Our spiritual journey is a very personal adventure. It’s also a highly unique experience, as we will each find our own way. In our inner process, we need to understand the importance of listening to ourselves and find that necessary inner guidance that is always there. We have the right to explore whatever we are drawn to in order to achieve that essential inner peace and understanding. The most important thing for us to recognize is the need to develop self-trust as we engage with the process. This will involve the skill of discerning between what that inner voice is telling us and what is coming from the outside. We must always remember that just because perceived authority figures say something, whether it be religious or otherwise, doesn’t make it true. We need to find our own truth. We need to find what works for us and let the rest go. We must also realize that what works for someone else may not work for us and what works for us may not work for someone else, so let’s afford everyone the same opportunity. When we enter our spiritual path, we will discover the need to take responsibility for it and not rely on others to tell us or show us the way. The path we choose is entirely up to us, but we must remember that our success is dependent on doing the work ourselves. With a little dedication and commitment, we’ll find that it gets easier over time, and we’ll see results within our experience. Our spiritual path can be quite lonely at times, but we can have faith that one day we will become whole. It’s important for us to recognize that our struggles and suffering are only temporary and will give way to greater light, love, and understanding. We must choose it, however, for it doesn’t happen automatically. The pursuit of our life path is always a spiritual one, whether we recognize it or not. Our success will be determined by a willingness to be patient with ourselves and accept things we cannot change. Let’s consider a few reminders and suggestions to assist us along the way:
Question what you have been taught
The biggest misconception we have about our spirituality is that it must be based on a set of rules and practices that have to be followed in order for us to achieve some arbitrary sense of enlightenment or understanding. This is true no matter what our particular religious affiliation may be. The problem with this approach is that the rules and principles within these institutions were established long ago, for the most part. The mistake we make is that we assume these principles are based on ultimate truth and can never change. An honest assessment of any religion or spiritual path reveals that the rules evolve and change over time. These institutions would like us to believe that it is they who have evolved and implemented the necessary changes, but this is not factual. The reality is that humanity itself is responsible for any changes that occur within religion and our overall sense of spirituality. Our awareness of truth and who we are evolves over time through our experience. Spiritual understanding is a very practical matter indeed. Religion and the various spiritual practices become dogmatic when they have no practical value within our current experience. Ultimately, it is us who decide what is spiritually true based upon what we need. Our goal is to always have our spiritual awareness and understanding come from within. We take responsibility for our spiritual development in this way. Blindly accepting a set of rules and principles within any religion or institution does not work, you see. The only real power exists inside our own hearts and minds, as we have the ability to decide what we want to believe and who we want to be.
Practice what you aspire to
There is a myriad of spiritual paths we can take. The important thing is just to choose one. Keep in mind that there is no path currently available that is absolutely perfect. An understanding of love and truth can be found within any path or institution. All are simply vehicles to offer us the opportunity for experience. Whatever it is we aspire to, we must practice and be consistent. We will see results sooner if we choose things that are realistically achievable. Keep it simple. Spiritual values and aspirations take a long time to become established, so we must be patient with ourselves. We can make things real by understanding it as a process over time. It’s about picking a step, staying with it until we are comfortable and have gained some understanding, and then moving on to the next step. We will be successful by not allowing ourselves to be overwhelmed by the bigger picture. It is not possible to establish the complete picture right now, but we can see and experience part of it. Achievement is always incremental, so we must remember to acknowledge ourselves along the way.
Words and beliefs are not enough
One of the problems with organized religion that we encounter is that oftentimes we are attempting to adhere to things through faith alone and expect results thereby. If our religion or spiritual practice is not brought forward through our words and actions, it has no real practical value. This has led to a sense of “self-righteousness” by so many. This is unfortunate. There is the misconception that as long as you “believe”, that is enough to “save” you. Our behavior and actions must always reflect our words. “Practice what you preach” is a very important spiritual understanding. There is no state of perfection exemplified by anyone I have encountered in my life. With this understanding, we only have the right to call someone else out if we are willing to do the same for ourselves.
Formal religion and ceremony
If you find the spiritual practices within your current religion comforting and uplifting, by all means, stay with it. There is no right or wrong here. Some of us want more, and it’s OK to pursue more. There is plenty to be had. It’s important to understand, however, that the feeling of peace is coming from within you and is not necessarily based on what is being preached or presented. The formality of attending religious services or entertaining certain practices is ultimately irrelevant. It is all one God, one world, and one humanity you see. Universal love and understanding can be found anywhere and, in fact, must eventually be found everywhere. Again, we have the need to find the truth as it applies in our everyday living. Our sense of spirituality, therefore, becomes practical in every way.
Always seek truth
It’s important to find something you love to do. This is one of the best ways to bring your spirituality forward and be able to feel what it’s all about. This inner truth and experience is our own, and once established, can never be taken from us. It’s important for us not to forget to share what we have developed and discovered. Spiritual awareness flows into us and out of us, much like our own breath. It’s that simple. So don’t hold onto things and claim them as your own for too long. Let it go and let it become what it is. Discovering our own truth is a challenging process indeed. The difficult part is to be careful not to accept what is being presented from the outside, whether it be from religious authority figures or political authority figures. We of course want to know more about ourselves and our reality. What happens is that we become vulnerable by our own openness. This creates the possibility of being manipulated by all kinds of incoming information. We have the important goal of learning to trust ourselves and not allow these outside influences to affect our thinking and behavior. This takes time, but it is essential in order for us to be truly successful in our process.
Pick a path and get started. That’s often the most difficult part. There is no need to make things complicated. When the process begins, you will find all kinds of things that need to get healed up so that you can feel better about yourself and the world you live in. There is certainly a lot of change and turmoil happening all around us. Please understand that the world will take care of itself by you taking care of yourself. This is the only way. If you need assistance, don’t be afraid to ask for it. There are many people who may be a little further along in the process and are available to help with some important suggestions. When you are ready, they will show up. God or the universe will always provide what is needed. There is never a need to worry. This is a certainty.
All my love and support, stay safe and be well