Stop Looking for the Short Cut
An interesting this has been happening lately. People keep approaching me and asking what l am doing differently. Did I change my hair? Have I lost weight? Nope. The only thing I’ve changed is that I’ve doubled my spiritual practice. And this change is apparently significant enough that it’s visible on the outside as well as the inside. It’s a real, palpable shift. Nothing changes a person like committed spiritual practice. Those core practices of affirmative prayer and meditation bring us closer to the in-dwelling Divine Source. Spiritual practices like journaling, healing and forgiveness work, spiritual reading and contemplation, chanting and singing sacred music – every bit adds to our spiritual centering and grounding.
Every week, I sit with people and help them find their limiting beliefs and assist them in choosing a new belief that is a better fit for the life they want. We pray over this new idea, knowing that it is already present in their life right now. (If you’ve ever wondered, that’s basically what we do in a Spiritual Mentoring session.) I give spiritual practice homework. (Fair warning, if you ever come to me as a client.) And then, I almost always get the same closing question. “But how? How do I change to this new belief? I still believe the old belief.” The answer is in the homework. Committed (read daily, substantial and non-multi-tasked) spiritual practice IS how we change our beliefs. It’s how we become calm. It’s how we heal our wounded hearts. It’s how we forgive. It’s how we do EVERYTHING. And yet, every day I hear, “It takes too long.” “Meditation doesn’t work for me.” “I don’t have time.” “It’s boring.” “I feel weird saying a prayer or chant out loud.” “Isn’t there something that works fast?”
STOP LOOKING FOR THE SHORT CUT! Here’s the deal, folks. Daily committed spiritual practice IS the short cut. Let go, right now, of the idea that any one practice or workshop or book will have your answers. As Marianne Williamson says, you already know everything you need to know. You don’t need another book. What you need is to remember what you already know, and spiritual practice is where we do that. This is what I’ve figured out. Most people are doing life the hard way, hurting all the time and feeling empty. A life of committed spiritual practice is the short cut to a life of feeling connected, of watching our old hurts fade away. Yes, it can be a bit time-consuming. Compared to a life of suffering, what’s an hour or two a day? Spiritual practice is the short cut. It’s the only thing I know of that is GUARANTEED to make me feel better, to open my heart, to soothe my soul. It’s free. It’s easy. It works, every time.