The Seven Stages of Spiritual Transformation in the Acts of Paul & Thecla
Soul-Voice Meditation
The question for our soul-voice meditation for Stage One is: what is my soul calling me to do? You can meditate on this question in silence or using the guided audio meditation.
IN THIS SERMON
Stage One is the wake-up call.
There are seven stages to any spiritual awakening, and any good story is a story of someone who has undergone a life-altering change–a calling of some sort has arrived in their lives when they least expect it. That’s the first stage. The jolt, the wake-up call. Sometimes it’s a crisis, a devastating moment of terror, or loss. Sometimes it’s far less apparent; the wake-up call. Sometimes it seems innocent enough, harmless even. Sometimes it just comes in the form of storytelling.
“But Paul, gazing only at Christ’s kindness, did no evil toward them but loved them so much that he made all the words of the Lord, the teachings and explanations of the good news, the birth and resurrection of the Beloved sweet for them. He [Paul] described to them, word for word, the great things of Christ and how they had been revealed to him.” (The Acts of Paul and Thecla– Chapter 1, Verse 2)
“Paul said, ‘Blessed are the clear of heart, for they will see God.” (The Acts of Paul and Thecla– Chapter 5, Verse 1)