Tag Archives: Release Fear

ACCEPTING THE RHYTHMS OF LIFE

Posted on November 16, 2011 | Leave a comment

“Not everything that is faced can be changed.  But nothing can be changed until it is faced.”  James Baldwin

Accepting Divine Order

When I first heard the term divine order, I latched onto it as way of describing the fluctuations in life that I didn’t always understand.  If a wonderful synchronistic event occurred, I labeled it divine order.  If something thoroughly unpleasant or tragic occurred, I labeled it divine order.  Divine order became the way I described all the mysteries in life.  It explained the unexplainable and helped me to accept what I couldn’t understand.

Learning to accept what is, whether we like what is happening or not, helps us to find peace and erases the resistance that may prevent us from understanding what is occurring.  At times, it may not be clear if what is occurring is a good or bad thing, but by accepting that it is in divine order, we acknowledge it is part of our reality.

Denial Undermines Our Power

People have a tendency to deny the negative experiences of life.  By doing so, we prevent ourselves from growing.  We need to acknowledge all experiences so that, if we are able to improve a situation, we don’t let the opportunity pass by.  Some things can’t be changed, but ignoring the ones that can only makes us feel less empowered or victimized.

The recent events at Penn State are a perfect example.  Many who were aware of the child abuse there chose to do nothing.  They denied and hid what they knew.  They refused to face the horrific effect their lack of action had on many young children.  Being unwilling to face their responsibility to stop this abuse, in the end, led to their disgrace.  Denial only delays the day we have to face the thing we fear.

Accepting What We Cannot Change

Unlike the Penn State disaster, there are events that occur over which we have no control.  The only thing we can control is our response.  A loved one becomes addicted to drugs.  Time after time they make foolish and dangerous choices, and time after time, we talk to them, and love them.  We may pay for them to see a counselor or go through a drug rehab program, but nothing we do changes their behavior.  We have faced the situation and are unable to change it, so we must accept it as it is.

Is the self-destruction of our loved one in divine order?  It is very difficult to believe it is, yet it may be the very experience that will eventually transform this person in a truly positive way.  In the middle of it, we have no way to know.  We can only accept what is and have faith that there is a karmic or spiritual reason for our loved one’s behavior.

Our society has encouraged us not to express negative feelings.  We’re supposed to be positive all the time, and in one sense, our society has encouraged us to deny what we really feel.  There’s nothing healthy about this although it is best for us to be aware of expressing those feelings appropriately.  But denying that we feel what we feel makes it impossible for us to resolve those problems and the issues around them.  We have to face it, if we want to change it.

The Divine Gift of Acceptance

Every year in January, a spiritual group to which I belong has a gift exchange.  We each bring an item that has meant a great deal to us, but one that we are ready to release.  The items are placed on a table and each person gets to choose.  Then, that person explains why they have chosen the gift and the person to whom it belonged explains what it meant to them.  Several years ago, I chose a stone a friend had originally bought at a Deepak Chopra seminar.  Across the stone is written “Acceptance,” and it lies on a table in my family room where I see it often to remind me that I need to accept what I cannot change.  Every year, I think, “I’m ready to let go of this.  I’ve learned about acceptance,” but inevitably life presents me with another lesson to illustrate that I still have more to learn.  I guess I have to accept the fact that I need to keep the stone for at least one more year.  How do you find acceptance with the difficult areas of your life?

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

Related Articles: Acceptance and Surrender, 12 Practical Steps for Learning to Go With the Flow, Dangers of Denial

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TRANSFORMING THE FEAR OF CHANGE

Posted on September 14, 2011 | 8 comments

“People can’t live with change if there’s not a changeless core inside them.  The key to the ability to change is a changeless sense of who you are, what you are about and what you value.”  Stephen R. Covey

Fearing Change

We always have more than one choice in life.  Will we give into our fears in a situation or will we find that core within us that will give us the strength and guidance to go beyond the negative choices that fear dictates?  Carlos Castaneda said about difficulties, “We either make ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves strong.  The amount of work is the same.”

We live in a time of enormous change and fear.  The Universe, our lives, the structures of nature and government are changing and evolving.  Even Facebook has just made some changes.  Every time I go to the grocery store, I have to hunt for a product I have bought for years because its container has been redesigned.  Our DNA is changing.  Everything is evolving toward an experience of Oneness that will create a new and more cooperative world, but it sure is a pain sometimes.

