Diving into Saint Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle, the Fourth Mansions. The Fourth Mansions are the transitionary stages of prayer into the mystical experiences. Saint Teresa introduces the Prayer of Quiet, where we feel the presence of Jesus.
Diving into Saint Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle, the Fourth Mansions. The Fourth Mansions are the transitionary stages of prayer into the mystical experiences. Saint Teresa explains the differences between consolation and spiritual sweetness in prayer.
Timeline: 00:01:15 Show Intro - The Interior Castle Fourth Mansions Chapter 1 00:01:26 Brief Intro to the Fourth Mansions 00:02:27 Paragraph 01. Graces received in this mansion. 00:06:19 Paragraph 02. Mystic favors. 00:07:17 Paragraph 03. Temptations bring humility and merit. 00:11:11 Paragraph 04. Sensible devotion and natural joys. 00:16:12 Paragraph 05. Sweetness in devotion. 00:18:55 Paragraph 06. Saint Teresa's experience of it. 00:20:40 Paragraph 07. Love of God, and how to foster it. 00:23:38 Paragraph 08. Distractions. 00:25:35 Paragraph 09. They do not destroy divine union. 00:28:11 Paragraph 10. Saint Teresa's physical distractions. 00:30:14 Paragraph 11. How to treat distractions. 00:32:59 Paragraph 12. They should be disregarded. 00:34:34 Paragraph 13. Self-knowledge necessary. 00:35:48 Spiritual Exercises - Contemplation Matthew 1 00:42:48 Conclusion Fourth Mansions Chapter 1
You made it through the first three mansions of the Interior Castle. Your soul has persevered through all the reptiles and trials. In the Third Mansions chapter, part 2, Saint Teresa discusses the importance of renunciation and why we shouldn't ask for spiritual consolations and favors in prayer.
Timeline: 00:00:36 Show Intro - The Interior Castle Third Mansions Chapter 2 Part Deux 00:01:13 Brief Intro to the Third Mansions Chapter 2 00:11:43 Source Material Notes 00:13:39 Paragraph 11. Leave our cares in God's hands 00:16:37 Paragraph 12. Humility more necessary than corporal penances. 00:22:28 Paragraph 13. Consolations rarely received until the fourth mansions. 00:25:52 Paragraph 14. Advantages of hearing them. 00:27:50 Paragraph 15. Perfection consists in love, not in reward. 00:29:32 Paragraph 16. St. Teresa's joy at seeing other souls favored. 00:30:29 Paragraph 17. These graces should be striven for. 00:31:53 Paragraph 18. Obedience and direction. 00:36:53 Paragraph 19. Misguided zeal for others. 00:39:44 Spiritual Exercises - Dan Burke Practicing Discovery Prayer 00:46:12 Conclusion and Review of the Third Mansions Chapter 2 Part 2
We have completed Saint Teresa's First Waters stages of prayer. The Third Mansions was the last stop in beginning-advanced ascetical prayer. In the Fourth Mansions, we will step into the prayer stage of the Second Waters of prayer—the mystical prayer rooms!
The soul has mastered this praying lifestyle. It knows how to pray and contemplate the Holy Scripture. However, the soul has become too aloof in its prayer abilities and frequently experiences consolation during prayer. So, God puts the soul through trials to purge worldly attachments in preparation for the deeper mansions and stages of prayer.
Timeline:
00:00:39 Show Intro - The Interior Castle Third Mansions Chapter 2 Part 1
00:02:08 Brief Intro to the Third Mansions Chapter 2
00:03:11 Source Material Notes
00:06:16 Paragraph 1. Imperfections of dwellers in the first three mansions.
00:09:46 Paragraph 2. Our trials show us our weakness.
00:13: 25 Paragraph 3. Humility learnt by our faults.
00:16:35 Paragraph 4. Love of money.
00:18:39 Paragraph 5. Liberty of spirit.
00:20:25 Paragraph 6. On bearing contempt.
00:21:58 Paragraph 7. Detachment proved by trials.
00:25:59 Paragraph 8. Virtue and humility are the essentials.
I pray you are blessed with this beginning deep prayer series on Tales of Glory. Next time, we're diving into Chapter 2, part 2, of Third Mansions. Our last stop in the ascetical prayer mansions before entering the mystical stages of prayer!
