eucharist
St. Teresa Margaret's Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (PART 2)
St. Teresa Margaret: The forgotten Saint of Carmel's Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus (PART 1)
Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Tribute to St. Mary Magdalen de Pazzi for her Feast Day
A Journey to the Deep Interior of the Soul (part 2)
Short Takes: Holy Week Poems
A Journey to the Deep Interior of the Soul (part 1)
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