SGM May 2018 Weekly Message Three: “What If Miracles Aren’t Happening For You?”
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Welcome to this week’s edition of Spiritual Growth Monthly. I’m Kevin Schoeninger. It’s great to have you with us here at SGM!
This month, our discussion and practice center on the book, “Holding a Butterfly: An Experiment in Miracle-Making,” by Lynn Woodland. In our first Weekly Message, we explored what it means to have a miraculous mindset. The heart of this mindset is to approach life with a light, curious, “What if. . .” attitude. In our second Weekly Message, we used this attitude to venture into our soul desires in all areas of our lives. We practiced stating our soul-level desires in positive, present-tense language and releasing them into life.
This week, we’ll talk about what to do if none of this seems to be working for you. What if you’ve done these exercises wholeheartedly, you’ve gotten into the miraculous mindset, you’ve really felt it, and you’ve sent your best intentions out to the Universe fully expecting miraculous results—but nothing has happened. You waited and waited, but nothing changed. Did you do something wrong? Or is all this miraculous mindset stuff, just a bunch of New Age wishful thinking?
I often hear stories like that in relation to The Law of Attraction. People will say, “Yeh, I tried that. It just doesn’t work.”
So what keeps it from working? Let’s explore some possibilities. If you’ve been frustrated with a lack of positive results in any area your life, my hope is that an “aha” will light up for you in the following discussion.
First, we are so conditioned to an “outward reaching mindset” that we may not recognize what it really means to shift “on the inside.” We are accustomed to taking an aspirin so that our headaches go away and may approach personal growth in that same way. We are trained to be “fixed” from the outside rather than understanding how to access our inner power.
From my perspective, this is the first and most important shift on the spiritual path, to recognize that “My experience results from what I am doing internally.” What I am able to experience is the result of what I am open to. My experience of outer circumstances reflects my inner state of being.
This shift moves us from projection and blame to self-responsibility and choice. If you are not experiencing “miracles” a question to ask is “How am I limiting my experience?” rather than “Why isn’t life giving me miracles?”
A second related point is that we are so accustomed to old habits that we often don’t notice them. We may not realize how committed we are to maintaining the status quo. One reason may be the hidden gains we receive by sticking to the way things are.
For example, we may maintain low expectations to minimize personal responsibility. We may not dare to dream, so we don’t get let down. We may stay in a job we hate, because we’re afraid of not having a job or of the daunting task of starting a new one. We may stay in unhealthy relationships because we’re afraid of being alone. We may not want to risk losing what “we have” to get what “we want.”
We may seek to maintain the status quo in our lives because it is known and predictable—even if it is painful or unsatisfying. The many ways that we maintain the status quo are often hidden to our conscious awareness. We may say one thing on the outside, while subconsciously maintaining a different agenda.
This leads to a third point. For a miraculous mindset to really take hold requires that you surrender your need for certainty and control on an ego level. A miraculous mindset is predicated on the fact that Life is looking out for you in ways that are beyond your ability to completely understand. A miraculous mindset asks you to trust in something greater than yourself.
When faced with the inner actions of surrender and trust, egoic consciousness will demand proof that this works. Yet egoic consciousness can only see specific kinds of proof that fit in with its linear cause and effect, oversimplified, materialist mindset. As a result, you may miss evidence that is coming in different or unexpected forms. For example, you may have an idea that you want a new house with white picket fences and set that intention. Instead, you may receive an invitation to visit Sedona which opens new living space in your heart.
Life knows what you really need. It may present you with opportunities that you don’t recognize because you are firmly engaged in looking for something else. You may not have developed your sensitivity to the possibilities that are really right for you. Like fine cuisine, what is really best for you is an acquired taste that requires cultivation. If you are accustomed to fast food, you may not recognize the difference.
You may also miss subtle shifts that take place over time because you are expecting full blow transformation over night. It could be that Life is in motion to give you a new experience and it requires gradual shifts on your part that take time. You may need to be patient, trust more deeply, and develop skills that you will need to take advantage of your new opportunity. The timing may not yet be right for what you truly desire. You may not be ready for it.
In the matters of form and timing, a question to ask your egoic mind is this: “How do you know nothing is happening?” I love that question.
