“Honor your calling. It’s why you were born. And how you become most truly alive.” ~ Oprah Winfrey
If you believe in the concept of the soul-calling, then you believe that every person is contracted to bring some aspect of their inner super power into the world, in order to assist the evolution of humankind. The expression of this can be loud or soft, giant or barely visible. But every single person on this planet has a gift they are meant to share outwardly, even if it’s simply a generous smile.
If we’re aware we are meant to connect with our soul-calling we will often feel a powerful force gently reminding us of our purpose, even if we don’t yet understand what that is. We may be experiencing universal synchronicities (hints from the ethereal realm that we’re on the right track by sending us a series of magical coincidences). When we come this close to connecting with our clarity, we’re oftentimes asked to take a leap of faith, in order to redirect our lives to align with our purpose. This is never easy.
Around this time, Resistance (with a capital ‘R’) moves in to derail our progress. I think of Resistance as a pesky entity that’s meant to test how committed we are to our own soul’s expression. It speaks the language of fear and doubt, and nobody gives themselves to the spiritual journey without being painfully and confusingly subjected to its uninvited two cents.
The best we can do is allow it to have its say, and appreciate the opportunity to respectfully redirect the conversation back to the place of empowerment. (This can be learned, no matter how loud the voice of Resistance.)
A few of Resistance’s favorite tools to watch for:
1.) Spiritual Sickness, or Healing Crisis. It is not uncommon for a person who is on the verge of connecting with their soul-calling to undergo a type of severe sickness, physical or psychological, in order to become something new. Sometimes an enormous build-up requires a breaking down first.
There’s a real shadow side to this in some spiritual communities who judge other people’s illnesses as something they’ve manifested through a fault or weakness. I’d like to take this opportunity to reiterate (I say this frequently) that another person’s healing journey is none of our business. Only they have the proper perspective to ascertain why they’re undergoing a challenge such as this, and unless they ask for help to interpret it, we need to resist the habit of assigning uninvited spiritual diagnoses, which can be psychologically damaging.
2.) Commitment to Comfort. It’s easy to talk ourselves into an easier path at first (maybe we don’t have the courage to navigate the life-changes necessary to walk a different path, mid-life). What this means is that we end up making a lateral move, even though we know it’s not quite the right one, talking ourselves into believing this is a wise decision or an honorable expenditure of time.
Personally, I’m not too worried about this one. As long as a person is honest with themselves, and is able to admit that they feel they need a little more time to explore, then there’s nothing wrong with taking things slowly. There are ways to tap into divine purpose without completely reinventing their life’s wheel. Not everyone chooses to do it this way– some people (like me) just leap off that cliff. The point is, there is no one way to do this. The path always finds us, no matter how many detours we take along the way.
3.) Forgetting Why. It’s easy, with all of life’s distractions, to forget why we’re on this journey. It’s hard. And sometimes it’s tempting to jump back into a numbed out, disconnected existence where it’s not about forging a new path, but walking somebody else’s path, society’s path.
I have a simple formula for this, that keeps me aligned and attuned to living a meaningful life. I ask myself each night, “What is your reason for getting out of bed tomorrow morning?” And then I actually write in out in my planner. My work is my spiritual purpose, so if I unplug from its meaning I deflate like a leaky balloon. Staying plugged-in requires intention and focus. It’s that straight forward.
4.) Impatience. There’s nothing like squeezing the life out of clarity like demanding all the answers reveal themselves now, or demanding the universe immediately deliver all the financial and material rewards of our life-shifts now. There’s an enormous amount of Surrender (giving in to our soul’s path, not giving up on ourselves) that has to accompany every soul-journey.
We have to do everything we can do within our means and our limits in the beginning– we have to make intentions and take strong action toward the fruition of those intentions, we have to work hard. And then we have to let the rest go. We have to understand what is and what is not within our control, and stay focused only on what we can control through every growth phase.
In conclusion, please know…
You are not alone. Finding your way onto the path of purpose and meaning can feel isolating and heart-breaking as some who thought they knew you (the false you) can’t abide the changes you’re making in service to your own authentic meaning. We almost always have to let something go (be it material, personal, habitual…) in order to make room for our truth and freedom.
As always, I’m here if you need help diving deeper into this alchemy. It’s my soul-calling.
Love, Kristy
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