There’s a zen proverb describing the need to meditate every day for 20 minutes – unless you’re really busy, then an hour is needed. So it is in this unprecedented time, that similar spiritual wisdom may be valuable.
Instead of working hard to gain certainty as we navigate through this unprecedented time, what if we need to do the opposite?
What if we could relax into uncertainty, surrendering to the inevitable unfolding of what’s upon us trusting that we will be able to safely navigate through to the other side?
What seems to be calling out to each of us is learning how to have a little faith.
I am not suggesting we do nothing.
I am also not suggesting we ignore the tragic reality we are facing with the more than 36,500 lives we have already lost as cases of this horrific Coronavirus continues to climb.
What Am I Suggesting about Having a Little Faith?
Faith is the quiet compass of your inner landscape that opens a doorway to a calm, clear place within. It’s an inner strength to ward off anxiety, fear and the unknown when you find yourself faced with massive uncertainty.
Photo by frank mckenna on Unsplash
As we find ourselves confined to our homes in a lockdown that has no near end in sight, I want to invite you to explore how far you can take your own faith at a time when most of us have slowed down, and reassessing our lives to remain healthy.
For those working endless hours on the front line in health care or other essential services we depend on – giving our thanks with patience, understanding, and faith in their work becomes crucial supportive energy for the whole field in which we live.
The Experience of Having Faith
Having faith at first, especially during the unprecedented time, can feel like a ping pong match. There’s a bouncing back and forth as part of you wants to believe all will be well, but your current circumstances snaps you back into the practical reality, perhaps one filled with fear.
We believe, and then we don’t believe. We learn to trust, and then get our heart broken. We become cautious, careful, and work hard trying to figure out and control everything.
There’s confusion as we try to figure out who and what to believe.
But when you learn to surrender in faith during unprecedented time, something shifts you into a sacred space of trust. A space I didn’t grow up even having the faintest clue existed. I grew up in an environment surrounded by a lot of certainty.
Having parents who are now retired MDs not only provided stability, but my entire consciousness lived within a narrow scientific and practical mindset that left little room for any ‘holy nonsense’.
Discovering the place of faith for you will depend on your actual experiences. The kind where you’ve reached outside your own comfort zone. Having faith encompasses both science and spirituality, and what’s available to you here is where your own dream for the life you want exists, and the sustainable world we all want begins..
Recognizing What Having Faith Looks Like
The other day my daughter excitedly came into my office wanting to share the story of a young Swedish painter and photographer she found online – Jonna Jinton. My daughter was mesmerized by her experience living so beautifully, creatively and in such close connection with nature.
What immediately struck me was the faith Jonna carried following her heart back to live on the land of her ancestors – alone. She knew she needed to return to her spiritual roots.
I felt like I already knew this woman – she reminded me so strongly of prodigy painter Akiane whose life provided the picture of what this same calm surrender into faith looks like. I had shared her story with my children long ago – the magical way she would ‘pull from spirit’ with how she painted her now >$1million individual art pieces.
Both of these women are tapped into their inner spirit of faith where the impossible becomes possible.
This is one of Jonna’s photographs taken of the rocks she meticulously put into perfect balance after many hours. No…the rocks are not glued together! What happens when we are calm and have faith will astound you.
Many of us have lost our spiritual roots in the busy, results-oriented lives we live today whether in the small towns, bustling suburbs or city life. We can’t see what’s possible from all the external distractions we allow into our field, and when we add enormous uncertainty, it can send us further off course.
I was so moved by Akiane’s paintings I ordered one of her reprints entitled Everlasting for my office. (Akiane: “the blossoms emit the transience of beauty and life, but the memories they leave behind are truly everlasting”).
Where can you add a splash of what deeply inspires your faith at home?
The Unmistakable Touch of Grace
I eventually experienced that having faith goes beyond belief and trust into an unknown, but somehow familiar territory. There’s an unmistakable, and consistent feeling of awe accompanied often by a wave of emotion that isn’t reactive, but breathtaking.
An unmistakable touch of grace.
You’ve gone somewhere deep within that allows whatever outside reality you’re facing to settle into what’s been described as “a peace that surpasses all understanding”.
