Everything happens for a reason.
Things will turn out just fine.
It will all work out in the end.
You’ve probably heard one, all or some form of the above statements. The sentiment being that you are supposed to blindly trust in the form of higher power you believe in (even if that’s a manifestation of yourself).
YEAH RIGHT!
Let’s face it, when you are faced with a situation in which you feel that there isn’t much in your control it becomes all the more difficult to give up the little control you have, let alone surrender to the universe. When you are the one who has lost your job, is facing health issues or don’t know which turn your relationship will take, trusting in a higher power isn’t just challenging, it is painful.
So here are some steps to get closer to what is known as spiritual surrender.
- Be honest with yourself about what is within your control. And while you’re at it, write it down. Depending on your individual disposition, you may learn that there is more or less in your control than your realized. Whatever the case, it should be easier to surrender what’s out of reach as you empower yourself with what is within your control.
- Feel real feelings. No need to walk around all the time feeling and saying you are grateful for what it is that you have. Obviously, there is something that isn’t right and you can’t easily fix. And naturally this might make you feel angry, sad, frustrated or any other emotion. Be genuine with your feelings and be gentle with yourself. (Of course, staying within this state forever is counterproductive, exhausting and self-inhibiting. But the point is to “grieve” as long as you need before moving forward.)
- Only surrender genuinely. I don’t have data on this, but my sense is that if you’re insincere with a higher power it will be fairly transparent to that power! So don’t say that you’re going to trust this higher power unless you actually do. And if you don’t, share this doubt with family, friends, spiritual advisors and others. They may help you work through it.
Bottom line: surrender softly and slowly; if it were easy it would be within your control in the first place.
