Healing Emotions #8--Faith

“When you have come to the edge Of all light that you know And are about to drop off into the darkness Of the unknown, Faith is knowing One of two things will happen: There will be something solid to stand on or You will be taught to fly”

Patrick Overton

A tricky subject that we'll try to unsnarl. Let me just say it plainly: you need faith. It doesn't have to be faith is an old man in the sky, or Gaia, or Universal Energy, or any trans-Natural force.

But it needs to be Faith in something beyond your own ego. Why? Well, in terms of healing your emotions, loss of love, betrayal, failure, disappointment, crushing depression...all of these things damage your sense of self-worth. Your ego concept "cracks". If you then attempt to rely on the ego to get you out of an ego trap...wow. That's like trying to sprint on two broken legs. You are trying to use the very tool that no longer functions, and will spiral deeper into the abyss.

This is no joke. Do a little research, and you'll find very, very few champions in any field who say that they accomplished what they accomplished "for themselves." No. It was for their family. Their school. Country. Team. Nation. God.

Fascinating. Look back into your own past, at your greatest challenges, and you will see that again and again you plunged into the depths of despair, and somehow, somehow, made it out the other side even though at the time you felt there was no hope.

Your old identity is like a sub-routine your brain is running, and it has the temerity to believe that it is you. And when it is damaged, it can literally die. In fact, EVERY time you move from one level of your life to another, every time you actually grow in a substantial way, your old self-image explodes, shrivels, disintegrates. And it will scream in terror. In fact, and pay attention to this: IT DOES NOT WANT TO DIE ALONE. It will literally destroy your body to preserve itself. If you identify with your ego, it will be impossible to progress consciously. Only the random overloading happenstance of life will take you to the other side.

So...what shall you have faith in? There are three things:

1) Your deep self

2) Your companions (allies and teachers)

3) A higher power.

That's it. One of the three. I know no others that cannot be subsumed in one of these three categories. Find one...or frankly, all three if it is within your belief system. There is NO way to avoid the bumpy road ahead. That is simply life. But what we can do is be stronger than our challenges.

Don't trust your ego. Go deeper. And wider. And truer.

See you on the other side!

Steve