Loving Self

Loving  Self is the fastest way to create a stronger connection with Spirit. However, most of us are not proficient in doing this.  We may think we know all about Loving Self but it is the last area we master, as spiritually developing beings, in body.   This can take several lifetimes to fully master.  However, we are given all the chances we need to make decisions for ourselves which are loving and in integrity with our spiritual, True Selves.

1.  One step to Loving Self is embracing that God and I Are One. We are not separate from God/Spirit.  We may feel disconnected but in truth we cannot be separate no mater what we do, feel, don’t do, think or imagine.  We are One with All That Is and that’s the Truth.  Most of us do not know this however because we give our power to human fears, emotions and thoughts every day.  This results in making us feel we are separate from Divine Presence.

Many of us  do not gift ourselves with the experience of meditation and authentic prayer,

so we do not have the daily opportunity to learn from Spirit that we and God/Great Spirit are One.  Even if we do meditate, we may not be actively releasing our human fears, thoughts and emotions.  Therefore, we may be peaceful in Silence and then go right out and have an argument with our co-worker because we are not releasing our fears and concerns proactively, clearing our energy field and making more space for Divine Presence in our lives.

At the very least, affirm out loud and daily,

• There is One Power, One Source, One Life Force.
  
• I Am One with All That Is.
  
• I Am an Individualized Expression of God.

This brings  Divine Knowing more readily into our energy fields as we affirm these truths regularly.

2. Loving Self has nothing to do with personal indulgence and everything to do with living in integrity. Loving Self is  going out with friends and NOT over drinking, over eating, over smoking, over spending, over gambling or over sexing with others.   Anything prefaced by “over” is not living in integrity.  We usually know when we have “over” done something though frequently, not at the time.  Perhaps for a time it feels easier to pretend to ignore this information we have about ourselves. This pretense is costly to us.   When we “over do”  we are by definition, out of balance.  This absolutely affects us mentally, emotionally, spiritual and physically.  Living in integrity is Loving of Self and by the way, benefits not only ourselves but all whom we meet.

The energy of being with friends,  can be a very self loving experience if we are able to be our authentic selves in their company and receive affirmation for our own True Selves. This looks like being able to say I’m sorry for something we have done which was unkind or unthoughtful and being forgiven.  This looks like being able to say, “this was great but now I need to get some rest to function tomorrow”.  This looks like being able to set good boundaries for ourselves and have our friends or partners respect this in us.

3. Other acts of integrity include saying “no” to requests of us which are not good for us,  helpful for others or respectful of our own inner knowing for ourselves.

Robert (name changed)  is a management consultant in his late thirties,  in international management.  When just setting out, he felt he had to take all work that came his way for financial reasons. He loved the bi-play around negotiating new work, agreeing on the rates, specifying deliverables and getting the contract.  However, time and again, he experienced a sense of deflation when it was time to actually do the work.

Robert did notice repeatedly,  that if a  contract was good for him,  it was almost without exception,  good for the clients as well.  He began to try to determine while negotiating contracts, if he would enjoy the actual work.  He  made some spectacularly bad choices during this time.  His fear of having enough money continued to play heavily into his judgment about clients.   After 3 years of working with this rather directly, he turned away a very large contract for 6 months of nearly full salary, because it felt really wrong for him.

After that time, he had appreciably fewer bad contracts show up in his life, because his learning was complete.  His soul was at peace with regard to these learnings and therefore he no longer attracted these situations to himself.  He had learned to live in integrity with himself and not to “prostitute himself” for the sake of prestige, money, recognition, or safety. In Loving Self enough to only accepting work situations which were good for him, Robert  radically transformed his life for the good,  in all areas, not just with work.

In facing these situations for yourself ask the following:

• Is this a loving choice for me?
• Am I being honest with myself, about whether this is good for me ?
• What is making me consider working (or staying) in this setting which I know is crummy for me?

4. Loving Self requires proactive attention to our deepest needs. If we are not getting enough exercise, eating well, getting enough sleep, or spending endless hours before a computer or TV, we need to attend to this.  It is a loving act to pay attention to these things.  If we are deeply lonely, we need to take steps to be with others even if it feels like a big risk.  If we are in a bad relationship, we need to ask for Divine Help to come forth within us, release all that is our part of the bad relationship, and bless the other person regardless of the past.  If we are bored, we need to name the fear behind this and face it squarely so that we can move on from the languishing energy.

Loving Self is creating more compassion with ourselves in all areas of our lives. Love heals all things, no matter the size or complexity of what we might be facing.  Clear the fear you carry connected with the situation, call in Love even though you may not know what next steps to take because such acts create a stronger connection with All That Is, which leads to Inner Peace.