At our best, we just give up and flow with what we can’t change.  At our worst, we fight the change every inch of the way building a wall of useless resistance.  We wonder if we will survive this.  We fear the consequences because the unknown is always a scary place, unless….

Finding the Spiritual Gift of Change

How often do you consider the possibility that the changes in your life may be good?  When I had to give up being a dancer, I thought, “Who am I, if not a dancer?  As the years passed and I looked at who I was more deeply, I realized what a narrow definition I had given myself.  I was much more than a dancer.  Now, if you ask me who, I will say, “I’m a creative and spiritual person.”  These aspects are part of my core.

When we choose to feel miserable about the changes in our lives, we choose to be less and see ourselves as the victim without any power.  Although this may seem like the easy way out, it isn’t.  Our most powerful strength is not the strength we use to fight against change; that will only defeat us.  What we resist, persists.  The strength that we need to develop in these changing times is unrelated to the exterior.

Awakening to the Strength of Our Spiritual Core

When we meditate or sit with Nature and escape from the external worries of our lives, we find that quiet, centered place where we connect with Spirit and our own soul, for they are One. When life is raging around us, being able to stand in a place that is peaceful allows us to make wise choices.  From this place, we can release our fears, separate ourselves from the outer discord, and look within our hearts and souls for the best answers.  When we choose to stand in our own inner power, we empower ourselves.

While I can’t say change never bothers me, I have learned not to fear most of it.  Many times I don’t know the answer to my most current challenge, but I know that if I stay in touch with who I really am, I will find the answer.  I know there are lessons in all experiences, and I know a significant experience may appear out of nowhere.  I have learned to see life as a wonderful mystery and I’m willing to take the ride, even when it gets bumpy.  I have had many challenging experiences in life, but whenever I have chosen to be strong rather than miserable, amazing opportunities and lessons have appeared.

What path do you choose today?  What do you think about Castaneda’s comment?

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

Related Readings:  How Simple Thinking Leads to a Brilliant Mind, The Change Paradox:  Transforming Fear into Excitement and Opportunity

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AWAKENING TO THE PEACE AND WHOLENESS BEYOND FEAR

Posted on September 7, 2011 | 7 comments

Release Fear and Awaken to the Dance

Beneath every negative emotion is fear.

Every psychological fear blocks us in some way from receiving the guidance we need to find peace and know the best action to take.  Without fear, we can stop saying, “What’s wrong with me?” and begin to say, “What can I learn from this experience?”  Self-judgment has no value.  Without it, we can reflect on a situation and gain insight and inspiration.

We all have moments when we feel we are not good enough or have handled a situation badly.  Our inner critic recites the long list of our deficiencies, blaming us for every experience that did not manifest in the way we wished.  We may be, in fact, very compassionate in our interactions with others, but forget to offer ourselves the same kind of consideration.  To awaken to the dance of life completely, we must have this compassion for ourselves.

Wholeness, the Gift of Accepting Who We Are

One of the most profound ideas I have ever read comes from Oneness by Rasha.  “Those moments when you judge yourself most harshly and in which you feel you let yourself down are the moments most deeply yearned for as a soul.  For, in the moments you look back upon with regret—the ones that conjure up within you the most profound humiliation in your own eyes—are the moments for which you chose a human incarnation.” (p. 237)  “And in your embracing of all that you Are—and in your acceptance of all that you are not…is the unconditional gift of wholeness that awaits you.”(p. 238)

We do not have to be perfect to be whole. If we had reached a level of consciousness where we no longer needed to learn lessons, we would not be on this earthly plain. It is our ego’s pain and feeling of lack that feeds the fear that we are not good enough. Through the fears that surface, we glimpse the shadow, that darker side of our unconscious, and we are able to see the issues we need to address.

How To Release Self-Judgment

Last week I tried to communicate with a friend by email.  It was clear he had misunderstood something I said and he seemed to be avoiding the issue.  I was frustrated, thinking, “What have I done wrong here?” After pacing the floor a bit, I released my fear that I had offended him and asked, “How can I best bring peace to this situation?”  I felt calmer, and in a moment, a positive, light energy rose in my body, and I knew I needed to call him and arrange to talk face to face.  When I called, he eagerly suggested we meet for lunch.  As a result, we had a wonderful, open talk and parted with peaceful feelings toward one another.

When we find ourselves in these self-critical modes, we need to look beneath the surface issue and ask, “What is it I fear?”  Then, we need to release the fear, so that our minds are not busy coping with the fear.  Once we have released the fear, the mind feels clear and we can ask, “What is the best way to solve this problem?” or “How can I create peace out of this discord?”

