Monthly Musing: Forgiveness – The Crown Jewel of Personal Freedom

One of the greatest blessings we have living in the United States is freedom. Although that is being challenged as we speak, we still enjoy exceptional freedom at home compared to many other brothers and sisters that live in fear and captivity abroad. While external freedom is important, it is also important to have inner freedom — the personal freedom to live in peace, joy, and acceptance. Even if external freedom is compromised, inner freedom can allow for a positive outlook as we have seen in examples like Victor Frankl (quoted above) and Eli Wiesel — both holocaust survivors. Forgiveness of others and self can manifest this inner freedom quicker than anything else I have ever encountered.

While your load may not be as heavy as these exceptional human beings nor are you likely to be dealing with the murder of your only son like I had to face, you could be mired in anger or deep resentment in your workplace or in an important relationship. You could also be hindered by guilt, depression, or anxiety, which are all symptomatic emotions that result from non-forgiveness. In fact, many people do not even realize that they are suffering from some of these emotions as the need to forgive one’s self or another is quite often a blindspot.

We, humans, are fallible, and at some levels have caused harm to others — often to the people closest to us. Living in the divided and ever-changing world we are currently witnessing, I see these debilitating emotions in many of my workshop participants. Are you also suffering from one of these negative emotions? Are you limited by an event in your past that is preventing you from living your best life? 

For some spiritually fragile people, forgiveness is like a dirty word. After being hit or betrayed, they may be offended by the idea of forgiving the person or people responsible for the hit they have taken because it is commonly misunderstood. Forgiveness does NOT mean that you condone the behavior or negate the injustice that has occurred. And because of this complexity, many avoid forgiveness because they feel that it is giving the perpetrator permission to harm others. Self-forgiveness often is even harder.

Spiritually resilient people understand the profound power of forgiveness. They practice it and understand that forgiveness is a gift to themselves because it can free them from residual anger and pain left by an intrusion or harmful experience. As taught by Lewis Smedes: “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and find out that the prisoner was you.” This is why I am so passionate about teaching people to strengthen their spirit and discover their soulular connection; it will be a compass in every future challenging situation.

The biggest impediment to forgiveness is judgment. After being hurt or betrayed many victims may actually be offended by the idea of forgiving the offender. My secret tip for quick healing is to leave judgment to the higher power. Trust that there is no escaping wrongdoing and that karma always balances. Without spiritual strength, it may be hard to have faith in this fact, so part of the process I teach is to reconnect to your innermost self and your place in the world so that you can ground yourself no matter how turbulent the waters may feel.

Einstein, as brainy as he was, warned about the limitations of intellect. When you forgive, lead from the spirit. Your spirit is very good at forgiving. Trust in your spirit – peel away the layers of resistance. Clear your mind of certain negative patterns of thinking and forgiveness will rush in like the tide.

When you understand the real meaning of forgiveness, you will send your spiritual resiliency through the roof! The precursor to forgiveness is compassion, and the precursor to compassion is empathy.

In my upcoming masterclass in November, we do a powerful experiential exercise to build one’s empathy muscle. The important lesson to learn here is that all emotions have a frequency. Anger, hatred, resentment, judgment, greed, avarice, bitterness, and guilt are low-frequency emotions. Freedom, peace, nor happiness reside there. Whereas goodwill, friendship, trust, empathy, compassion, gratitude, love, and forgiveness are high-frequency emotions.

Personal freedom and peace reside in these high-vibratory emotions. It is not complicated to tune into your vibrational frequency – check in with your emotions now. What are you feeling? Whenever you catch yourself in one of these low-frequency vibrations, it is best to take time to process. When this happens to me, as it happens to all of us – I meditate an extra 30 minutes and return to functioning at these high-frequency emotions. I personally teach my meditation methodology and guide participants through several meditations during our 4 half-day immersive masterclass.

Forgiveness is a blessing, and a blessing is when preparation meets grace. Having done this work for over 25 years, while I am not functioning at these high-frequency emotions 24/7 – I am definitely spending more time there! When I am there, I am in the flow of life, at peace, enjoying good health, happiness, and increasingly loving relationships.

Come join us and experience transformation as is enjoyed by most participants in this 4 half-day virtual intensive. It will also launch a new fulfilling trajectory for the rest of your life. It has for me, and it can for you too.