The Best Spiritual Advice I Ever Received

The Best Spiritual Advice I Ever Received

As a spiritual author, coach, and seminar leader, people often ask me, “What is the best spiritual advice you ever received?” This article is an amalgamation of the top ten things I would share with someone who asks that question. Of course, timing is everything. Something is only relevant to you if you are ready to hear it and it is applicable to you at this stage of your particular spiritual journey. That said, we all know that knowledge must always be measured against our own truth; our inner knowing will guide us as to whether something is relevant for us or not. So, let’s get started. Let your intuition be your guide as to which of the following ten items you need to hear now. Then, integrate that knowledge into your life; this, in turn, becomes wisdom – yours, because you experienced it. This leads us to the first item of the best spiritual advice I have ever received.

1. Spiritual growth is not an intellectual exercise. We can’t think our way to enlightenment. Words don’t transform us, but experience does. No matter how many spiritual books we read, seminars we take, or spiritual teachers we frequent, we will not transform unless we apply the spiritual principles, tools, and teaching in our own life. There is no magic pill or spontaneous enlightenment; we must do the work. That said, we can start wherever we are by choosing one spiritual practice to focus on each day. That is why it is called a practice; we have to practice it. Allow yourself to be transformed today.

2. Be present for your life. The gift is in the present. Most of us are so fixated on the future that we miss the moment. Everything you want is here, in the now. It’s not in the future. If you don’t learn to be present now, when you get to where you want to be at some point in the future, you won’t be able to enjoy it because you will not be present for it. Trust me, I did this. Learning to be present will transform your life; there is so much happening in the now that if you stop and pay attention, you will find yourself.

3. A spiritual practice will transform your life. If you haven’t figured out that a consistent daily spiritual practice brings more peace, joy, abundance, and most-important, Spirit into your life, you are missing a key spiritual principle. When I made a commitment to a daily meditation practice, one year later, my life was completely transformed. I began living my purpose, met my life partner, and touched an inner joy that could not be disturbed by anything external. How we transform is from the inside out, not the outside in. A spiritual practice transforms you and supports you through the ups and downs of life.

4. If you can’t find God, you moved. God isn’t somewhere else; it is in you. You don’t need to search and seek for God. You just need to be quiet and still and go within. What you will find is that God dwells within you. It is from here that you will find your way home.

5. Life is a schoolroom; we are here to learn. There are no mistakes, only lessons. When we recognize the learning in a mistake and take responsibility for it, we will not make it again. There is nothing to feel “bad” or guilty about, but rather to understand that we were doing the best we could at the time. The point is to learn from our mistakes so we do not make them again. We are here in this great classroom called life to learn, to grow, and to become who we were always meant to be.

6. Forgiveness will set you free. Forgiveness is the great elixir of all time. In every spiritual tradition, it is taught as one of the most transformative powers of change and healing. Forgiveness is a vibrational frequency that allows us to shift out of patterns of shame, guilt, hatred, and anger. It even gives us pause to love better and, ultimately, live better. To practice forgiveness, we must begin to allow the possibility of letting go of what does not serve us. Letting go is the key. In Hebrew, the word "forgiveness" means to literally drop it—to drop whatever burdens we are carrying sets us free. Just simply contemplate the possibility of forgiving yourself; this is a step toward your freedom.

7. Your beliefs will prove you right. Most people understand a belief as a fact, but a belief is a perception. It is nothing more than a concept that we decide is truth, and this is what ultimately directs our life. When we are unconscious about our beliefs, we don’t even realize we are choosing to see the world through a particular perception. In other words, if you want to change your experiences, then change your beliefs. What we believe determines what is possible.

8. Be out of your mind. Forget what has been told to you for millennia, that the mind knows, for it does not. It is merely a tool to direct the spirit’s guidance – yet, it was never meant to be the director. Confusion comes from putting too much emphasis on mind and not enough on Divine mind or spirit. When we leave the physical form, we realize this nature of reality. If we can grasp this understanding in the body, we can actualize what has been given to us. This means your path is one of listening to your spirit, deflecting the opinions of the mind, and then using it to carry out the actions condoned by Spirit. It is simple, and, at the same time, difficult to adhere to. The mind is filled with distractions, and the world mirrors this. Calming and relaxing the grasp of the mind is the way through. Imagine the spirit is pulling you by a rope and there is really only one direction to go. Let it pull you, despite the outlandish and sometimes seemingly logical ideas of the mind – this is the path.

9. The love you seek is your own. Learning to love yourself is the key to receiving the love you seek. Loving, nurturing, and compassionate are qualities that you possess and you can have for yourself. How would you feel if you gave yourself the same loving energy you share with those you love? This self-love is what will propel you into greener pastures, rather than our belief that external circumstances create our reality. They are only the after effect of our internal circumstances. Change your internal world with self-love and watch your external world blossom exponentially.

10. You are spirit having an in-body experience. Your spirit knows why you are here, what gifts you bring, and what you want to learn. Everything you could ever want can be had by connecting to this part of yourself that is infinite and beyond measure. As you align more and more with your spirit, your level of fulfillment, peace, and joy also rise. If you want from life what you came to get, being spirit-led is the way to get there. That said, once you connect to your spirit, you recognize that life is not about the destination, but the journey. Your spirit will lead you to your greatest contribution in this life.

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