Resistance

There is a lot of talk, articles written, workshops given around living life in grace and ease. I myself wrote in this newsletter about the importance of living in Divine Timing. Of course this is what we all desire and the premise of our Spiritual growth. But now I would like to talk about resistance and how it plays out in the drama of our walk on this planet. I think resistance sometimes gets a bad rap.  We all know that to sign up for life as a human involves some suffering. It is commonplace to bump up against something that you perceive as uncomfortable or even painful on a regular basis. Of course, in our minds we understand that somewhere along the way we picked up a wound that still resonates with certain situations. For instance, let’s say as a youngster you were often told that children were to be seen and not heard. Or maybe whenever you had something you thought was important to say, you were shunned, discounted or totally ignored. As an adult you may still feel the pain of that wound whenever there is something important or difficult you need to say. Perhaps you have trouble with boundaries, yours or others’. You may even have difficulty with your own listening skills. As an example, let’s say you have reached “crisis” proportions in a particular relationship, and you need to voice your feelings. Sounds simple, but what’s that churning, burning brick smack in your solar plexus? Why are your jaws so tense they ache? And why do you keep changing the subject in your mind and making excuses to not even be around that person? Resistance of course. And as Eckhart Tolle says, “What you fight strengthens, and what you resist persists”…hence the sense of crisis. Now here’s the fascinating part. Everything is energy; the Universe is energy. And when the frequency of resistance stirs within the Universe, the Universe answers that call as a cry for help. That very resistance activates an alchemical process resulting in the creation of an absolute right and perfect situation for solution and transformation. 
Example: the two of you are out shopping one day in some large department store, and you decide to take the elevator to the top floor. Well don’t you know the elevator jams between floors and the two of you are alone with absolutely no distractions for an hour and a half. An already edgy, leaden you now explodes and within that explosion emerges the gold of truth. It may not be pretty, but it is the beautiful golden nugget of truth nonetheless. You now both have undisturbed time to explore and expose your feelings, culminating in mutual understanding and a deeper level of love and respect between you.  The elevator completes its climb, the door opens to a higher level and you walk into the world newly transformed.

OK, that was a somewhat exaggerated example, but it shows the power of resistance. So what’s wrong with this picture? Nothing really, the Universe gets its way whether you use the alchemy of resistance, or the grace of flow. Both bring about transformation. The difference of course is that in grace, is the absence of pain. Of course most of us prefer being in the flow but for many reasons this sometimes just isn’t doable. And when this is the case I like to know in the deepest sense that I can trust the Divine process. And just knowing that alone, can sometimes bring ease. What I do know is that resistance has its place, and beating myself up for it is counter to that Divine process. Namasté