Amen! That is my desire as well. And for all who call on Him. :)
Alive or Dead to Holiness
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Amen! That is my desire as well. And for all who call on Him. :)
Interesting! Nice analogy. Of course she is going to use an example from the technology of her time! ;) I like using aviation technology. :)
I think we have a common understand...Teresa (of Avila) and I. She also experienced that heart cutting from God. She said she saw an angel with a spear over her cutting into her heart. For me I thought it was a knife...after being held down by invisible hands. But I didn't see anything.
Not to derail your thread, but did you know Teresa was great friends with John of the Cross? She had a rough go, with her superiors and spiritual advisors convincing her that the things she experienced were from the devil. One of them eventually called on John to meet with and advise her and he was the one who freed her from the terror they had given her by telling her that her experiences were from God.
I think I am where you are...! It was such a struggle for me to finally get to that place and to STAY in that trust without wavering, that I feel He is giving me a time of rest (and a little more light exercise and firming) before any more battles. But lately, I have had some...antsiness? But even that feels like a test, or a temptation, to begin fussing over things again rather than resting and waiting for where He takes me next. I begin to hear a voice saying, oh, you are just being lazy and dissipating. But after 10 seconds or so, I just laugh at and refuse the voice and say, shut up, I will wait for Him.
You know, when you think about it, so much has changed in the world, but not so much with The Way...it has always been that men who are in positions they shouldn't be in do harm to men who should be in those very positions...
I'm sure in their day that these were accused of making up their own theology. I looked up the waterwheel explanation concerning grace. Nice analogy.
She is very developed in her step by step entrance into deeper grace. She cites 4 different levels of grace. The deepest level...which is the gift of grace in it's fulness is where everything is easy and the grace overflowing. Where grace rains down and we are passive in that we are crucified and it is God tending the garden. This is so true! :)
I would add one more level to that...walking in the light...where we see Zion and things in the Spirit. A knowing that one is seeing into the spiritual dimension. Seeing as Jesus sees. Walking as He walked (although that 4th level of hers also explains that part).
St. Teresa of Avila and Watering the Garden
But that next level (of my experience) isn't necessary to the victorious walk. When we are filled with the Spirit...in the gift of grace we bear His fruit because He is the One tending the garden.
The 2 years that I walked without sin....were at the 4th level....that she states. It was the original 3 days where I experienced the fifth level.
Otherwise I have been bouncing around between level 1 and 2. There is a missing link for my experience. So her explanation is very helpful.
thanks for this...
Something I read of Teresa years ago profoundly affected me, but it wasn't until I recalled it years later that I had that moment. I think of those moments as...a locked door being kicked down. It was where she spoke to the novices of not being tempted to beg for bread from their benefactors or it would not go well with them.
Teresa was taught a lot by John. What she mentions about the memory, intellect and will is straight from him.
But John dealt a lot with the times we are NOT experiencing those graces in our senses. And he also outlines a perfecting in two stages (with many stages within both of them). I guess the major gist would be that in the dark and thirsty times, He is working in us even MORE than in the wonderful and sweet times.
It's like...he deals with a particular thing in depth that Teresa only mentions in passing. He calls the 2 legs of the journey the dark night of the senses and then a further dark night of the soul.
Anyway, after John taught and helped Teresa, she flourished, whereas before, she floundered around and everything was made worse by her superiors and their instruction. After John, she became bold.
I almost can't imagine reading just one of them. You sort of need to read both of them, even though John is more challenging to read in my opinion. He was, at first, confusing to me, even though I could clearly see he was describing what I was experiencing. Teresa kicked down a door for me, but John kicked down many doors. In fact, there have now been three different Johns who did that for me in my life - John in the bible gospel, John of the Cross, and a third John who I won't mention here. :)
Teresa was taught a lot by John. What she mentions about the memory, intellect and will is straight from him.
But John dealt a lot with the times we are NOT experiencing those graces in our senses. And he also outlines a perfecting in two stages (with many stages within both of them). I guess the major gist would be that in the dark and thirsty times, He is working in us even MORE than in the wonderful and sweet times.
It's like...he deals with a particular thing in depth that Teresa only mentions in passing. He calls the 2 legs of the journey the dark night of the senses and then a further dark night of the soul.
Anyway, after John taught and helped Teresa, she flourished, whereas before, she floundered around and everything was made worse by her superiors and their instruction. After John, she became bold.
I almost can't imagine reading just one of them. You sort of need to read both of them, even though John is more challenging to read in my opinion. He was, at first, confusing to me, even though I could clearly see he was describing what I was experiencing. Teresa kicked down a door for me, but John kicked down many doors. In fact, there have now been three different Johns who did that for me in my life - John in the bible gospel, John of the Cross, and a third John who I won't mention here. :)
I think John of the Cross might say that missing link is sort of not your concern but is Gods work of purifying and growth in the virtues. John has taught me not to fuss too much but to wait in trust. After all of Johns work and the amazing way he labored over the stages, he sort of ended with dropping it all and summed it up with: I must become nothing, I must desire nothing.
I can't talk about Teresa without telling my favorite story of hers. She had to travel to one of the houses she had founded and it was some distance. She was ill, a bad cold I think, and it was rainy and miserable and cold. The carriage got stuck in the mud. She said something like...why are you doing this?? God answered, this is how I treat all of my friends. She replied, yes, Lord, and that is why you have so few!
I think my lack is in my character...I'm missing something in my self-discipline. So I've never been to level 3 as she puts it. I have parachuted into higher levels...but only by the mercy of God. Never by sheer maturity. So these levels give me something to pray about! :)
God makes us Holy. How?
What is purity? Cleansing our hearts, becoming pure, opening our hearts, learning to love in Christ and with Christ. So many believers neither want this or believe they need it. But in truth without a pure heart we will not see God.
So many claim to know God but are impure. Paul says simply the impure will not inherit the kingdom. How many fear this, know how severe God is. Prophet's have died for less, eaten by a lion, for just eating a meal when commanded not to.
Paul knows the King. Pure, blameless, righteous is our goal.
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