Key Takeaways
1. The Three Circles of Self: Where, How, and Who
When I move inward toward the center of myself, I move closer to the person I most truly am before God.
Understanding self. Our lives unfold across three concentric circles: 'Where' encompasses unchangeable facts like genetics and upbringing; 'How' represents our choices and responses to events; and 'Who' is our deepest, true self before God. Most of our conscious energy is spent in the 'Where' circle.
Power of choice. The 'How' circle is where we exercise agency, making choices that shape our character and subtly influence the world. However, true transformation begins by venturing into the 'Who' circle, a dangerous but essential journey to confront our authentic self.
God's dream. This inner journey allows the 'Godseed'—the immanent God within—to germinate. Prayer acts as Sabbath time, a radial movement into our 'Who' center and back out, transforming our 'Where' with Kingdom values.
2. Godseed and Sabbath Time: The Core of Inner Transformation
My Godseed, I believe, is nothing less than the immanent God at rest in my heart, waiting to be expressed in an act of germination, of resurrection.
Inner potential. The 'Godseed' represents the divine presence within each of us, a unique manifestation of God waiting to be brought forth. Its germination is triggered by moments when the transcendent God touches our lived experience, taking root in our hearts.
Prayer's role. Prayer is not merely a linear activity but a radial journey into our 'Who' center, nourishing this Godseed. It's our most profound reality, allowing God's Spirit to penetrate our deepest self, including our problems and pain.
Transformative cycle. This inward movement, followed by a return to our 'Where' in the world, brings subtle yet powerful transformation. It infuses our daily lives with Kingdom values, carrying our needs and longings back to God's heart, fulfilling His dream for us.
3. Discernment: Navigating Life's Currents with Consolation and Desolation
When in desolation, don't make life-changing decisions, and don't go back on a decision that you took during a period of consolation.
Inner compass. Ignatian spirituality teaches us to track our moods, recognizing 'consolation' as feelings of peace and 'desolation' as inner turmoil. These are not just good or bad feelings, but indicators of our orientation towards or away from God.
Tides and winds. When moving towards God, good spirits feel like a supportive wind, while bad spirits cause turbulence. Conversely, for those drifting away, destructive forces feel beneficial. This discernment helps us understand the underlying patterns of our emotional landscape.
Tunnel wisdom. A crucial rule for desolation is to avoid major decisions or reversing choices made in consolation. Like a boat in a dark tunnel, turning back leads to shipwreck; we must trust the journey will end and continue forward, even when the path is obscured.
4. The Deepest Desire: Unveiling God's Will in Our Hearts
God's will—his desire for me—and my own deepest desire (when I am really living true) are one and the same thing!
Source of energy. Desire is our vital energy, manifesting as 'root desires' (for security, nourishment) and 'branch desires' (for expression, connection). Yet, conscious desires often leave us unfulfilled, pointing to a deeper, unspoken longing.
Listening to answers. By observing God's actions in our lives, we can discern our deepest desires, as God continuously responds to them. This paradoxical approach means we hear our prayers by listening to the answers, aligning our will with His.
Conflict and peace. Our desires often conflict, but every choice we make reveals the stronger desire. At our deepest center, where conflicting desires are integrated, we find profound peace—the "eye of the storm"—where our true desire aligns with God's, making us indestructible.
5. Attachments and Freedom: Letting Go to Live Fully
My hooks are the entry points in my life for the negative, destructive movements.
Desire vs. addiction. Natural desires become destructive addictions when they excessively pull us out of balance, leading to compulsive behavior. These 'hooks' can be people, ambitions, or circumstances we feel we cannot live without.
The cost of clinging. Being 'hooked' drains our energy, distorts our perspective, and makes us vulnerable to negative influences. It prevents us from making choices in inner freedom, forcing us to arrange our lives around these dependencies.
Pathways to detachment. Detachment, or 'balance,' means making use of what leads to life and letting go of what doesn't. This painful process of 'unhooking' reveals a solid foundation beneath, allowing us to stand freely and embrace God's buoyant love, like an empty bottle floating.
6. Truth and the Gap: Meeting God Where We Truly Are
God is in the place where we truly are because that is where he is offering us his healing, his forgiveness, his strengthening, and his empowerment.
Pilate's question. "What is truth?" is a central question, often asked from a place of diversion or deep unease. We often operate from 'false reference points'—where we think we ought to be, or what others expect—creating a gap with our true self.
God in the gap. God, being truth, cannot reside in falsehood. He meets us precisely in our true place, in the honesty of our feelings and acknowledgments. He is also present in the 'gap' between our false self and our true self, bridging it with His grace.
Energy of truth. Acting from our true center, aligned with our deepest desire, unleashes a new source of energy—the Holy Spirit. This 'freedom for' a transformed way of being is more profound than 'freedom from' oppressive situations, leading to peace that passes understanding.
7. Imaginative Prayer: Cultivating Intimacy with the Lord
To be close to the Lord in his human living, through this kind of prayer, is to be close to the spring.
Deepening friendship. Imaginative prayer invites us to become active participants in Gospel scenes, linking Jesus' life, death, and resurrection to our own. This fosters intimacy, allowing us to reveal ourselves to God and listen to His personal word.
Rules for engagement. In this prayer, we must never moralize or judge ourselves, but respond from the heart, acknowledging all feelings. Its authenticity is tested by its fruits: does it bring lasting peace, open our eyes to others' needs, and align with God's consistent ways?
Finding God in all things. This practice sharpens our 'inner lenses,' helping us see God's presence in everyday moments and the 'inscape' (inner mysterious reality) of all creation and people. It strengthens the 'net' of human connection, making us more attuned to God's indwelling love.
8. Calvary and Resurrection: Finding Redemptive Power in Suffering
When our suffering is connected in prayer to God's, it becomes, like his, redemptive.
Sharing the passion. The Third Week of Ignatian Exercises invites us to connect our personal pain to Jesus' agony in his last days. This intimate prayer reveals our own implication in his suffering, and in turn, His powerful presence in ours.
Consecration's cost. This is a personal Eucharist, drawing us into Christ's consecration to consecrate us for service. It means offering our suffering to be joined with His, transforming it into redemptive power not just for ourselves, but for the wider human family.
Piercing the darkness. In Gethsemane, Jesus' "Thy will be done" transformed his pain into a redemptive shaft of love. Similarly, when we embrace our own darkness with trust, we pierce it, becoming 'star makers' who open new sources of light for others, leading to resurrection now.
9. Becoming an Expert Witness: Living Out God's Dream
I can give him back—fulfilled—the dream he first had of me when he created me.
Expert evidence. We are called to be 'expert witnesses' for Christ, not just with words, but through the lived experience of our faith. An expert, from Latin 'experior,' is one who has tried, risked, and contended, offering proof of God's reality.
Three tests of witness. To be an expert witness, we must ask: Have I tried walking with God daily? Do I trust my own experience of Him enough to follow? Will I let that trust show in my actions, even when it means swimming against the current?
Fulfilling the dream. Our ultimate gift to God is the fulfillment of the 'Godseed'—the unique dream He has for us. This involves surrendering lesser desires, embracing the 'dying' that leads to resurrection, and carrying the transforming experience of the Trinity's perfect love into our world, day by day.