After pondering that, Woodland suggests a follow-up: Would you rather stick to your story that nothing is happening or would you rather receive something miraculous? As she says, “At the end of the day, decide whether you’d rather be right about your story or receive miracles, blessings, and Grace.” (p. 94, HaB)
The true power of a miraculous mindset is in maintaining a positive mental space of “What if. . .” This opens up your mind and engages your dreaming spirit.
You don’t have to believe in miracles. Simply imagine and feel what it would be like if such and such could happen. Then trust that Life knows best. Surrender certainty and play with possibilities. Cultivate a light, curious, joyous attitude and see what happens.
Your life may currently feel a lot more serious than that. You may look around and see little evidence to back up awesome possibilities. You may only see negative evidence—especially if your reference point for what is happening in the world is the news media.
However, because you don’t see something doesn’t mean it’s not there. Because the news doesn’t cover the countless acts of beauty and kindness that are happening every day, doesn’t mean they aren’t happening. To perceive miracles, expect them. Consistently cultivate a miraculous mindset. That may take substantial re-training.
This brings us to a fourth point: We often underestimate what it takes to change. Reading and understanding these concepts is one thing—it’s a good start. Practicing them to the point of “being them” is a whole different thing.
We are conditioned to quick fixes and instant gratification. Real change may take some time. If you have had struggles with money, health, or relationships for years—you may need to make significant changes in how you relate to these issues mentally and emotionally. You may need to take different actions than you have in the past. You may need to persistently cultivate positive, light, joyful, possibility-oriented intent.
Because of that, the path of your soul may initially look and feel like failure, especially from the perspective of your ego. Your authentic path may feel the darkest just before the dawn. However, when you feel far from what you desire, it may lie only a short distance over the horizon. Your task is to “stay awake” long enough to welcome the sunrise.
In the face of challenges, you may be tempted to run back to prior ways of thinking and acting. You may lose heart when you run into inner resistance. This might send you back to addictions, or distractions, or to what seems more reliable and easier to grasp. You may find yourself rushing back to the “To Do” list that you know well, even if it’s dull and stressful—at least it’s known.
If you’ve tried to follow your soul’s desires and been frustrated many times, you may label current challenges as further evidence that following this “soul path” just doesn’t work for you. You may have tried to “Do what you love and let the money follow” only to find yourself broke. You may find yourself in the hospital, feeling responsible for making yourself sick. Wasn’t greater consciousness supposed to make you healthier? You may have expressed yourself more in relationships and find yourself deeper in conflict. What’s going on?
At that point, the spiritual path may just feel confusing. There is so much spiritual advice that seems to conflict. Maybe it’s all a bunch of rubbish. No wonder many people “pooh-pooh” this kind of stuff and stick to the “real world” that you can see and measure.
However, once the door to your soul’s desire crack’s open even a bit, once that communication has begun, there’s no turning back. If you do turn back, you will likely recreate drama that will lead you to return to your soul’s path again and again. In my experience, I’ve repeatedly returned to my soul’s path until it became my sole purpose.
We are all headed along our soul’s path. We can go kicking and screaming, we can take our time or take detours, or we can decide to go peacefully and joyfully. For most of us, it’s a mixture of all of the above. At a certain level, it is up to us to choose how it will be and, at an ultimate level, all choices lead home. There is learning on all paths and, ultimately, they all lead to the same destination.
At a certain point, you may decide that it’s easier and more enjoyable to listen and feel for the most direct route—your most authentic path. When you fully engage your soul’s authentic path, you may find that synchronicities and unexplainable coincidences become common. Good things that we can’t fully explain we call miracles. If we’re paying attention, we may discover these everywhere around us. When we open to “What if. . .” all sorts of new experiences appear before us.
SGM is about supporting you to prioritize your soul’s path as your sole purpose. SGM is here to assure you that you are not alone in this. Though your path is unique to you, we are all in this together. Together we form a network of energy, love, and light. You are part of One Life that we all share.
Next week we’ll journey deeper into that network of light, love, and miraculous possibility.
Until next time,
Cultivate a miraculous mindset, by asking “What if. . .?”
Kevin