When we do this, we shine light on our darkness.  We become open to identifying the lesson we need to learn.  Inner guidance will appear to guide us in the best direction.  Free of fear, we are able to let go of self-judgment.

 Finding Inner Peace Beneath the Fear

Evaluating and revising is a helpful learning process.  We all have to explore and experiment in order to learn.  Sometimes we will find the right answer; sometimes we won’t, but being afraid to try a new approach blocks our ability to learn.  With these fears released, we can find solutions and awaken to the peace that lies beneath our fears.  When we are able to accept all these parts of ourselves, we will experience wholeness.

What fears do you need to release?  How do you find peace?

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

If you are interested in my upcoming “Release Your Fear” workshop on September 18 when I teach a specific technique for releasing your fear, see my Workshop page.  Advanced registration is not required.  All are welcome.

Related Articles:  Spiritual Practices: Shadow, Shadow Exercises

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AWAKENING SPIRIT TO THE COMEDY OF LIFE

Posted on August 9, 2011 | 2 comments
Jumping Over the 3rd Largest Pyramid in the World by Anirudh Koul

“What a wonderful life I’ve had! – I only wish I’d realized it sooner.”  Colette

I used to think that happiness was created “out there” by other people, food or music, or things going my way.  Now I know it comes from within and that I can choose my experience.  I can write my own spiritual script.

“All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players.” Shakespeare 

Playing the Enlightened Fool

Our lives are the most important story we will ever write and this physical existence is the stage where we have chosen to play out our stories.  Is yours a comedy, tragedy or melodrama?  Although mine often feels like a tragedy or a melodrama, I try at least to give it comic overtones.  Sometimes I enjoy playing the fool, who, if you remember from Shakespeare’s plays, was often wiser than the hero.  The fool was often the means by which the power of the time was encouraged to laugh at itself.

When my ego begins to think it’s going to run the show, I try to play the fool and laugh at myself.  There was a time when I couldn’t do this at all.  I was a very insecure young person and very self-conscious, always afraid of someone’s criticism or of being rejected.  I was very serious about everything and considered too much laughter trivial.  I couldn’t stand to be laughed at.  Now I revel in it.

Laughing for Spiritual Well-Being

One aspect of happiness is being able to laugh at ourselves.  This is such a gift.  If we can laugh at our shortcomings and mistakes and accept our humanity, we can avoid the kind of self-criticism that tears us down.  It’s always wise to take a good look at our mistakes and understand how to avoid them or correct a problem we’ve created.  But it’s not spiritually healthy to become attached to our negative thinking.

Laughing at our foibles lifts up our energy vibration.  When we’re happy, we’re more likely to make positive decisions and find positive solutions to problems.  Playing the fool once in a while helps keep us from taking ourselves too seriously, for taking ourselves too seriously often sets up a resistance that creates more problems.

Releasing Resistance Frees Us

The most important resistance we need to avoid and release is the need to be right.  This is often the flaw we see in Shakespeare’s tragic characters.  Unable to view their challenges with a more flexible mind set, they follow a path that eventually destroys all they value.  Like these characters, we may become so attached to a particular point of view that we are unable to see the weaknesses in our thinking and plunge headlong into a disaster.  Laughing at ourselves or being laughed at can often break this unhealthy attachment and release the resistance.

Choosing the Gift of Happiness

I love this quote by Colette:  “What a wonderful life I’ve had! – I only wish I’d realized it sooner.”   What are you focusing on in your life?  Are you making the time to enjoy Nature, your friends and family or creative outlets? Are you finding something to be grateful for each day?

In order to experience happiness, we have to be thankful for what we have and willing to let go of our need to control life.  The best laughter usually comes from the unexpected.  Caught by surprise by a spontaneous comment or response, we let go and enjoy the foolishness of the moment.

When I say things that really make people laugh, they are always unplanned and leap from my mouth before I even know what I intend to say.  From some place of inner joy or mischief, the idea leaps forth into being.  I’m always delighted when I can make others laugh, even when I embarrass myself.  No matter what is happening with the stock market, world economy, or the Turkeys on The Hill (as in D. C.), we all need some comedic interludes.  We need to remember that childhood joy is still alive in us and if we can’t solve our problems today or even tomorrow, we can celebrate our humanity and laugh it up.

Feel free to share a comment, a funny joke, or absurd thought.  Let’s laugh it up today.  We probably all need it.

