Dear Friends,
Last Friday, July 12th,
James Arthur Ray was released from prison.
Ray, you may remember, is the self-help author and motivational speaker who
was convicted of negligent homicide after three people died in a sweat lodge
ceremony he conducted in Sedona in 2009. In addition to the three people who lost their
lives, eighteen other people became seriously ill during this tragic incident.
Usually, a sweat lodge
ceremony is reasonably safe, because the person in charge of this sacred ritual
continually monitors the well-being of the participants, and allows anyone to
leave the lodge if they are experiencing severe, physical discomfort. Although Ray
did not physically restrain anyone from
leaving his ceremony, one survivor of the ordeal claims that those who did
attempt to leave—or complained about their distress—were strongly encouraged to
“push through it.” In other words, they were encouraged to endure their
discomfort, to persevere, and to literally “sweat it out.”
Whether you personally believe
this man was guilty of an actual crime or not, there is little doubt that the
kind of mind-set he was exhibiting, combined with his influence as a trusted
spiritual leader, had—in this instance—a disastrous result. And what does any
of this have to do with living life in the divine flow? It points to the
importance of practicing discernment whenever someone encourages you to “push
through” a problem.
Although the accomplishment
of a goal or the realization of a dream may require a great deal of patience
on your part, the divine flow will never ask you to “push through”
anything—that is, “force” your way forward. Nor, usually, will it require you
to endure extreme conditions of any kind. Generally speaking, the path of the
flow is always one of grace and ease. Instead of being directed to force your
way through an obstacle, you will be
guided to go around that obstacle,
or—through the power of divine love—that obstacle might dissolve right before your very eyes.
That’s not to say that
being in the divine flow always feels completely comfortable. There may be
times when the divine flow will purposely invite you to step out of your
personal comfort zone. But if you look closely at what your personal comfort
zone is, you will see that is usually a “box” that was artificially created by your own personal history and conditioning
. . . and it feels good to finally move beyond that limited—and limiting—space.
It appears, though, that Ray
was doing far more than asking people to move beyond their personal comfort
zone. He was inviting them to tolerate extreme discomfort, and encouraging them
to ignore what their bodies were trying to tell them. There are physical limits
to what the body can endure, and to what the body can do. And even though
professional athletes are continually stretching those boundaries, those
expansions happen very gradually, and in very tiny increments.
Friends, there are going to
be plenty of times in life when you will run into a formidable obstacle that
seems to be blocking you from reaching your desired destination. And there will
probably be well-meaning people around you who will encourage you to “push
through it.” But please remember, no matter what anyone encourages you to do,
and no matter how much you respect his or her advice or opinions, it is up to
you to decide what is best for you.
Never forget that your most
valuable, reliable, and
consistent source of guidance is always your
own intuition. Even if someone makes a suggestion that sounds like it is
“in the flow” and not at all forceful, it is still up to you to access your
inner sense of “knowing” to decide whether that advice is right for you or not.
Regardless of what people
say, or what the signs and synchronicities seem
to indicate, it is always important to practice divine discernment—to get quiet, go within, and get in touch with
that subtle, inner sense that helps you distinguish between “yes, this feels
right for me,” or “no, this doesn’t feel like it is in my best interest.” As
Rev. Suzanne Bishop of Payson, Arizona wrote to me: “I have learned the
importance of taking personal responsibility for my own well-being—to not allow
anyone to override my internal guidance, and to resist the efforts of someone else
to push me beyond what I intuit is good or safe for me at the time.”
I hope you understand that
I am not asking you to always ignore the suggestions of others. In fact—in
addition to divine signs and synchronicities—one of the primary ways that you
receive divine guidance in life is through other people. For the most part,
though, that information should just be used to confirm what your own heart
is telling you. In the end, every decision that you make, and every action that
you take, should be based on the wisdom that lies within—on the wisdom of your
very own inner Spirit.
Steven
© 2013 by Steven Lane Taylor
Steven Lane Taylor, LLC
