Ignatius of Loyola, Founder of the Jesuits, came to understand that God could be found in all things. The former soldier to the royal court of Spain, while recovering from wounds sustained in battle, reflected on two books: The Life of Christ and the Lives of the Saints. Through his reflections, he came to see that he was called to be instead a "Soldier of Christ."

Over several months, Ignatius developed a series of principles, prayers, and meditations which over timewould come to be what we now know as "The Spiritual Exercises." As he took his college buddies through these exercises over the course of 2-3 years, they too became inflamed with love for Christ and became with Ignatius the founders of the Jesuit Movement.

One of many significant contributions Ignatius made to Christian Spirituality was the practice of imagining oneself within the biblical passage one is studying. In other words, while praying and meditating on a passage such as the story of the Prodigal Son, you allow yourself to be placed in the heart of the story and may be a bystander or perhaps the Prodigal, the older brother or the father. In reflecting on the lessons learned in these encounters, a person is frequently able to discern movements of the spirit and learn what God is trying to say to you.

Since for Ignatius, God can be found in all things, it is quite alright to enter into these scripture encounters through one's imagination. And while the encounter may not be "Word" to you, it can, nonetheless, be used by God to help move you closer to God's will for you.

While using the Spiritual Exercises, which are often done as a 30 day silent retreat with a minimum of 5 hours spent each day in prayer and contemplation, Ignatius would have us seek to know the grace that God wishes to impart to us each day and pray for God to grant us that grace. Then, during the nightly Examen (a prayerful examination of one's conscience and the movements of the day) one seeks to discern the next grace that God desires for you, prays for God to impart that grace and makes a resolution concerning how the participant will act on the next day in light of the particular grace God has given and the new graces one discerns that God wishes for their life.

In short, Ignatius teaches us to use imagination, prayer, contemplation and reflection to learn the desires that God has for each of us and to help us learn to allow God's desires for us to become our own.

The full text of the exercises is available at the link listed below.