Spiritual Solutions

Ann Strong, of www.thrivingcoaches.com kindly gave me permission to adapt and use parts of her email seminar, “Steady in the Wind,” for my Spiritual Solutions blog and newsletter. I believe you will enjoy this series and find much value in applying the twelve life principles covered in this course.

WELCOME TO:
Lesson One: Deep Listening

Please listen to the audio first by clicking on the link below, then come right back to read the message text.

http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WxGDp3MQ

Lesson One: Deep Listening

In this lesson, we will cover two kinds of listening - listening within and listening to others.

LISTENING WITHIN

When listening within, we listen to something known by many different names: our God-Self, Higher Self, Holy Spirit, Indwelling Christ, Heart, Body’s Innate Wisdom, Eternal Knowing, Infinite Wisdom, Divine Connection, All That Is.

Whatever you feel most comfortable calling that which you listen to when listening within, know that it can serve as a powerful force in your life.

We are all invisibly connected to this God-Self, or All That Is, as well as to one another. When we take time to consciously become quiet and listen to that connection, we learn from a mighty flow of life force. We may “hear” through a whisper, intuition, inspiration, or some kind of calling.

The more we practice, the more we know the difference between listening to this connection and listening to the many voices in our head. If we consistently ask to hear and practice discerning, we will soon feel confident we know the difference.

TO LISTEN WITHIN MORE DEEPLY

Set aside time, even if it’s just a few minutes a day, to practice listening within. Many people find it most valuable to set aside 20-30 minutes first thing in the morning and/or last thing at night to listen in a traditional meditation style, by sitting quietly with eyes closed, breathing softly and deeply. Others find that listening while engaging in a contemplative activity, such as walking alone or gardening or chopping vegetables, also works well for them.
Whichever works best for you, commit to at least a few minutes a day and expect to hear.

You may want to use a formal routine. Breathe in and out for 30 seconds or so to find your natural breathing rhythm. Then ask the voices in your head to be quiet. Be in the silence to hear the answer to a question you pose. And finally, close with gratitude.

LISTENING TO OTHERS

When we deeply listen to others we hear what is REALLY being said, rather than that just what their words convey. To deeply listen to another, we need to be fully present, without distractions. The more we practice being fully present and listening deeply, the more we will really hear and give the huge gift of our presence.

TO LISTEN TO OTHERS MORE DEEPLY

Begin with making a conscious commitment to being fully present before a conversation. If you feel rushed because you only have a few minutes, tell the person before you begin how much time you have and then fully give them that time.

Make sure you finish on time to honor your boundary and take care of yourself. If you feel you haven’t finished the conversation in that time, schedule more time to talk later; that is another way to demonstrate your commitment to being fully present.

As you listen, pay attention beneath the words to what’s not being said and what feelings are involved. In addition, if you pay attention to tone and body language, you’ll tune in to a more complete picture.

If you mirror back what you heard and what you suspect you heard, you can verify what you’re hearing and validate the person you’re listening to. More often than not, people don’t really feel heard. All too often, we feel distracted, give advice, or plan our reply. To mirror, simply repeat back almost word for word what you believe you heard. Then ask if that’s correct. Also ask if there’s more.

If you want to confirm what you heard underneath the words or through body language, check it out. “I hear something in your tone. Do you feel unhappy about this?” “I’m curious about . . .” “You seem really excited. Do you want to do this?”

LISTENING DEEPLY AND LIVING STEADY IN THE WIND

Listening deeply helps hold us “steady in the wind” because we know we are connected to All That Is. Either through listening within or listening to others, we have access to whatever information we need. Regardless of which way the wind is blowing, we feel confident we will make good decisions.
When we consistently listen within, we know that the wind can’t harm us because we have tuned into the highest frequency of All That Is. Listening within also helps us know instinctively how to support a particular person in a specific situation.

Listening to others more deeply supports us in being very available to others by truly listening to their problems and desires. We also then help them make their own wise decisions. When we deeply hear another, we connect with them. If we want to enjoy a great life, it’s imperative that we make good connections with people.

AN EXAMPLE OF LISTENING WITHIN

Ann Strong said that the name of this e-course, “Steady in the Wind,” just “came” to her after she had asked for guidance about it. If she had named the course without listening within, she said she would probably have called it something uninspiring like, “Making More Sales in Tough Times” or “Taking Better Care of Yourself to Bring in More Clients.” She says, “Thank goodness I asked for help!”

PRACTICE DEEP LISTENING THIS WEEK

Begin to integrate deep listening into your daily life.
    Take a few minutes each day to listen within.
    Record your “answers” in your evidence journal.
    Each day, pick one or two conversations to practice deep listening.
    Record the results of this deep listening in your evidence journal.

Next week, you will receive Lesson Two: Visioning.
Until then have fun observing, and enjoy the many fruits of deep listening.

God is Blessing You, Right Now!

Rev. Alan A. Rowbotham
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Rev. Alan Rowbotham, a Unity minister for over thirty-six years, invites you to enjoy more articles and/or subscribe to his free inspirational newsletter, “Spiritual Solutions,” at www.spiritualsolutionsblog.com

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