No More Paranoia!

A consistent question comes up when I'm out leading weekend retreats and seminars ~ "How do I know if the voice I "hear" is God or is me?

Lots and lots of damage has been done, and lots of lots of good good things gone undone because somewhere along the line in American Christianity, we have been taught not to trust ANYTHING we might think because we are so very corrupted and ugly in spirit. But that completely begs the question "How can we then EVER trust anything we think, any inklings or intuitions we have, and thoughts that lead us to any behaviors and attitudes, whether we deem them to be good or bad?

I think it's time to relinquish our religious paranoia and trust that the Holy Spirit can and does speak to us. And the promptings may not be ultra religious, and are often not even self-sacrificing. What if we just rested in the notion that we are loved? What if we just trusted that, as we are truly desiring to be God's partner and friend, we will be moved in the healthiest direction possible? What if we stopped second guessing ourselves and just shot for being one with the one 1 John describes as Life, Light, and Love?

The path isn't always clear, but the next step is.