Coming Out of the Spiritual Closet
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Coming Out of the Spiritual Closet
by Doreen Virtue, Ph.D.
Same as Doreen did, you too, Lightworker, should come out of your spiritual closet and state your Truth using discernment and as appropriate. It is part of your challenge on the Path to face this fear sooner or later and to do not deny God or your beliefs before others when the occasion presents itself. Maybe it is all in your head, you have created the monster you need to face and overcome. Just face it as she did —and here is her testimony— and you’ll see that it is only madeout of smoke. "Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 10:32, 33).
I spent a great deal of my life in the spiritual closet. I’m glad that, today, I am out.
As the daughter of a spiritual healer, I grew up in a non-traditional household. Instead of having a family physician, my mom would heal us with prayers and affirmations. Miracle healings, angel appearances, and wonderful manifestations were continuous parts of my childhood.
Yet, when I’d go to school or friends’ houses, I quickly learned it wasn’t "safe" to discuss our family’s lifestyle. The other kids would make fun of me, roll their eyes, or even laugh when I’d talk about my spiritual beliefs and practices.
It seemed that my childhood peers were firmly entrenched in the world’s material mindset. This mindset is the belief that we are victims of outside circumstances, diseases, and other people. This mindset is the belief that you must compete to get ahead in the world, because there isn’t enough good to go around. This mindset is also the belief that other people and God are separate from one another.
So when I would talk about principles of manifestation or spiritual healing, I received ice-cold receptions. This didn’t make sense to me at first. After all, I thought that they would enjoy learning how to use their minds to create more peaceful and harmonious lives. Yet, it soon became apparent that these spiritual principles were too far-out for them to consider using.
That’s when I went into the spiritual closet. I kept my mouth shut, and sometimes, I even went along with the crowd. When people would discuss how "awful" or how "unfair" life was, I’d solemnly nod in agreement. By going along like this, I was readily accepted and soon became fairly popular. After awhile, I began to develop a form of amnesia about my spiritual beliefs. I talked less about them at home, and I gradually adopted the material mindset of the world.
I stayed in the spiritual closet until a series of profound adulthood experiences, which I’ve written about in my book, "The Lightworker’s Way," helped me to remember the spiritual principles and beliefs of my childhood. At the time that all of these events occurred, I was a psychotherapist with a successful private practice. I rarely spoke about spirituality during my sessions, because of leftover fears from my childhood that others might reject me for my beliefs.
Yet, the spirit world made it clear that it was important for me to teach about spirituality in my healing practice, as well as in my books and workshops. I felt very intimidated. On the one hand, I definitely wanted to teach about spirituality and incorporate the spiritual healing principles into my private practice. But on the other hand, I was terrified that if I took this risk, I’d lose everything: my income, my reputation, my friends, and my family.
After a lot of discussions with God, the angels, and some ascended masters, I finally opted to come out of the spiritual closet. At first, I tip-toed out of the closet. For instance, I’d mention God in a passing remark, or I’d teach a client basic principles of manifestation or spiritual healing. Always, I was braced for the sky to fall on my head in response to my candor about spirituality. Yet, I found that other people positively embraced my words and asked me for more details about my beliefs and practices.
Within a couple of years, I was fully out of the spiritual closet. The feeling of freedom of no longer censoring my words was delicious. Today, I openly tell cab drivers who ask what I do for a living that I write books about angels, and I easily discuss manifestation principles with grocery store clerks and bank tellers. Of course, I use my discernment to know how far to go with these discussions. I also continuously ask for Divine guidance about what to say, with whom, and when.
I find that nearly everyone I meet is open to discussing spirituality. Perhaps it’s because they can tell I don’t have an agenda to persuade them to my way of thinking. I’m not a preacher, after all. I’m a lightworker who desires to spread love and light throughout the world. And we do that, not through arguing the fine points of spiritual principles, but by modeling a loving and peaceful nature ourselves.
In my travels, I talk to many people who are still in the spiritual closet. They want to talk openly about spirituality, but they fear social repercussions. I think we can use subtle means for spreading love and light, though, that ensure a positive reception. Of course, the most important part of teaching spiritual principles is making sure that we walk like we talk. If you are discussing peace, be sure that you are centered in peace yourself.
We can also do fun things such as wear angel pins, and jewelry or clothing depicting a spiritual theme. We can carry a copy of a spiritual book with us, as a conversation topic. We can sprinkle our discussions with spiritually-oriented words, and fearlessly use phrases that are positive and light-filled.
We are children of a Creator who is continuously broadcasting messages of love outwardly. Our Creator doesn’t edit or censor these messages out of fear that someone might not be ready to hear them, or because of political correctness concerns. God simply broadcasts messages, knowing that whoever needs them will receive them. Is it any wonder that our natural impulse is to do the same?
As we come out of the spiritual closet, we never know how many people’s lives we can positively affect. Our offhand remark about angels, Divine order, or manifestation might set the other person on a life-changing spiritual path. If they are not ready to "hear" spiritual truths, the other person will simply tune us out. Either way, we have come from the authentic place of speaking our truth from our heart. And that is among the greatest of freedoms we can ever know.
© 1998
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