The soul has made great strides and progress in building its interior prayer life. Praying is now a lifestyle, and a relationship with Jesus is flourishing. Then, all of a sudden, the soul feels distant from Jesus, and the momentum of praying stalls. The buckets from the well are coming dry. The soul is frustrated, but Saint Teresa encourages us not to worry because we have entered the Third Mansions of prayer.
Timeline:
00:00:45 Show Intro - The Interior Castle Third Mansions Chapter 1 Part 2
00:04:02 Brief Intro to the Third Mansions Chapter 1
00:07:36 Source Material Notes
00:11:09 Paragraph 9 - The rich young man in the Gospel
00:17:15 Paragraph 10 - Reasons of aridity in prayer
I pray you are blessed with this beginning deep prayer series on Tales of Glory. Next time, we're diving into Chapter 2 of Third Mansions. Our last stop in the ascetical prayer mansions before entering the mystical stages of prayer!
How does the soul know it has entered the Third Mansions stage of prayer life? What are the struggles and trials of the soul as it works to avoid temptation and venial sin? The battle can be so intense that the soul may want to quit or backslide. The soul is capable of connecting with God, yet it now feels distant. Teresa has experienced this, and she shares her wisdom about the Third Mansions!
Timeline:
00:45:00 Show Intro - Growing in Prayer to the Second Mansions
00:01:00 Recap and Viewer Feedback on the Mansions
00:03:12 Third Mansions Chapter 1 Part 1 Introduction
00:06:34 Source Material Notes
00:09:04 Paragraph 1 - Souls in the Third Mansions
00:21:05 Paragraph 2 - Insecurity in this life
00:25:19 Paragraph 3 - Our danger of falling from grace
00:26:47 Paragraph 4 - The saint bewails her past life
00:29:08 Paragraph 5 - Our Lady’s patronage
00:33:27 Paragraph 6 - Fear necessary even for religion
00:35:33 Paragraph 7 - Saint Teresa’s contrition
00:36:29 Paragraph 8 - Characteristics of those in the Third Mansions
00:38:56 Spiritual Exercises - Practicing Third Mansions Teresan Prayer
00:47:52 Conclusion and Review of the Second Mansions
I hope you enjoyed this discussion on the Interior Castle - Third Mansions - Chapter 1 - Part 1. In Part 2 we'll dive into the issue of aridity in prayer - when the well runs dry!
In Tales of Glory 125, we learn from The Shift podcast co-host Meagan Wright how she follows Jesus's voice, builds small communities with souls, and effectively makes disciples. Meagan, a mom, grandmother, creative and contemplative soul, worship leader, and a missionary in her own backyard. Meagan discusses how Jesus led her to the desert to build a spiritual oasis.
Timeline:
00:00:00 Show Intro with guest co-host Meagan Wright 00:01:15 Who is Meagan? 00:09:18 Jesus returns Meagan to her Egypt 00:11:55 Focusing on disciplining people 00:14:55 Permitting changes in life 00:21:06 The importance and simplicity of the soul hearing God 00:22:40 The certitude of a new believer hearing the voice of God 00:25:05 Making disciples 00:33:26 Jesus prepares the tables 00:36:54 Healing the sick soul through community and Jesus 00:41:00 Dealing with the brokenness after deliverance 00:43:15 When deliverance is a journey walked out with Jesus 00:47:08 What’s the craziest supernatural thing Meagan has experienced? 00:52:58 Jesus tells Meagan He is going to build an oasis in the desert
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Show Notes
Support Meagan and Abby on The Shift
Meagan Wright worship music playlist on YouTube The Shift podcast on YouTube
How does the soul know it has entered the Second Mansions stage of prayer life? What kind of struggles and warfare does the soul embrace as it tries to move deeper into Jesus? Over the last three episodes of The Interior Castle, we acquired our fundamental knowledge of prayer life and the practice of His presence, and we are invited to move into the Second Mansions.
