It’s only human for us to want to be in control of our lives, to be in the driver’s seat. Sure, we may quickly add that God’s in our life, absolutely! But who is really in the driver’s seat? Whose guidance are we following? Our own, based upon our many years of experience living? Or are we living in the present moment where we listen and watch, with both an open heart and mind, to what is revealed to us through our daily prayer and meditation practices? And, equally important, what is revealed to us as we continue to live each moment, present to what It may be offering us? Are we aware of what that is and then taking whatever action our intuition tells us we need to take?
And I’m wondering if you all have found the quality of your spiritual life challenged by changes you’ve been experiencing over the past year or more. I know mine has. And one of the challenges I’m facing is one I’m sure you’ve faced many times in your life. Perhaps right now like I am. And the challenge has been receiving clear nudges from spirit that I must let go of some things that have been very important in my personal spiritual evolvement.
I’ve found myself questioning with my mental mind whether or not I should listen to the inner guidance I’m getting, questioning whether or not to take the action that would be necessary or could I somehow stretch my day, work faster, or just pull back on my writing, narrow down and reduce the scope of what I’d like to be doing over the next several years? Now who was in the driver’s seat? Who was piloting my life? That’s what this blog is all about: getting back out of the pilot’s seat and into the co-pilot seat where we belong.
The truth is sometimes it is hard to make choices that mean letting go of something or someone that has been such an important part of one’s life.
I remember what it was like when I was at a critical choice point in my life twenty-eight years ago. It had been very clear to me that it was my time to take early retirement. I no longer enjoyed my work—hadn’t for a number of years—and it was evident that I was no longer part of any team of co-workers since my entire department had relocated from Florida to Phoenix, Arizona; I was a “leftover,” relegated to “special projects” with no special projects having been assigned to me for weeks. I was being paid pretty well to do nothing. And it was killing me, literally. It took a couple of episodes of nearly losing consciousness and passing out, while I was driving to work, to recognize the distinct possibility that I was well on my way to having a stroke or a heart attack.
My options were to keep holding on to my job and perhaps hold on just long enough to reach my full retirement age and then not live long enough to enjoy any of those “golden years” people talked about. Or let go and trust that God had more in mind for me. The choice became clear and it was one of the best decisions I ever made, next to getting sober and later marrying my wife. For it offered me the opportunity to step onto a different path, a more spiritual and self-reflective one that led to my becoming a writer and, eventually, a published one at that. Of course, it took me another twenty years to experience a “knowing” of God’s presence and becoming aware enough to recognize I was having a genuine partnership with God and that life was so much more peace-filled and fulfilling when I moved over from the pilot’s seat into the co-pilot seat.
I hope this sharing has stirred some backward-glancing on your part to perhaps see some of your own choice points where circumstances arose, giving you an opportunity to make a shift of some kind, even if it wasn’t necessarily one you freely chose, only now, looking back, you can see how it was the best thing that could have happened to you. Or maybe, like me, you are facing a new crossroad of some kind right now.
So back to the situation I currently am facing.
Last week I’d posted a blog about synchronicities that occur in our lives and how important it is to remain Present to the moment so we can catch a glimpse of the subtle signs that are Spirit’s way of giving us guidance and opportunities which lead us on to fulfill our heart’s desires. Sometimes these are just simple symbolic signs to let you know: “You’re on the right path my child! Keep on keeping on and enjoy these next steps, even if they bring up some old fears and false beliefs! Trust Me, sacred one. It is my good pleasure to give you the kingdom, and I would not offer you anything you aren’t ready for! So, go forth with joy and expectation in your heart and BE who you have come here to BE!”
And in these intervening days since I began to write this blog, those signs and nudges continue to show up for me, assuring me it is safe and necessary that I slip back over into this co-pilot seat and let God have Its rightful seat, so I can focus on what I’m here to do. And by letting go, a void is being created for another person to step in and pick up the torch and allow their Light to shine! And I am once again feeling peaceful, grateful for what is, and appreciative of what’s to follow.
I hope this finds you in a similar space.
Love & Light, Steven