I’m feeling super excited about 2018 and I hope you are too. What I’ve noticed in the media and on social media is that “Spirituality” and “Sacred Practice” have become increasingly popular and more mainstream than ever before {which jazzes me from head to toe}!
In addition, 2018 is an “11” year in Numerology, a portal known to be a powerful time for self-actualization. Personal growth and stepping into one’s life’s purpose is what’s in the air for 2018, so the “who am I and what am I here to do” niggles you’re probably feeling are spot on.
Ultimately, I believe and teach that all paths lead to one. Here’s one of my favorite quotes from Ikkyu, an eccentric, iconoclastic Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and poet,
“Many paths lead up the mountain, but at the top we all look at the same bright moon.”
So, no matter if you consider yourself spiritual or religious, here are some of my favorite “all paths lead to one” practices that will help you deepen your spiritual connection and live more inspired and powerfully in 2018:
- Practice Deeper Learning: Filling your mind with healthy “brain food” is essential to keeping your vibration high and outlook positive, so shut off the news and read a book. My favorite way to read books is listening to them on Audible. I listen to books on personal growth, business, spirituality and any topic that interests me at the moment. I always have my phone with me, so it’s pretty easy to find time to stick my earbuds in my ears and listen to a few chapters of a book while I do something else; run errands, walk on the treadmill, cook dinner, etc.
- Practice Daily Prayer: Make time to talk to your Creator EVERY DAY and on an as needed basis. Prayer and connection to a higher power is essential to cultivating deep faith. I have found that faith is the mystical substance I’ve needed to lean on for most of the last 2 years. I’ve encountered many changes that were unexpected… faith that everything would work out as it should, is what kept me putting one foot in front of the other.
- Practice Letting Go: Holding on for dear life about anything or anyone is going to bring you sorrow and heartache at some point. A tremendous amount of drama kicks up whenever I cling too tightly to an idea of how something is supposed to look in my life or in a relationship. Practicing letting go of expectation brings inner peace and more flow to daily life.
- Practice Going with the Flow: What you resist – persists. I talk to the element of WATER during my prayer time and ask for it to assist me in going with the flow when I feel myself digging in and resisting. Going with the flow can feel like a wishy washy or weak behavior to Type A, got all my shit under control women like me, but I assure you WATER is a formidable element and archetype, so cultivating the ability to go with the flow is quite powerful.
- Practice Healthy Habits: It’s time to take stock of all of your daily doings and decide if they still serve the woman you desire to be in 2018. I for one have cut way back on my alcohol consumption. I found myself not feeling great the morning after having a couple of cocktails, and decided that the woman I desire to BE feels great and refreshed when she wakes up in the morning, so I cut back on my drinking – significantly. My drinking cocktails habit was bringing me down and blocking me from feeling the way I desired, so it had to go. Bah-bye.
- Practice Forgiveness: This is not an easy one for me, especially with the people closest to me. I totally let the water roll off my back and forgive easy-peasy with strangers and friends, however I take it SO hard when the people I love like my children or close family hurt my feelings. Sadly, I’ve had quite a few opportunities to practice forgiveness over the last 18 months. I’m still a work in progress and will be starting a Ho’oponopono practice to help me along.
- Practice Magical Living: I sum up magical living as choosing to look at your life {the good, the bad and the ugly} through the lens of possibility, and learning how to tap into nature and the energetic forces that exist to co-create your life in partnership with the Divine. I created a wonderful group The Goddess Lifestyle Sisterhood™ for spiritual women who want to curate a sacred practice and learn how to live magically every day. You can learn more about it here.
- Practice Being Comfortable with the Uncomfortable: Staying comfortable means one thing to me >>> not growing or expanding. Magic happens outside your comfort zone, so stay with feelings of discomfort and walk towards and into your fear. Make the phone call. Record the video. In a nutshell, feel the fear and do it anyway.
Let’s make magic happen this year – together!
