Many, there are, who would like to attain the blessings of a spiritual life, but who find the road blocked by a lack of trust in themselves regarding the goodness of God and the likelihood that having surrendered control of their lives, they will receive what they need.  The ego's way of protecting the self from adversity and deprivation remains strongly entrenched in the unconscious mind and even in the heart, creating fear that if one lets go of self-protection, that great vulnerability will be created, or even worse, that things will fall apart.

Trust partakes of both faith and belief but is more than this.  Ultimately, it is based on the experience of the goodness of life and God, and on the understanding that all that is Life works in the direction of positive change and growth at all times, both for individuals and for the planet as a whole.  The deeper our trust, the more it can be held even in the presence of external circumstance in which great hardship and pain may be present, but in which the deeper self recognizes that somehow God will turn this circumstance, also, to the good.

The surest foundation for the development of trust is the experience of God's love – not the thought of God's love, but the experience of the Divine current that can run through a situation, an event, a body, or a life.  This experience is both tangible and real, letting the one who experiences it know that love is real, and that one is forever held within the embrace of the holy and sanctified Heart of the Creator.  

The purification process, including the purification of body and mind, allows each embodied self to have a greater experience of God's love, for the countervaling forces of darkness which create doubt in the mind and fear in the heart no longer stand in the way.  As light increases upon the earth and within the body, it brings with it the experience of Divine love to which it is joined, being part of the same current. As a result, the self that is growing in light will also come to know more deeply its own loving capacity as well as God's capacity to love all beings infinitely.

As a part of purification, contact, however small, with the Source of love, creates a sense in all things that there is an emanating purpose and holiness behind each thing, leading to the progressive unfoldment of Divine intention and blessing.  This perception of the direction of life and of God's desire to bring all good things to a beloved humanity  - is the surest basis for trust.  It is the intimate realization of the biblical statement within the Book of John (3:16) – "for God so loved the world…" Nevertheless, there are many whose past experiences with darkness and despair have caused them to doubt Divine intentionality, so that instead of trust, they have come to feel that only one's own will and vigilance can guarantee safety and  whatever else may be needed in the world of physical reality.

Where past pain has resulted in mistrust, or where prayers have appeared to go unanswered and a sense of separation or aloneness has been the result, the heart, during purification, is given an opportunity to confront the dilemma of its own doubt, even as it seeks the way home. For this to happen, for the way to appear, the heart must open itself to greater light, even in the presence of doubt, even in the presence of disbelief, so that a new experience can occur.  Cynicism and anger create a closed heart.  Longing creates an open heart, even where doubt may be present.  Therefore, to open the door to the experience of Divine love and a healing of mistrust, one must allow longing to prevail and ask that the door be opened.

In the presence of the holy, all doubt vanishes.  In the presence of the pure, all fear vanishes and only innocence remains.  It is the goal of purification to return each self to the conditions of purity and innocence so that the natural love of the heart can find its way into expression again, and so that the wounds of the past, however deep they may be, can be healed in the balm of Love's gracious presence, emerging eternally from the holy Source of life.

Related Writings:

Living With the Unknown

Waiting in Trust (Video)

Living a Guided Life

How Do You Know You Are Safely Being Led?

Article Section -  Purification