I’ve found that the only way to spiritually advance in my life is to move out of my comfort zone. Ernest Holmes once wrote that we should start where we are, but then he adds to begin to move forward from that place. I am talking about consciousness first. If we stay in one place in consciousness not willing to think anew, we cannot move into greater knowing and living.

We are forever growing into greater expressions of ourselves. We can’t really stand still and the Universe does provide for growth experiences if we do not consciously choose them ourselves. Of course, that Universe is within us not some outside force dolling out tests and challenges.

One of our Declaration of Principles states that “We believe in the eternality, the immortality and the continuity of the individual soul, forever and ever-expanding.” Let me emphasize “forever and ever-expanding,” and that we do not wait until we have passed from this place of existence to begin that journey. It is happening right now.

What does it look like when we move out of our comfort zone? Does it mean that we try to do things that terrify us like sky-diving or propelling? Not me. Although this is a great metaphor for daring to move out of our comfort zone, it is not what I am talking about. I’m talking about putting spiritual principles into practice.

For example, if we say we believe in abundance but we are holding onto our money or our time or our love, we are not expanding. This is one of the reasons I love to tithe. When I tithe, I am telling the Universe that there is always more. I know that Nature abhors a vacuum. It’s true. When I let go of my tight hold on my possessions, I can’t keep more from coming back in.

When we left for Kaua’i from the Mainland, we gave away or sold everything we had. Now I am doing quite well at filling up a big house again. There is always more where that came from. There is always more.

I’ve also come to understand that when I find myself expanding like I’ve done of late that I am expanding in all areas. I’m expanding my ability to receive and to give. It’s a two-way street. We can’t have one without the other. That’s called stagnation or drainage. If we give too much and do not open up to receive, we drain ourselves. If we allow ourselves to receive without giving, we stop the flow.

My comfort zone is comfortable, but it is also a place of non growth, and I don’t want to stay the same. I am meant to change, to learn more, to be more – to expand into the next greatest version of myself. Michael Beckwith once wrote,  “We surrender not to an outside God  but to the next stage of our evolution to our higher selves.”

I never knew what this really meant until lately. I didn’t understand that in order to be more, I had to move out more into the field of the unknown and trust it. It’s kind of like that scene from Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom when he steps out onto the invisible pavement, trusting it will be there. It is!

The one important ingredient to expanding and moving forward is true belief. We know when we have it and we know when we are faking it. However, we can’t be fooled. In reality, we won’t really believe until we actually move into a new way of being consciously before we see it. We can’t wait, and we have to take some kind of action that proves that we do believe. It can be as simple as packing and clearing out our things before we’ve found a house.

It’s a matter of surrender and when we do that everything opens up. Surrender for me looks like letting go and trusting that the Universe is working twenty-four seven to bring my intentions into manifestation, while I do what is mine to do.

So, to wrap it all up, I do a little more each day to test my new beliefs. I’m changing habits and patterns that have been a part of me for a long time. It takes practice. It takes faith with works. If I say I believe something that I better be willing to act from that place.

Love and Aloha,

Rev. Rita