A secret key

"Our strength grows out of our weakness."
~Ralph Waldo Emerson

I ran across this quote somewhere online this morning--I think in an email--and immediately it spoke to me. It's so true! This is the reality I am living right now! I very recently discovered that the very things I considered to be my "weaknesses" were actually simply the shadow side of those things I most covet in myself--my true strengths. I recognized that in order to give the one up, I would have to also hand over the other--and I immediately and adamantly put my foot down and said, "There's no way in hell I am giving that up!!"

This new insight gave me the fresh new perspective I needed to finally bust my way through inner obstacles that I've wrestled with for years trying to overcome.

This past year I have overcome several hurdles of various sorts in my life. I would like to share a very important secret with you now. For, I see that the very key to unlocking each of these gates has been exactly the same for all of them: Acceptance.

Try it! What do you find yourself wrestling or struggling with in your life, currently? Where do you find yourself pouring in endless amounts of energy seemingly to no avail? This is a sure clue that you are likely stuck in an endless self-defeating loop of wrestling against yourself. Stop for a moment and consider what it would be like to just accept this thing against which you are struggling. What word of grace do you need to hear in this moment? Is it something internal or external that needs accepting? Keep in mind, the accepting I am talking about is one that should leave you feeling free and actually more empowered, not one that leads to feelings of resignation or defeat. Genuine acceptance should lead to a greater feeling of wholeness, rather than division.

Acceptance, by the way, is not the final destination. It is the step from which we leap forth into our future. By accepting things are just as they should be, in the here and now, I am now free to leap fearlessly into the life I truly imagine that awaits me just ahead. Who's with me?