Guides

A family member asked the Divine to speak to him in his dream one night, and I showed up—disappointing, I know. In the dream he and I were skiing. We were being pulled up a mountain by an old fashioned rope tow, which is a long rope on a pulley system that requires skiers to hold the rope tightly with both hands while keeping their skis parallel to the rope as it pulls you up the mountain. Skiers are lined up on a rope tow one behind the other, except in his dream I was standing alongside him as he proceeded up the lift. At one point, I got tangled up in the rope and fell off the lift, leaving him to go up the mountain by himself.

And so it seems that the Divine did speak to him—telling him that It does provide help, but oftentimes in unexpected ways. Help may come in the form of a lift, manmade or Divine. It may come in the form of a guide, human or spiritual. It may come in the form of a dream telling you that human guides are available to you but that sometimes they may fall away. Perhaps you have outgrown them or perhaps because of their humanity, they can get tangled up in their own stuff and not be particularly useful to you at that moment. It is important to recognize that there is always a time when you are asked to make the journey alone. You have the ability to ascend the mountain on your own. A good guide recognizes that from the start.

Divinity is within you and escorting you up the mountain. It is important to note, as Linda pointed out, that a rope tow, as opposed to a chair lift, requires the skier to participate in getting himself up the hill. Instead of idly sitting back, he must participate in the journey by holding on tight, using his strength, determination and focus. When another skier falls off of a rope tow the only thing you can do is to allow them to compose themselves and then proceed on your journey whether or not they get back on the lift. Not doing so entangles you as well.

As I wrote in Everyday Mystic, your ability to find your own divinity is a part of who you are as a spiritual being. In fact, the title of the book is meant to underscore the profound depth of who each of us is, as a part of, instead of apart from, the Unified Consciousness. Recognize your guides when they appear and be ready to let them go when the time arises. The guides may be individuals, religions, philosophies or institutions. Know that you have the ability to continue your ascent because the messenger you are looking for is already within you.

Photo by Casey Horner on Unsplash