Tag: Self improvement

Celebrate Diversity

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June is known as Pride Month—a time to honor and celebrate LGBTQ+ lives. In the years I’ve written this blog, I haven’t directly addressed my community, since my messages have been for everyone. But this month, I want to speak more personally.

LGBTQ+ people have faced discrimination, judgment, and rejection, especially from many religions. It made life difficult. The hardest part isn’t only enduring that, but the process of coming out to yourself and others. Through this, we develop powerful gifts, and that’s this blog’s focus. I also hope this speaks to anyone who’s felt different from the so-called norm.

Feeling different can be gutting, especially when confronted with images that remind us we don’t belong. We’re not enough and not good enough. Some try to fit in by hiding, adopting behaviors and interests far from our true selves. It’s a sad way to live. And even sadder when they convince themselves it’s their true self.

But this journey isn’t only about struggle. In the process, we discover gifts at a depth uncommon to those who haven’t walked our path. Here are a few:

Self-reflection: Our journey requires that we look within, exploring who we are at the core. We search books, attend workshops, and explore spiritualities to help us figure out who we are. We repeatedly ask, Does this resonate? Does it reflect who I am? We yearn to feel seen. Even after we’ve come out, this self-reflection continues, shaping how we live, love, and choose.

Courage: We may not always feel brave, but it’s present in every step. It rings out when we choose to stand tall, even on days we want to hide. No one else has had our individual experience, though we share commonalities with others like us. It takes courage to celebrate what we bring into the world just for being the person we are, our truest and holiest self.

Compassion: Our experiences of anger, fear, and loneliness enable us to recognize the same struggles in others. Because of it, we can offer love and understanding to those beginning the journey, caught in the thick of it, or simply living their truth now.

Self-reflection, courage, and compassion are only three gifts. Others include creativity, flexibility, sensitivity… I’m sure you can name your own.

This month, I encourage you to celebrate your uniqueness. You are a blessed and holy gift this world desperately needs. Amen. And so it is.

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From Imposter to Intuitive

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For spiritual teachers, the imposter syndrome centers on the belief that she or he doesn’t know enough to be a teacher and the fear that someone will find out. I admit that I’ve struggled with that.

For much of my early life, I relied on logic. I believed there were answers for everything, and each question had only one answer. When I went to the seminary and began studying the scriptures, I faced a dilemma. After reading one theologian’s interpretation of a Biblical passage, I concluded he was correct until I read another’s. Who was right? Which one was lying?

Fast-forward 12 years. After leaving the priesthood, I continued my search for the truth about God, myself, and life. Without realizing it, I continued searching for the one spiritual teacher with all the answers. When I found one with whom I resonated, I became excited. Here was someone who had similar experiences. Providentially, that lasted until I heard a teaching that didn’t match my beliefs. I must admit that I felt a little betrayed. That was a good thing. The last thing I needed was to rely on one person.

Years passed, and I continued seeking out teachers, eventually learning that one person doesn’t have all the answers and to rely on what resonated with me. But I was still driven to learn. Last year, I overextended myself, attending so many workshops and seminars that some conflicted. In one of them, a teacher brought up the imposter syndrome. I realized my drive was based on that syndrome and my underlying fear. Furthermore, my divine advisors challenged me to believe in myself.

While I’ll continue to sign up for workshops that interest me, a key resolution this year is to release my lingering fear of not being good enough, trusting that I have something unique to offer. What about you? Have you struggled with the imposter syndrome? Are you signing up for endless workshops, leaving you little free time? Consider reflecting on whether you do so because you don’t believe you know or are good enough. Through our intuition and divine soul, we have access to knowledge and wisdom. It’s up to us to listen and discover a path unique to our experience that serves the highest good.

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