In his Christmas Eve homily, Pope Benedict XVI hit the influential nail on its head when he said, “Conflict in the world stems from the fact that we are locked into our own interests and our desires. For most people, the things of God are not given priority . . . . And so the great majority of us tend to postpone them.” He went on to say, “a path for discovering and appreciating God exists for everyone. It is a path marked with signs.”
Wow! This is what I’m saying about soul influence. (Not that I compare myself to the Pope… we don’t even dress alike.)
But the idea that the path is marked with signs is intriguing . . . and real. Those signs come from the whisperings of a woman’s soul.
How persuasive is the soul? Does it matter if you don’t listen?
It does if you get that pain pushes and vision pulls.
When a woman ignores the longings of her soul, life becomes hard. Rather than being led from joyful, authentic desire, she makes choices solely on the basis of avoiding pain.
We survive rather than thrive.
Here’s the surefire way of tapping into the Pope’s teaching “A Girl’s Gotta Have Influence”
1. Get interested in the real you. Push the pause button on your fast-forward life juggling family and career. Sit in the stillness everyday and just let yourself be you. Fran Hewitt, author of best-seller, The Power of Focus for Women, tells us, “Reignite the life inside you. Don’t dare settle for a life of survival. When you are worth so much more.”
2. Give yourself permission. Got a habit of low (or no) self-esteem? Guess what. It’s not the real you…it’s just communication (opinion, judgment, mis-information) you took as solid gold from someone else. As Wayne Dyer says, “Get rid of it.” Drop the mask, be your own authority and do, have, be, create and say whatever you want.
3. Remove the blocks. Greatness is your natural state. If you can’t hear the whisper of the soul, it’s simply being covered up. A good way to remember this is that even on the cloudiest day, the sun’s still there, shining away. Clouds to the soul include unconscious excesses like shopping, saying yes even when you want to say no, too much food, gambling and finding ways to avoid what needs to be done.
4. Surrender to the vision. Don’t put your life on the layaway plan. Your soul is your guiding compass to your life’s journey, revealing to you your purpose, your passion and your way. Practice the first three steps and then embrace your soul’s calling. God is love and love is always acting for your highest good.
You’ve got influence, girl. Now use it!
How do you practice hearing the messages of your soul? I’m listening!