Timeline:
00:00:00 Show Intro - Growing in Prayer to the Second Mansions
00:01:15 Recap on the First Mansions
00:01:59 Second Mansions Chapter 1 Introduction
00:05:10 Second Mansions Chapter 1 Overview
00:14:03 Paragraph 1 - Saint Teresa wrote elsewhere on this subject
00:15:04 Paragraph 2
00:15:45 Paragraph 3
00:18:52 Paragraph 4 - Self-Knowledge in the Second Mansions
00:21:05 Paragraph 5 - How God speaks to us in the Second Mansions
00:21:42 Paragraph 6 - Persevering and waiting on the Holy Spirit
00:22:37 Paragraph 7 - The faculties of the soul and spiritual warfare
00:23:32 Paragraph 8 - Spiritual warfare on the soul in the Second Mansions
00:24:57 Paragraph 9 - The will and the love for Jesus
00:25:33 Paragraph 10 - The soul begins a relationship with Jesus
00:27:32 Paragraph 11 - Trials in the Second Mansions
00:28:25 Paragraph 12 - Associate with people who are farther in the castle
00:29:17 Paragraph 13 - Do not petition Jesus for spiritual favors!
00:32:11 Paragraph 14 - Spiritual desires leads to a weak foundation in prayer!
00:32:51 Paragraph 15 - Submitting to Jesus’ will builds a strong foundation!
00:38:02 Paragraph 17 - Place your trust in the mercy of God!
00:39:41 Spiritual Exercises - Practicing Second Mansions Teresan Prayer
00:41:27 Conclusion and Review of the Second Mansions
We're diving into Saint Teresa's fascinating treatise on prayer - The Interior Castle. As we wrap up the First Mansions chapters 1 and 2, we take a slight but necessary detour into Saint Teresa's other books, Life and Way of Perfection, to identify a method of prayer she calls recollection. The soul must understand and implement the prayer of recollection to progress from the First Mansions into the Second Mansions.
Timeline: 00:00:00 Show Intro - Growing in Prayer to the Second Mansions 00:01:56 Recap on Prayer in the First Mansions 00:03:30 Prayer Life in the Second Mansions 00:06:55 Saint Teresa refers back to her earlier writings in Life and Way 00:09:43 What is the ascetical prayer of recollection? 00:21:08 Implementing the prayer of recollection 00:27:24 Spiritual Exercises I. Where’s Jesus? 00:31:10 Spiritual Exercises II. Meeting Jesus at the Fountain 00:35:40 Spiritual Exercises III. Meeting Jesus at the Breakroom Watercooler 00:37:51 Teresan Recollection Comments and Review 00:48:09 Conclusion
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Show Notes
Life of Saint Teresa - her first treatise on prayer
Let us now come to consider who the souls are that enter the second Mansions and what they do there. I want to say very little to you about this, because elsewhere I have written of it at length,
Recollection (Practicing His Presence) is discussed in detail in Way of Perfection XXIX.
Returning to what I was saying, I should like to be able to explain the nature of this holy companionship with our great Companion, the Holiest of the holy, in which there is nothing to hinder the soul and her Spouse from remaining alone together, when the soul desires to enter within herself, to shut the door behind her so as to keep out all that is worldly and to dwell in that Paradise with her God. I say “desires”, because you must understand that this is not a supernatural state but depends upon our volition, and that, by God’s favour, we can enter it of our own accord: this condition must be understood of everything that we say in this book can be done, for without it nothing can be accomplished and we have not the power to think a single good thought. For this is not a silence of the faculties: it is a shutting-up of the faculties within itself by the soul.
Till Next Time
I pray you are blessed by this content and you learn to incorporate Teresan recollection in your prayer time.
Discover how to go deeper in your prayer life with Saint Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle. In the First Mansions Chapter 2, Teresa emphasizes the need for self-knowledge, humility, and a fear of offending God in our prayer life. Following the discussion is a spiritual exercise to use self-knowledge in your prayer time with Jesus.
Timeline:
00:00:00 James 1 v14-15
00:00:32 Introduction
00:02:20 The Interior Castle First Mansions Chapter 1 Recap
00:03:27 The Interior Castle First Mansions Chapter 2 Overview
00:05:33 Some Quick Comments on Mansions and Your Comments
00:19:50 Introduction to Sin - Mortal, Venial, and Occasions of Sin
00:27:34 Our Objectives for First Mansions Chapter 2
00:30:08 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 1
00:31:42 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 2
00:34:10 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 3 - Darkness in the soul
00:36:31 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 4 - The soul in mortal sin
00:39:06 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 5 - Fear of offending God
00:41:46 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 8 - Self-knowledge in prayer
00:47:04 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 9 - Humility comes from self-knowledge
00:54:05 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 10 - The importance of self-knowledge
00:55:42 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 13 - Many ways the soul can enter the rooms
00:57:56 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 15 - Sin and the demonic blind the soul
01:01:50 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 16 - The soul must abandon worldly desires
01:03:55 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 20 - Perfection - love of God and our neighbors
01:05:00 First Mansions Chapter 2 Paragraph 21 - Refrain from indiscreet zeal
01:07:02 Spiritual Exercises - Implementing self-knowledge in our beginning prayer
Discerning Hearts podcasts PDF copy of the Interior Castle - note it is this version I am following the paragraph formatting for the Allison Peers translation used in the TOG podcast.
