By Karen Mehringer
Preparing for my first church talk, I revised my outline over and over again. It occurred to me that my anxiety about the upcoming event had caused me to attempt to control the outcome by over-preparing. I felt resistance to being in the flow and trusting my higher guidance. As a result, my body was tense, I experienced little joy and the talk wasn’t as powerful as it could have been. It was still “good” as I received positive feedback, but not “incredible” like my last experience at the Women of Wisdom Conference when I was able to get out of my own way and allow for the flow.
So, what was the difference? I believe it was my fear of the unknown. Presenting to a church congregation was a completely new experience and I was unsure of myself and what was expected of me. Would my message be appropriate for this venue? Should I add humor or engage the audience? After all, this was a church! My experience of church growing up was that of seriousness and solemnity. How would my message fit in?
Contrary to my church experience, was that of my birthday…I wanted it to be special so came up with a “plan” of things I would enjoy doing like going out to breakfast, shopping and to a movie. Driving up to the restaurant, my heart sank. Not only was it closed, but there was a For Sale sign on the building. I had been craving waffles all morning. Where else could I go for waffles? To my delight, there was a café in my line of vision and better yet, a massage business right next door with an available therapist! As I decided to throw out my plan, go with the flow, and follow my heart moment to moment, the rest of my day unfolded spontaneously and I thoroughly enjoyed every minute!
Letting go of our ideas about the way we think things ought to be, or our plans of how they should go, we become open to the synchronistic flow of abundance and things often go even better than we could have imagined. Trusting and surrendering to the unknown, we are able to relax and experience joy. The Divine flows through us and inspires our actions, whispering like a soft breeze…”Here’s your next step.” Guidance is revealed one step at a time as we walk on the path of our ever unfolding destiny.
“ The intention to let go of the known is what the Sages returned to repeatedly in characterizing the mind-set that opens us to the wisdom of the heart – to the intimacy with life that is both the source of guidance and its destination.”
In Your Soul’s Compass, authors Joan Borysenko and Gordon Dveirin interviewed twenty seven sages from various wisdom traditions about spiritual guidance. They all agreed that letting go of the known was the key to opening our hearts and connecting to our deepest source of guidance. As we let go and allow the flow, we become channels for love and light. Instead of living from fear, we live from our highest potential.