You’ve let go.
It’s a place where you can release control, fear, anxiety, and judgment to be aligned with yourself carrying your spark of divinity to face whatever circumstances exist in the present moment with serenity.
Discovering the Bigger Picture
Whenever I’m writing or working with a client– I’ll often come across ‘signs and synchronicites’ that tie into whatever way I’m trying to serve. It’s like I’m constantly being guided by unseen forces. Last night I noticed Paul McCartney’s carpool karaoke with James Corden popped onto my screen…
Do you know the story behind the Beatles song “Let It Be”? Paul was going through a really difficult time in the autumn of 1968 (I was born in autumn of 1968).
12 years earlier Paul’s mother, Mary, died when he was only 14. That night in 1968, Paul was struggling, and his mother appeared to him in a dream. Paul says: “there was her face, completely clear, particularly her eyes, and she said to me very gently, very reassuringly: Let it be.”
The next day, Paul wrote the classic “Let It Be”. This writing process is an example of “co-creating with Spirit” for the sharing of comfort it has brought & continues to bring so many people through the generations.
The lyrics are the essence of what it means to ‘surrender’ to a higher faith during unprecedented time. Be open to what’s coming in given how you are showing up to serve in your space.
“When I find myself in times of trouble
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be.
And in my hour of darkness
She is standing right in front of me
Speaking words of wisdom, let it be.
Let it be, let it be.
Whisper words of wisdom, let it be.
And when the broken-hearted people
Living in the world agree,
There will be an answer, let it be.”
That his mother’s name is often taken as the ‘Mother Mary’ is not an accident..spirit reaches us in mysterious ways.
Take a peek, and see what comes up for you..the end was such a nice surprise and magical moment.
Shifting from Fear to Faith
Marianne Williamson’s classic book “A Return to Love” gave me the first real sense of spirituality back in 2009. I was reading it on our first family trip to Disney, and had snuck out to the breakfast area sitting quietly by a window before anyone was up.
As I turned the last page, and looked out the window – the sun was beginning to rise, and gently reflecting on a giant wooden wheel turning slowly in a small pond. A deep feeling of emotion swept over me…
I had that moment of total awe.
Universal Spirituality
There’s a universal spiritual understanding that Marianne teaches in all her material based on her personal study of a revelational set of books published in 1976 known as “A Course in Miracles (ACIM)”.
I never understood my own Christian upbringing – what the words of the Lord’s Prayer or the Holy Trinity really meant. Now I was beginning to connect the dots.
ACIM’s foundational message is that we can ask the Holy Spirit for the miracle that shifts our perception from fear (hatred, judgment, attack, jealousy and guilt) over to a place of love (forgiveness, gratitude, healing and connection to all).
It requires faith.
Finding Your Own Path to Faith
My favourite source of spiritual wisdom comes from the Urantia Papers, which I was led to after seeing 11:11 a few too many times starting in 2010, and questioning what it meant. It is not an easy read of nearly 2,000 pages filled in great detail with our spiritual history, Universe cosmology, and to me the best account of the teachings of Jesus.
Its contents bring everything spiritual I’ve ever encountered into one big organizational structure that finally makes sense to me. I attracted spiritual mentors who have studied this book for decades to share their wisdom, and their personal experiences to make it understandable for my own experience.
When you have a strong intention to grow spiritually – the right people show up.
This excerpt covering just one of many aspects of faith arrived to my daily inbox as I was writing this article…
Photo by Pablo Heimplatz on Unsplash
It requires faith to step into uncertainty without losing our way– something deeper demands we open ourselves up to a powerful force you carry within: a co-creative spirit available to hold a more grounded space during this unprecedented time.
Our world is calling for us to unify our resources, share our knowledge, come together for the good of all against something now detrimentally affecting all of us.
It also requires faith that we are somehow all connected by One Source Creator.
We all need each other to get through this together. To be kind, patient, understanding, compassionate, and non-judgmental. To see the truth in one another, and act appropriately despite our differences.
How can having faith help you navigate through your unprecedented time?
You may discover the miracles of spirt waiting for you.
