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metroMAgAzine
essence
the soul’s journey • with dixie clark
living in your essence We are past the point in our evolution where just any life will do. We are
Love, joy, innocence, peace. These are four qualities of the soul. This is our true essence and the level where lasting fulfillment is found. When we come from this place, there is nothing stronger. It takes devotion and a certain fearlessness to commit to this level and to live from it. The illusions we’ve created and the pressures of the world are designed to pull us out of this level. So, we can become discouraged and fall back into old energy patterns, and believe that nothing will ever change for us. All of this is part of our path. It doesn’t matter how many times we get pulled from it. The pull of our soul will always bring us back because that is our destiny and who we truly are.
stepping forward into our destiny, both globally and individually, and it’s time for our greatness to come forward. We don’t have the luxury of shrinking back in fear of what life holds or doubting what we’re capable of. We don’t have the luxury of staying in negativity and judgment, and staying small. We are being called into the power and grace of our True Nature and to live fully in the essence that is our Soul. Change seems to be happening at an accelerated pace for all of us. What we knew, and what we felt gave us security, is shifting now. These can be scary times if we have the belief that our safety lies outside of ourselves, if we doubt that everything that happens in our lives is for our alignment and part of our soul’s journey. Our soul continually directs us into areas of fulfillment and awakening, even if on the surface that doesn’t look like that is what’s happening.
Think about the situations and people in your life. Where in your life do you come from a place of love and joy? Where do you come from a place of obligation and resentment? Who and what in your life create expansion for you? And, who and what cause you to constrict your energy and become small? We are faced with thousands of choices each day; choices regarding behaviors, thoughts, and emotions. Where are you putting your focus of attention? What are your priorities in life? What are your intentions for who you are at this stage in your life? Do your answers bring forward a sense of love, joy, and enthusiasm? If not, what needs to change about your inner experience? Clearing old programming, limiting patterns, old wounds and trauma frees up the soul energy that is contained within each one.
“Through my stillness, the door opened. Through my allowing, my Soul became present. Through my loving, we became One.”
There is more spiritual energy on the planet than at any time in history. We begin to align with this energy, creating a “gravitational pull of the soul”, as Dr. Robert Waterman calls it. We notice this call to our awakening in many ways. Sometimes it comes in the form of restlessness or boredom, where the old ways of doing things are no longer satisfying. Sometimes it comes in the form of frustration with our current lives, and a feeling that there “has to be something more.”
Living from our essence requires devotion and a willingness to love ourselves no matter what. Not that we won’t get pulled into negativity and judgment, because that level will always be around. It’s a matter of choosing to pull our attention back to our intention of soul awareness. And if that means doing that 100 times a day, then at some point we decide, “whatever it takes, that’s what I’ll do.”
Sometimes our soul brings forward situations that seem very traumatic, but are designed to “shake us up” and let go of what no longer serves us in order to come into alignment with our higher nature. These situations and people help us chip away at who we think we are in order to get to the soul level.
Setting our intention to open up to soul awareness is often the first step. Looking at how we’re spending our energy throughout the day is another. These questions can be helpful to guide us:
Many times we don’t understand the reasons behind these situations, frustrations, longings, loneliness. We then seek fulfillment through things outside of ourselves, changing just for change sake. We can get caught up in compulsions, addictions, habits, patterns, negativity, judgment and come to believe that’s who we are.
• Am I being loving?
In reality, all the things we place in our lives as solutions to problems-all the negativity, judgment, addictions, compulsions simply help us find out what doesn’t work for us. It’s all part of our path of leaning. Sometimes we need to discover who we are not before we open up to who we are.
• Am I doing what my heart and Soul have set before me?
Accomplishment, approval, avoiding pain and mistakes are qualities of our ego/personality. This is often where we spend the majority of our energy. We can look to be fulfilled in ways that aren’t designed to do that.
• Am I being forgiving? • Am I at peace? • Am I truly asking to do what is for the highest good of all in this situation? • Am I willing to sacrifice___(place any negativity, judgment here) in order to connect to my soul? Our soul waits and loves and knows the Truth. It continues to send messages about our next step. It’s our choice what we do with it. m
Dixie Clark, MS, MSS, LPC is Director and co-founder of Morning Star Center, a holistic wellness center. A licensed counselor and ordained minister, she holds a masters’ degree in both counseling and spiritual science and is currently obtaining her doctorate in spiritual science. With over 26 years experience in mind/body therapies, she combines psychology and spirituality to help people release emotional blocks, heal past trauma and change limiting beliefs to open to soul awareness.
dixie clark, ms, mss, lpc www.morningstarcenter.com 29
metroMAgAzine • APR 2010