Pain: The Key to Change

How does one open their first article on the subjects of spirituality and holistic awareness? What brought me here? Immediately the word ‘pain’ cannons into my brain, leaving me to wonder why. Before long the answer is obvious. What was the dominating force, emotion, feeling that assisted in transforming me from a ‘normal’ working guy with the usual Sydney suburb male goals and dreams, into a man focused on his spiritual journey and wishing to share that with others. Pain. It all started with pain. More pain than I thought I could take. Holistic pain. Spiritual, mental and, in the end, physical pain. And now, I thank my Higher Power, Great Spirit, and God for every minute of that pain. Although, I’m in no hurry to re-feel any of it.

It is said that “Only when the pain of staying in our current situation becomes greater than the fear of change do we grow” (excuse the paraphrasing).

I started way behind the start line, as change hadn’t even occurred to me. I lived many years ‘chasing my tail’, repeating mistakes, fighting systems and people without even a clue that perhaps, for a glimpse of peace and happiness, I must change. I thought ‘victims’ were those caught in cyclones or car wrecks without a clue I was in fact, living as a victim. I suffered years of depression, anxiety, panic attacks and suicidal inclinations thinking I was different, without a clue that perhaps I was simply self-obsessed. I spent my days fighting my feelings, thoughts, other people and the world, without a clue that this could all end by simply practicing acceptance and embarking on a journey of self discovery.

So how does a person in the grip of terror and pain suddenly understand that it is them that must change? It rarely occurs in a blinding flash of insight, although that can certainly happen. The Universe responds to humble, genuine and free-from-agenda cries for help. This is what starts the spiritual wheels turning. This is what ignites the amazing phenomena of coincidence and enables help that suddenly appears in any number of guises.

Of course not everyone needs to be teetering on the edge of a 9th floor balcony railing to arrive at that ‘turning point’. Most people discover a degree of understanding and clarity well before that 11th hour, gut-wrenching pain of despair I certainly felt. So what’s the key? A willingness to change and a sincere request to a Higher Power for guidance and assistance. This is what spirit see and respond to quicker than all else. You don’t even have to believe it. Just be willing. And if you’re not willing; be willing to become willing. Try it.



Source by Mitch Rilett