I pray you were blessed with this information on beginning a deep prayer life. We learned how to implement the virtue of humility and the fear of offending God into our interior life.
Discover profound ways to weaponize scripture in your daily prayer life as we learn from spiritual warfare and dead-raising veteran Bishop Rodwell McLean. Bishop Rod shares his battle-hardened wisdom and thoughtful insight on developing a powerful prayer life, drawn from his experience expelling demons, healing the sick, and dead-raising. Learn how to draw strength from the Lord and His promises in the scriptures.
Timeline: 00:00:00 Opening Scripture Hosea 4 v1-6 00:00:59 Introduction 00:06:34 Greet Bishop Rodwell 00:09:40 Opening conversation about a the importance of prayer 00:13:47 Why doesn't the body of Christ see the kind of results that are written in the Bible? 00:16:20 Hosea 4 v1-6 We are destroyed because we have no knowledge of God 00:23:09 Jeremiah 6 v16-19 God is calling His bride back to the path of the Ancient of Days 00:24:34 Jeremiah 6 v17 The Church will not listen 00:26:25 Joel 1 v14-19 sanctify and call a fast - Cry unto the Lord 00:28:00 The power of sacrifice (fast/denying the flesh) 00:29:20 Moving in power and authority to expel demons 00:31:00 Spiritual warfare with demons 00:33:42 Joel 2 v12-14 return to God with all your heart 00:36:22 Ezra 8 v 23 fasting and going to the Spirit of God where He will hear us 00:37:09 Prayer invites God - divine subpoena to step into the affairs of men 00:38:26 Dead raising testimony and the power of prayer 00:44:15 Standing on faith and scriptures of promising healing and life 00:46:38 Eternity is always in the NOW - God is the Alpha and the Omega 00:47:18 Dead raised man's description of what he experienced in heaven 00:53:28 Dead raising the Church secretary - she walks out of the morgue 00:56:50 Powerful prayer life will bring you results - power of the resurrection 00:59:42 Luke 1:44-45 God will perform the things He said 01:01:29 Hosea 13:14 God will ransom them from the grave! Dead raising promise 01:03:26 Zechariah 2:5 God will be the wall of fire around you and the glory inside 01:04:10 Considerations on dead raising - what if life was stolen through death? 01:05:20 Theology on expelling demons - where do we send them? Dry places 01:09:23 Conclusion
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Show Notes
Scripture from Bishop Rodwell and the timeline where he presented it in the podcast is included. All scripture presented was KJV.
t=00:16:20 (scroll to this time in podcast for Hosea 4:1-6 discussion)
4 Hear the word of the Lord, ye children of Israel: for the Lord hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land.
2 By swearing, and lying, and killing, and stealing, and committing adultery, they break out, and blood toucheth blood.
3 Therefore shall the land mourn, and every one that dwelleth therein shall languish, with the beasts of the field, and with the fowls of heaven; yea, the fishes of the sea also shall be taken away.
4 Yet let no man strive, nor reprove another: for thy people are as they that strive with the priest.
5 Therefore shalt thou fall in the day, and the prophet also shall fall with thee in the night, and I will destroy thy mother.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
16 Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein.
17 Also I set watchmen over you, saying, Hearken to the sound of the trumpet. But they said, We will not hearken.
18 Therefore hear, ye nations, and know, O congregation, what is among them.
19 Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.
14 Sanctify ye a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather the elders and all the inhabitants of the land into the house of the Lord your God, and cry unto the Lord,
15 Alas for the day! for the day of the Lord is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
16 Is not the meat cut off before our eyes, yea, joy and gladness from the house of our God?
17 The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate, the barns are broken down; for the corn is withered.
18 How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture; yea, the flocks of sheep are made desolate.
19 O Lord, to thee will I cry: for the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness, and the flame hath burned all the trees of the field.
