Spirit

When we mention "God," we are alluding to the essence of unconditional love, truth, wisdom, peace, and joy that exists in the unseen spiritual realm and is accessible to each of us when we learn to connect with it. "God" represents your individual encounter with the Divine – whether as a person, a source of light, a presence, an energy, or through nature.

We use terms like "God," "Spirit," and "Higher Power" interchangeably to denote this divine essence. Similarly, when we refer to "spiritual guidance," we are indicating insights that come from beyond the confines of your own mind, stemming from your personal relationship with a divine entity such as God, Goddess, Jesus, Buddha, a guardian angel, a spirit guide, a mentor, or a cherished deceased loved one or pet, or even from within yourself as the highest aspect of your being.

Intent

Our intentions dictate our thoughts, emotions, and actions, serving as a potent and creative force that embodies our free will. Intentions reflect our deepest desires, primary motives, or goals, representing our highest priorities in any given moment. Essentially, there are two fundamental intentions:

• The intention to explore and understand love for oneself and others, even amidst fear and pain.
• The intention to shield oneself from fear and pain through addictive, controlling behaviors, thus evading accountability for one's feelings and actions.

When your intention is to learn to love, you are prepared to confront your fears and embrace painful emotions with compassion, aiming to nurture them or gain insight into their origins and what changes are necessary. The underlying objective is to cultivate greater love, starting with self-love. By delving into your fears, beliefs, and sources of joy, you progress towards love. When the focus is on learning, understanding love takes precedence over guarding against fear. With the intention to learn to love, the ultimate aspiration is to discover safety, peace, lovability, and self-worth through an internal connection with the unconditional love present at a spiritual level.

Conversely, when the intention is to shield oneself from fear and pain and shirk responsibility for feelings, the deepest desire is to seek safety, peace, lovability, and self-worth through external sources like attention, approval, sex, substances, possessions, and activities. Believing that others are accountable for your emotional state leads to attempts to control them to feel secure and worthy.

In every moment, each individual selects their intention – either seeking external safety by controlling others and emotions, or fostering internal security by exploring love for oneself and others. Although external influences may impact you, only you have control over your intentions. Not even a Higher Power can dictate your intentions, as doing so would undermine your free will. Each moment presents an opportunity to prioritize what matters most to you and to reconsider your choices.

It is essential to differentiate between the intention to know and the intention to learn. The intention to know arises from a desire to ascertain the right course of action to gain control over obtaining desired outcomes such as attention and approval. Some may even become addicted to acquiring information, believing it enhances their control. In contrast, the intention to learn entails embracing uncertainty and opening up to guidance from a higher source, which directs us toward what is loving for ourselves and others.

Self

Our core Self embodies our true essence, akin to a radiant and innocent child - a beacon of Divine Love uniquely manifested within each of us. This timeless aspect of ourselves evolves through life's experiences, encompassing our innate gifts, wisdom, intuition, curiosity, playfulness, and capacity for love and connection. Untouched by past traumas, our core Self remains unharmed yet obscured, awaiting rediscovery through a journey of healing. Complete healing unfolds as we fully reclaim and intimately know this aspect of ourselves - the child of unconditional love, our true identity.

In contrast, our wounded Self mirrors a wounded child who internalised unloving behaviours, often mirroring our parents' actions. Despite our vows to be different, our wounded Self may inadvertently emulate familiar patterns. This wounded aspect encompasses the pain of abuse or neglect, harbouring fears, false beliefs, and controlling behaviours stemming from these experiences. While these coping mechanisms once provided a sense of safety, they now perpetuate suffering in adulthood. The wounded Self seeks solace through external distractions and fears both rejection and engulfment, resorting to various coping strategies to ward off perceived threats. Compassion, acceptance, and unconditional love are essential for healing all facets of the wounded Self.

Practically any activity can serve as a shield against inner pain, depending on one's intent. For instance, meditation can either deepen spiritual connection and foster self-discovery or serve as an escape from emotional turmoil. Similarly, sacred texts like the Bible can either inspire spiritual growth or be wielded as a means of control and manipulation. The intent to protect erects barriers against loneliness and heartache, prompting the wounded Self to seek control over receiving love. Yet, this pursuit perpetuates a cycle of inner abandonment and discontent.

A prevailing false belief of the wounded Self is the illusion of control, imagining that we can govern ourselves and others independently of a Higher Power. This misguided notion leads to self-violation through addictions and controlling behaviours, causing harm to ourselves and others. Only through cultivating a loving adult Self can we transcend the influence of the wounded Self, shifting from a stance of protection to one of learning and growth. Embracing inner dialogue and nurturing our loving adult Self empowers us to choose the path of learning, even amidst the depths of our woundedness.

Beliefs

Our false beliefs are the misconceptions we've internalised, leading to unnecessary fear, anxiety, and pain. We recognise a belief as false when it triggers feelings of fear, anxiety, depression, shame, or other painful emotions. To shield ourselves from these distressing feelings, we often resort to various addictions and controlling behaviours.

These false beliefs are ingrained within our wounded Self, many of which took root during our formative years. They disempower us and instill fear about ourselves, others, the world, or the Divine. These self-limiting beliefs stem from our childhood experiences, shaping our perceptions and influencing our behaviours. For instance, if we falsely believe ourselves to be unlovable or unworthy due to past experiences, we may inadvertently act in ways that reinforce this belief. Our behaviours, such as anger or withdrawal, aimed at self-protection, may inadvertently lead to rejection by others, thus validating our false belief. This cycle perpetuates feelings of unworthiness and rejection, further distancing us from our true selves.

Moreover, choosing self-protection over self-love constitutes an abandonment of our core Self, reinforcing our sense of unworthiness. By rejecting ourselves, we unknowingly invite rejection from others, perpetuating a cycle of self-abandonment and external validation.

Inner Child

When we refer to the "Inner Child," we are speaking of the emotional aspect of ourselves, encompassing both the wounded self and the core Self. Picture a child - perhaps sad, lonely, frightened, or angry. Within this wounded child lies a radiant light, the essence of the core Self. However, the wounded child remains unaware of this inner light, operating under the false belief of inadequacy, flaw, or unworthiness. It's only through the practice of bringing unconditional love to the wounded child that we can begin to uncover this inner light and heal.

Your Inner Child serves as an unwavering internal compass, expressing through your emotions what is beneficial or detrimental for you. Emotions stemming from the core Self, such as joy, peace, and love, indicate alignment with loving actions and thoughts. Conversely, emotions arising from the wounded self, like anxiety, depression, or anger, signal a need for exploration and compassionate self-nurturing. These feelings act as guideposts, signaling whether situations or individuals are conducive to your well-being or pose a threat.

Trusting and deciphering these feelings empowers you to take ownership of your emotional state. Until we cultivate a loving adult Self, it's the wounded Self that dictates our intentions. The wounded Self is prompted to open up to learning either when faced with significant pain that reveals the inadequacy of protective mechanisms or when we reconnect with our soul's purpose of loving and evolving. Spirit continuously nudges us towards our soul's mission, encouraging us to embrace learning about love without necessarily reaching rock bottom. Those who attune themselves to the voice of Spirit can heed its guidance and embark on a journey of love-centered growth.