Confession here: I roll my eyes whenever I see a televangelist whip themselves into an ecstatic state. I can do that, too, if I spin myself around for a few minutes. I can also take drugs to induce visions. But none of these experiences are God. A vision or ecstatic experience isn’t “on demand.” They are gifts, secrets, to encourage us to venture further. We have to be discerning about any of these by reflecting on our internal state before and after them. Has our craving for experience conjured something in our imagination? Or do we feel a sense of vanity afterwards, like we’re somehow more advanced in our spiritual walk than others? Ultimately, as Thomas Merton and John of the Cross tell us, we can’t rely on these experiences as our only means of divine connection. We have to let go of the craving.