12 Therefore also now, saith the Lord, turn ye even to me with all your heart, and with fasting, and with weeping, and with mourning:
13 And rend your heart, and not your garments, and turn unto the Lord your God: for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repenteth him of the evil.
14 Who knoweth if he will return and repent, and leave a blessing behind him; even a meat offering and a drink offering unto the Lord your God?
14 I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction: repentance shall be hid from mine eyes.
I pray you were all blessed by Bishop McLean's sharing his wisdom on going deeper in prayer and getting results when praying in battles. He shared a lot of information with us. Whether you are beginning prayer or a seasoned person who prays, we learned something valuable from Bishop McLean.
In this thought-provoking episode, we explore the intriguing intersection of ascetical and mystical stages of prayer in building a deepening prayer life. Mike delves into the fascinating information in Saint Teresa of Avila's treatise on prayer, The Interior Castle, and unpacks the various forms of prayer she instructs us to use to develop a life-changing, deeper relationship with Jesus Christ. Let's enter the First Mansions Chapter as we learn how to begin to pray!
Timeline:
00:00:00 Matthew 25 v1-13
00:01:43 Introduction
00:04:50 What are our objectives?
00:12:24 What is The Interior Castle?
00:30:12 Ascetical Prayer - First through the Third Mansions
00:31:48 Mystical Prayer - Fourth through the Seventh Mansions
00:37:25 Saint Teresa’s autobiography - Life of Teresa
00:39:10 The Four Waters of Prayer
00:42:39 How do we Enter The Interior Castle?
00:50:36 Prayer
00:55:12 Christian Meditation
00:58:13 Vocal Prayer
00:59:26 Mental Prayer
01:05:06 Spiritual Exercises - Beginning to pray The Our Father
I pray this information blessed you. Whether you are starting out or farther down the road in your interior prayer life, I am sure you picked up something new from this discussion.
In episode 119 of Tales of Glory, we have some amazing guests from Whitney Outreach Ministries—Pastors Don and Maria Whitney. I always think of Don and Maria as the Josh GatesExpedition Unknown of the missionary world. Like Josh Gates, they have some incredible stories in the regions they've served. The Whitneys are personal friends of mine and accomplished missionaries who have built Holy Spirit-driven Bible schools worldwide. Come in, pull up your easy chair by the fire, and meet Tales of Glory's special guests - the Whitneys.
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Show Notes
To bless Whitney Outreach ministries, please use the following information sheet.
Giant 18 foot anaconda we encountered during our 800-mile boat trip in Guyana in 2010.
Till Next Time
I hope you were blessed by our time with Pastors Don and Maria Whitney. They're the real deal and work hard to equip Bible schools in regions that would seem inaccessible. I am blessed to have them as friends. And I hope you will be blessed by their story, too -till next time!
In episode 118 of Tales of Glory, we're having a fireside chat to debrief the ministers who participated in the Spiritual Authority Bootcamp ministry session on Monday, July 22, 2024, at Freedom Culture. Students were trained last summer in spiritual warfare, and we decided to get the class graduates back together to minister in a live deliverance environment and expel unclean spirits. It was a very successful night, and many ministers activated the old Luke 10:17 way using their spiritual authority. It was an inspiring evening seeing ministers learning to walk in their spiritual authority - by praying with live ammo. Lots of Q & A from the session.
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Show Notes
Errata -
Acts 16:16-18 is where Paul casts out the python spirit (of divination).
ESV - 18 And this she kept doing for many days. Paul, having become greatly annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And it came out that very hour.
Thank you for sitting through the podcast. I needed to test and learn new camera equipment. So why not shoot, produce and learn. The iPhone 8+ shot great in 4K. But there are things I need to go back and understand. Like why did the lake shoot all WHITE behind me using default settings. Every piece of equipment has its own quirks to work out and learn Even 5 year old iPhone 8 plus cameras. When I am on a budget of no money you have to shoot with whats in your IT bins. Old iPhones and an old SMOVE mobile stabilizer. I am learning cinematic filming to make the discernment walk through videos more interesting.
Till Next Time
I had an absolute great time with my church family at Freedom Culture Church. Thank you Pastor Marti Souza for hosting this class. And thank you Pastor Bill George for having the vision for the class, putting it together and making it happen!
