"On backing up ~"

“WHAT? . . . . . BACK UP? . . . . ME? . . . . . YOU'VE GOT TO BE KIDDING!!!!”

This has been my response for 50+ years during which time I have done my very best to avoid the issue.

A couple of years ago, a friend, after observing one of my less-than-successful attempts, said to me “Lynn, use your mirrors . . .“ This advice was repeated periodically over the next months. Finally after some time I decided that if I trusted my friend’s advice, then perhaps I should try it. Actually trying it, though, took a little longer. It worked – not perfectly, but at least enough that I was willing to try it again . . . and again . . . and again. While backing into the lane way hasn't happened yet, each time I follow that advice it becomes a little easier [and a lot less stressful] to back up.

Reflecting on this phenomenon, made me realize that the main issue here wasn't the backing up as much as it was trust. I’m sure I had heard and read that advice many times over the years. But until I really trusted where it was coming from, I wasn't going to take the chance.

This led me to ponder how often in my spiritual life, trust is the main issue. Trust in someone, in an experience, is needed before I take that ‘leap of faith’ which is more often more like a baby step forward. But when that baby step shows that the trust was well-placed, then larger steps follow. What gives me trust in my spiritual mentors is the same thing that gave me the trust to follow my friend’s advice about backing up, their way of living shows that they follow what they say.

It seems to me that one of the main ways we grow spiritually is by learning to trust . . . first in the words and experiences of others, and then in our own experiences. The more completely we trust in ourselves, in our God, in our experiences of the holy, the more we are transformed and changed into who we are meant to be.

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NUDGINGS: a journey into the unknown

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