Open to Divine Grace

Divine grace is all around us; we just have to attune to it…and not let our old conditioning block us from following it!

It was by divine grace that I was able to go to Sedona on such short notice and by attunement that I didn’t let me old conditioning stop me from seeing the trip’s possibility. But even with this being said, conditioned thoughts still crept up!

I was barraged with thoughts that said:

• You can’t just spontaneously plan a road trip and go! People don’t do that.
• That vehicle has too many miles on it to be making such a trip. That’s not smart or practical.
• It’s a little odd for you to be traveling with this particular friend. What will people think?
• Is making this trip being financially responsible?
• This isn’t you. You don’t do this.
• Really, you’re going to chant in the desert. Who does that? (I guess I do).

On and on the constricting, conditioned thoughts came. But, inwardly, I knew this trip was the right thing for me to do…

I knew the spontaneity of the trip was apart of God’s grace in allowing it to happen.

I also knew that meant the vehicle could and would make it (and if it didn’t, we’d find a graceful way to cross that hurdle). Fortunately, we didn’t have to.

I knew my thoughts regarding traveling with this friend were only based in being concerned with what others thought of it and had nothing to do with my deep trust in this friendship (part of my ongoing battle with ego’s shell).

I knew the trip was a spiritual investment and therefore I wasn’t spending money frivolously.

I knew that my reaction to chanting was really only due to being worried about what other people thought of it (another indicator of my ongoing battle with ego’s shell).

When we’re identified with our small self—the one that’s limited by the constraints of our conditioning—we risk failing to see grace and opportunity when it comes our way. We see a wall in place of the door that’s opening.

When we’re identified with our conditioned mind, our thoughts, beliefs and attitudes superimpose a limited perception on our unlimited nature and block us from it. Without questioning this limited perception, we remain ruled by the “shoulds and should nots” that we’ve agreed to through our conditioning.

We conform our choices and experiences to the expectations that have been set by others and unconsciously agreed to by our individual socialization. Without questioning what we’ve agreed to, the specific pulls of society that we’ve agreed to become an extremely powerful and influential force in our lives…

If we’ve agreed to be someone who makes smart, practical choices and a spontaneous road trip in an older vehicle with a lot of miles on it conflicts with that agreement, we’re likely to see a wall where a door is opening.

If we’ve agreed to be someone who wants to be seen as making smart, practical choices, the external appearance of the trip (spontaneity, vehicle, traveling partner and cost) is likely going to lead us to seeing a wall where a door is opening.

All of this old conditioning came up when I was deciding whether or not to go on this trip, and because of this, I vacillated between seeing a door and a wall, until I fully questioned my conditioning…

I had to determine where the resistance was stemming from in order to consciously choose whether or not I agreed with it. What I saw was that most of it was stemming from being concerned with the appearance of my decision. I feared the opinion of others, not whether or not it was the right decision for me.

I was so concerned with the opinion of others that I actually felt more comfortable not publicizing the trip. This is how powerful a pull my agreement to being seen as making smart, practical choices has over me. Again, this ties to my issue with ego’s shell.

When we fail to question our conditioning, we risk blocking ourselves from merging with the flow of life. We make decisions from our head, instead of our heart. But it’s our heart that connects us to the flow of life.

Our head says our behavior must match our past patterns (predictability), whereas our heart eliminates past patterns from the decision process and decides on what is uniquely right for each circumstance that we find ourselves in (flow…flexibility…spontaneity).

If we don’t allow ourselves to merge with the flow of life, we risk missing in the wide range of divine graces that can come our way. Life becomes stunted, stifled and stagnant, when it could be flowering and unfolding in new and beautiful ways.

Start to notice where you may be blocking the flow of life…

Question your conditioning. Make what you’ve agreed to a conscious choice. Open to spontaneity. Be flexible. Flow with life. See what happens. If you like it, keep erasing the invisible lines that you’ve superimposed on your unlimited nature.

 “Nowhere in the laws of God has it ever been written that you must conform your experience to the choices [or opinions] of another.” — The Way of Mastery

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To opening to our unlimited nature!

Shanna