Acceptance As A Spiritual Practice

Oh how we love to think we are in control of our destinies; and in the grand scheme of things we are.  But not because we have control over other people, places, and circumstances.  No, we can only control how we see and relate to the world around us.  I, like most people, tend to confuse the two and when that happens I begin to take on too much responsibility and I feel stressed out, usually all in the name of love and service.

Here's how it works for me.  Something big happens in your life and I begin to get all wrapped up in what you need to do to remedy or deal with the situation.  The more involved I get the more "powerful" I think I am and the more I forget that you are powerful too.  Before long I'm trying to solve your problem and I find myself not taking care of my own life.  It's very subtle and often I don't see it happening until I'm knee deep in trying to control your outcomes.

Sigh...  This is where acceptance comes in.  The reason I'm all wrapped up in your situation is because some part of me finds it unacceptable.  I'm judging you and I'm judging your situation.  My purview is limited because I'm reacting to my judgements and in fact I'm probably seeing the situation through my own self judgement and laying it on your situation.  

What if my first reaction is to accept the person, place or situation as being exactly perfect.  Rather than judging it, I can remember that there is a Divine Order to life even in the midst of tradgedy.  What I know from my own life experiences is the things that were the hardest were also the things that helped me grow stronger and shaped me in to the person I am today.   How do I know that the lost job, bad relationship or health challenge isn't exactly the right friction required to bring about the next right thing in your life.

Let's be clear I'm not talking about apathy - apathy is when we suppress our emotions and are indifferent.  True acceptance on the other hand is allowing ourselves to love exactly what is happening in the moment it is happening.  It's trusting that there is a higher order to life.  When we enter into acceptance we make ourselves more available to a myriad of possibility.

Acceptance keeps me right sized and paying attention to how I see the world and the people in my life.   Once I can accept something I can release judgement and approach the situation with real Love.  This is how I master my own destiny, be deciding to see the world through the eyes of Love, to see the higher truth and the perfection in the most imperfect situation.  And therein lies what I'm responsible for  -  just me, my thoughts, my perception and my choices.

I'm always at choice and I choose Love and Acceptance.