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

Related Link:  Seven Secrets of a Joyful Life – Wayne Dyer

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INTUITION – THE VOICE OF OUR SPIRITUAL CORE

Posted on August 3, 2011 | 2 comments

“It is always with excitement that I wake up in the morning wondering what my intuition will toss up to me, like gifts from the sea. I work with it and rely on it. It’s my partner.”  Jonas Salk

Listening for Intuition’s Wisdom

 The longer I live, the more I rely on my intuition.  My journals are full of entries describing how I ignored it and the unfortunate consequences I experienced as a result.  The most difficult times to follow it are when it advises me to do what I don’t want to do.

In February 2011, writing and working intensely on the computer to set up a blog and learn to use Facebook, I foolishly ignored the warning my intuition was sending me verbally and through the tension building up in my back.  I woke up one morning with sciatica down the right side of my body. It was the most intense pain I’d ever experienced. It took about six months to recover with acupuncture to relieve the pain and physical therapy to correct my posture and strengthen my core.

In this case and in an accident four years earlier, my physical core was weak and out of balance despite the regular exercises I did.  The key to my physical recovery was building strength in the core muscles of the abdomen with daily exercises, and taking the stress off the lower back where the latest injury originated.

Strengthening Our Spiritual Core

 But more importantly, I needed to correct my spiritual core.  In both instances, I had allowed ego’s fears and needs to override my intuition’s advice.  In January, I had set a goal to have certain things done by the end of the month, no matter what! My ego, so much noisier than my intuition kept reminding me of this.

We have to remember that ego loves to feed off of what is negative.  It demands our attention.  So how can we develop the discipline and awareness to stay in touch with our core intuition?

 Ways to Stay in Touch With Intuition

Sitting in the silence is an important first step.  When we are centered in silence, we are most likely to hear Spirit speaking to us through intuition.  In those moments we are connected to Source, our loving partner, and its words are gentle.  When something starts pushing, it is ego.  When we feel fear, it is ego.  When we are being pushed toward an extreme or to the edge of endurance, that is ego.  The practice of listening in the silence teaches us to discern if the voice we hear or the physical response we feel is ego or intuition.

Secondly, we have to release our fear for it only feeds ego.  We can sit quietly and direct our minds to release whatever fearful thought has arisen.  As we make the statement, “I release this fear,” it is helpful to take a deep breath and in the body feel the tension of the fear release.  With the fear gone, there is space for our spiritual guidance to come through and for us to hear it.

I also believe intuition speaks to us in other ways: through the words of others, the ideas we encounter through reading spiritual books, through experiences in workshops and spiritual gatherings.  When we feel that “Ah, ha,” intuition is saying, “Listen, this is for you.”

So, during this next week, let’s find moments to listen to that partner inside that loves us enough to say, “This is for you.”  And let’s have the good sense to follow its advice.  Like Jonas Salk, let’s remember that what our intuition brings to us is a gift that is always good.

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

Related Readings:

What is Spiritual Guidance?

What is Intuition? Eckhart Tolle

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AWAKENING TO THE END OF SUFFERING

Posted on June 8, 2011 | 2 comments

Do We Have To Learn Only From Suffering?

One day it occurred to me that I had always believed that suffering was a good thing and the primary way we learn, and I thought “why?”  Why do we believe that spiritual awakening and growth always come through negative experiences rather than through positive ones?  This, in fact, is the philosophy of most of our world.

On the day that I asked, “why?” I was fed up with negative experiences.  I thought about the life of children and how they cannot learn how to love if they are not loved.  The interactions with their parents teach them how to be human beings, for better or for worse.  It is common knowledge that criminals who commit horrendous crimes are often victims of abuse or are mentally ill.

Learning From Positive Experience

While it is true that we can learn from suffering, we need to come to understand it is not the only way.  On the day I asked “why?” I declared to the Universe, “I no longer want to learn from pain and suffering; I want my learning to come from positive experiences.”  I declared it loudly with great emotion.  What manifested were several experiences where people expressed ideas that, unknown to them, helped me to avoid mistakes or offered me deeper insights about situations.  I was reminded again how important it is to listen.

But of course, most suffering is self-inflicted.  It’s all in our minds.  We create elaborate stories to prove we are being hurt.  We’re sure a friend is unhappy with us only to find out we haven’t heard from her because there was a crisis in her business or family or she has had endless company.  We’re sure we’re going to be fired when the thought has never entered our boss’ mind.  We tend to expect the worse and by doing that we draw unpleasantness to us.

