Where are you on the path: Illuminative Way → Full Enlightenment → Spiritual Age 19
What happens in the soul?
The prayer begins to extend progressively throughout the day. The Holy Spirit prompts the soul to pray, and it can go through different forms of prayer during the same day: contemplation, meditation, verbal prayer or silence. It is no longer just about reserving certain moments to meet the Good Lord. An increasingly frequent desire to return to Him is born internally. Prayer thus begins to penetrate daily life.
The action of the Good Lord
The Holy Spirit awakens in the soul a continuous desire for prayer. At different times of the day the need to collect oneself, remain silent, meditate, use a verbal prayer or simply remain before the Good Lord may arise spontaneously. God’s initiative, which began to become especially visible with the first graces, now continues to draw the soul toward an increasingly constant relationship with Him.
How do you live?
The search for meditation begins to occupy an important place in the organization of life. The person tries to establish a sober and stable routine, reserving specific times for prayer. The person progressively distances himself from agitation, crowds and unnecessary noise, preferring peace and silence. Some of your attention begins to remain turned inward, in silent dialogue with God, even as you continue to attend to your ordinary responsibilities. For this reason, on some occasions the person may even seem distracted: the person is beginning to perceive spiritual movements associated with the events that occur around the person. However, this does not mean isolation from others. Coexistence continues to be joyful and simple, within the peace and meditation typical of this state.
The prayer
At this age, prayer acquires a particular richness. During the day, contemplation, meditation, verbal prayer and silence can alternate, according to the impulse and need of the moment. The soul also begins to make the first successful attempts at prayer of the heart. It is not yet presented as a fully established prayer - that corresponds to the next age - but the soul begins to experience that its entire being can be gathered interiorly towards the Good Lord. At this stage, spiritual direction is especially necessary, because the person is entering into a form of prayer that they need to learn to recognize and accompany correctly.
Signs that may accompany this age
• Frequent desire to pray throughout the day.
• Interior impulse of the Holy Spirit towards prayer.
• Spontaneous alternation between contemplation, meditation, verbal prayer and silence.
• Increasing search for recollection.
• Preference for a more sober and stable life.
• Greater taste for peace and silence.
• First successful attempts at prayer of the heart.
• Special need for spiritual direction.
A phrase to remember
“Pray without ceasing.”
Where does it lead
The frequent impulse towards prayer begins little by little to consolidate itself. What in this age appears as the first successful attempts at prayer of the heart, in the next will reach its full development. The soul thus approaches a much deeper intimacy with the Good Lord. Age 20 — United soul →