Spiritual Journey Stages

Understanding the Spiritual Journey Stages

I was raised in a Catholic family, but I spent most of my teens to well into my fifties wandering through what I now understand were different spiritual journey stages. I spent time trying different denominations and reading several versions of bibles searching for answers and God. Honestly I just tried to find God wherever I thought He might be. I didn't know it at the time how lost I really was, or that these spiritual journey stages I was experiencing were part of a larger pattern. I didn't even know what I was looking for just that something felt missing.

A turning point came when I experienced my first healing Mass. I wasn't expecting anything dramatic, but I was prayed over, fell in the Spirit, and God spoke one simple word to my heart: Grace. By this time I was aware that something divine had occurred but honestly, I wasn't sure what to do. It has taken me years before I even started to unpack what that moment meant.

Recently, I picked up the following two books, The Dark Night of the Soul, learning about St. Teresa of Ávila's Interior Mansions, and listening to a lot of really helpful discussions I can finally see that what I went through wasn't random. There are stages people go through in their spiritual life, and I was living them without knowing the names for them.

If you're searching, struggling, or trying to make sense of where you are with God, these stages might help you understand what's happening and why it feels the way it does.

Purgative Stage – The "Cleaning Out" Season ▼

The Purgative Stage is usually where a lot of us start, especially after a long season of wandering. It's a time when God starts pulling up old roots — habits, wounds, beliefs, patterns basically anything that has been holding us back spiritually.

Common signs you might be here:

  • A growing desire to leave old sins behind
  • Feeling convicted about certain choices or attitudes
  • Wanting to know God more but not knowing how to start
  • Lots of "inner stirring" or discomfort that pushes you toward change

This stage can feel messy. It can honestly feel like you’re facing everything at once. But this is where God starts clearing the way for something deeper.

Illuminative Stage – When Things Start to Make Sense ▼

The Illuminative Stage is where clarity begins to break through. Things you used to struggle to understand start clicking — not all at once, but piece by piece.

Typical signs of this stage:

  • Prayer feels a little more natural
  • A desire to grow spiritually becomes steady and consistent
  • Scripture or spiritual teachings suddenly “hit differently”
  • You recognize patterns in your past and see how God was working

This stage doesn’t mean you have everything figured out — far from it. But it’s where God begins to shed light on things that were confusing before.

Unitive Stage – Deepening Union With God ▼

The Unitive Stage is something many of us move in and out of over time. It’s not a "final boss level" for saints only — it’s simply the season when your relationship with God feels steady, honest, and close. This is really saying this section lightly, for me there are more times I am out of this stage than in.

Signs of this stage:

  • A stronger sense of God’s presence in daily life
  • More peace, even when situations aren’t peaceful
  • Less striving, more trusting
  • Prayer becomes more relational than "doing it right"

You may not stay in this stage all the time most people move back and forth. But moments of union with God are real gifts, and they help carry us through the harder seasons. For me the discription of this stage the way I wrote it, is more for a beginner baby spirit. Based on the "Mansions" I don't even know if I could get close enough to this stage.

I wanted to share all of this as someone still learning and growing. I remember picking these books up several years back and I put it down shortly after reading the first chapter, because I didn't feel I was any of what was being said. These spiritual journey stages have helped me understand my own spiritual life in a way that is finally making some sense.

If you're trying to figure out where you are in your spiritual journey, I hope learning about these spiritual journey stages helps things click for you the way they finally did for me.

Spiritual Journey Stages Quiz

A simple reflection inspired by St. Teresa of Ávila & St. John of the Cross

1. How long have you been practicing regular prayer and sacraments consistently?






2. When you pray these days, what best describes your experience?






3. How do you usually feel about your spiritual growth?







4. When challenges come up, how do you respond spiritually?







5. How would you describe God's presence in your life right now?






6. How do spiritual practices (Mass, Rosary, spiritual reading) feel lately?







7. What best describes your desire for God?






Step Through the Threshold: Your Purgative Journey Begins

The Purgative Way isn't just a concept; it's an experience—one of the foundational spiritual journey stages where the real work and the real grace begins. Think of it as entering a unique landscape within your soul, a place where God gently, yet powerfully, starts to reshape you. Understanding these spiritual journey stages can help you recognize where you are and where God might be leading you next.

To help you explore what this might feel like, imagine three doors. Each door opens to a different aspect of the Purgative Way. Click on any door to glimpse a possible beginning of your adventure. Remember, you might walk through one, or all, or none in this particular order – your path is uniquely yours.

A rustic wooden door with light shining through a crack, symbolizing an awakening.

Door of Awakening: Seeing Your True Self

An old, heavy door slightly ajar, with chains broken on the ground, symbolizing release.

Door of Release: Letting Go of What Holds You Back

A modern, clean door with a path leading to a bright horizon, symbolizing new desires.

Door of New Desires: Longing for More

Each of these doors represents a facet of the **Purgative Way**. They are not sequential steps, but rather different angles of the same divine process. What lies behind them is a journey of purification, insight, and ultimately, deeper connection.

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🚪 Door of Awakening: Seeing Your True Self

This is the initial shock of light. It’s the uncomfortable feeling that the life you're leading doesn't align with the person you were made to be.

The Inner Mirror

God holds up a mirror, not to shame you, but to lovingly show you the attachments, habits, or old hurts that are blocking your peace. This is the moment you start taking responsibility for your actions.

What You Might Feel

  • A growing sense of inner **discomfort or guilt** about past choices.
  • Feeling **unsettled** or **unmasked** as old excuses stop working.
  • A sudden, strong **conviction** to seek truth and goodness.

Your First Action Step: The Examen

Commit to a simple nightly practice: review your day to notice where God was present and where you failed. This builds self-knowledge. Start by identifying just **one habit** you want to change, and ask God for grace to begin.

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🔗 Door of Release: Letting Go of What Holds You Back

This is the heavy work of cutting ties with the things that keep you enslaved. It requires effort and often involves genuine grief for the comforting, familiar habits you must leave behind.

Breaking the Chains

Repentance is an **active choice** to turn away from sin and harmful behaviors. It means actively choosing the difficult freedom of God over the easy comfort of the world or your own vices.

What You Might Feel

  • The **emotional strain** of facing past mistakes and making amends.
  • **Initial dryness** or a sense of loss as God removes false comforts.
  • A desire for **reconciliation** or confession (if applicable to your tradition).

Your First Action Step: Forgiveness

Use prayer like the Holy Rosary to **name the chains** you are dropping (resentment, jealousy, addiction). Practice **forgiveness**—of others who hurt you, and of yourself for mistakes made in the past. This act of release is paramount to purification.

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✨ Door of New Desires: Longing for More

This is the sweet part: God gives you an actual hunger for spiritual things. You want to pray, read scripture, and seek goodness, not out of obligation, but because you genuinely feel drawn.

The Taste of Water

This initial zeal is a **gift of consolation**—a spiritual honeymoon to draw you in. Your prayer may feel easy, moving, and clear. This sweetness is fuel, so enjoy it! But know that it won't always feel this way, and that's normal.

What You Might Feel

  • A sudden **affinity for scripture** or spiritual teachings.
  • A strong, genuine pull toward **quiet prayer**.
  • Joy in practicing **acts of service** or charity.

Your First Action Step: Commitment

Commit to a small, non-negotiable amount of time for God each day (e.g., 5-10 minutes of quiet prayer). Seek out a **spiritual mentor** or a reliable friend to share your experiences with. Consistency is the key to feeding this new hunger.

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