When I declared I only wanted to learn from positive experiences, I did understand that it was really me, not the Universe, that would have to change in order for that to occur.  When a problem arose, I tried to stay in a frame of mind where I expected to find a positive solution.  This often required me to first release any fears about the problem.  I also chose to avoid contentious people and situations and take responsibility for staying centered.

Letting Go Of Suffering

One very scary practice I’ve used a couple of times in my life is to affirm, “I release from my life all those people and circumstances that do not support the Divine Plan for my life and welcome into my life those people and circumstance who do support the Divine Plan for my life.”  This is what I call “cleaning the spiritual closet.”  Do not take this lightly!  I am often surprised by the amazing results of this practice.  Even when the losses from taking this action hurt, I’m always able to see what happened was for the best.  Most importantly, it reminds me who I am.  I am a spiritual being first.

The last time I did this, a really loving person became more friendly, a person I thought had dropped out of my life returned with a more supportive attitude, a totally new and loving person came into my life and a couple of negative people dropped away.  Not a bad response to one affirmation.

 Choosing A Cheerful Soul

In the end, this is just another way to let go and to get in touch again with our Divine purpose.  Eckhart Tolle explains how to end suffering better than I ever could, so please click on his name and listen to his five minute video.  We may have to experience suffering at times in our lives, but we can choose to leave it behind.  Have I succeeded in creating a life where I never have to learn through suffering?  Well, no.  It’s still a work in progress.  But more and more, I feel positive about life and am cultivating a soul that is cheerful rather than sad.  Friedrich Nietzsche said, “There is one thing one has to have: either a soul that is cheerful, or a soul made cheerful by work, love, art, and knowledge.”  I’m with you, Freddy.  I’m gradually awakening to the end of suffering and I hope you are too.

Please comment and share your thoughts and responses.

The source of much of our joy is finding our passion.  Read more at “Finding the Fire.”

© 2011 Georganne Spruce

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BEING THE RIGHT ONE, Part 4, Releasing the Fear

Posted on May 4, 2011 | 5 comments

Eckhart Tolle says, “Joy does not come from what you do, it flows into what you do and thus into this world from deep within you.”

 Have you ever noticed that when you feel joy, you are totally free of fear?  Joy is really love, for when we feel joyful, we feel loved or feel loving.  It’s all one.

Years ago when I had chronic fatigue syndrome, I awoke one morning, and as I lay in bed still feeling weak, a soft cool breeze blew over me.  This was New Orleans in the summer, so a cool breeze was no small thing.  My cat lay purring next to me.  Suddenly, I was flooded with joy.  It welled up within me and I felt profoundly grateful for being alive.  For a moment, I was totally free of all the daily fears that I would never recover, feel energetic again or be able to live a normal life.  For a moment I was free of the daily depression I had experienced for three years.

In that moment, I realized the joy was always there within me and had nothing to do with what was happening in my life.  I could draw on it at any time.

 Fear Can Block Joy

When we believe joy resides outside us, we are always looking in the wrong place.  But sometimes we do not realize that joy is within us because it is buried deep beneath layers of disappointment, anger, frustration, and other negative emotions that can be heavy to lift.  All negative emotions are caused by fear, so in reality our fear is what blocks our ability to experience love and joy.  Only when we release our fears and clear the mind can love and joy flow to the surface.

The Effect Of Fear On The Mind

We all experience fear sometimes, but what is important is that we learn not to let it control us.  As long as we experience fear, it will block our mind’s ability to pull through information that will help us solve the problem that has created the fear.  Fear will only pull through information that helps us cope with the fear.

 How To Release Fear

When fear arises, we must direct our minds to release the fear, and if we are willing to let it go, a peaceful feeling will replace it.  As I direct my mind to release the fear, I often take a deep breath and exhale in order to feel the release throughout my body as well as my mind. When the fear is released, the mind will be clear to pull information from our memory and the spiritual realm that will help us solve the problem that stimulated the fear.  We will always be given the guidance we need when we need it.  If a clear solution does not appear immediately, just know that it will come in time.

By using meditation, practicing gratitude and releasing our fears, we can become more spiritually conscious and awaken to a calmer, more joyful life, empowered from our centers.  When we are the source of our own joy and feel good about ourselves, we become “the right one” and draw to us those people and experiences that will enlighten and enliven our lives.  Learning to release our fears allows us to have access to the wisdom of the Universal Mind, Spirit.          © 2011 Georganne Spruce                   

Similar topics are discussed in Oneness  and The Vortex.  See the side bar.

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