​You’ve been given a great gift, an incredible gift – your life – but what will you do with this one, precious life? 
Do you know?  Are you clear? 
If you enter into a deep space of listening you can hear the Divine’s highest vision for this precious life you have. Be open for what will come into view, trusting and sensing that the Divine will show you. 
This visioning isn’t simply visualizing what you may want within your life.  Visioning is something much greater.  We open ourselves to being a vessel or vehicle for manifesting the highest divine intentions in our life – this great gift we’ve been given.  

St. Hildegard shared, in her 4th illumination in Scivias, a vision that we can see as a metaphor for aligning with the radiance that we are as divine beings.
“The setting sun and the setting stars should not be bright in my tent, but angelic glory should be. The foundation of my tent ought to be made of topaz, and its structure should be made all of gems. Its stairs ought to be made of crystal and its floor should be gold. I ought to be a companion of the angels since I am the living breath which God sent into dry dust. I ought to know and understand God.”
And yet, she too had moments when she experienced obstacles on her path.
But alas! My tent is full of eyes which are able to see everywhere... I have been attacked and plundered with the eyes and …..completely torn….I was led into another place which lacked any beauty and honor …Those who had seized me, struck me with blows…

​Sometimes we experience obstacles where we lose touch with the vision for our life.  We may feel we’re just drifting along in a vast ocean. 
Sometimes this is a moment of pause in our lives as we shed what we need to – maybe our limiting beliefs and false ideas about life. It’s part of our transformation as we await the emerging of a deeper dimension of our being. 

​Other times, we lose touch with the vision for our life and we drift along, attached to our limiting beliefs and false ideas.  We convince ourselves we don’t have time to align with our higher vision.  Or the money.  Or the skills or ability.  Or something else that stops us.
We lose touch with our spiritual nature, leaving us fearful, frustrated, or bitter.  We may desperately try to control the external world in order to find security and a glimpse of happiness.
We’ve lost touch with the divine vision for our own unique life. 
If we can catch ourselves in this downward spiral and enter into a space of deep listening, we can become aware that we’re surrounded by unconditional love.  Our being lives within this unconditional love if we can simply open ourselves to experiencing this. 
It’s in this state, we can offer questions to our spirit guides.  Questions that come without an attachment to a specific outcome or judgment of an answer. 
As we listen inwardly, we begin to hear at deeper levels what we’re being called to be in this lifetime and what we need to embody to realize it. 
 
When we begin to understand our purpose for being here, we can start to open ourselves to the Divine’s vision for us and our own unique path for unfolding that vision.  

In this work, we become more aware that we are spiritual beings, not separate from the Divine, and that our unique and divine vision is within us already.
 
Michael Beckwith, spiritual leader and creator of Life Visioning, offers these questions to access the power of visioning in your life. 

1. What is the highest vision for me (or this project/group)?
2. What must I (we) become to empower the vision?
3. What must be released?
4. What must be embraced?
5. Is there any other information that I (we) need in this moment?

Bring these questions into your contemplative practices this week to support you in aligning with the divine vision for your life. 
 
“I believe that you’re great, that there’s something magnificent about you. Regardless of what has happened to you in your life. Regardless of how young or old you think you might be. The moment you begin to ‘think properly,’ this something that’s within you, this power within you that’s greater than the world, it will begin to emerge. It will take over your life. It will feed you. It will clothe you. It will guide you, protect you, direct you, sustain your very existence. If you let it..” – Michael Beckwith
 
Check out the many additional resources available to support you on your spiritual journey in my Free Healing Library here.

​Life’s full of challenges and sometimes they surprise you on your life’s journey. Some are dropped into your life, beyond your control, and even shock you.  A serious illness of a friend.  The death of a loved one.  A natural disaster like a hurricane. Just to name a few.
 
Although these challenges may help us to learn and grow, that doesn’t mean they’re easy! 
 
How do you face the challenges that come to you in the world?  With confidence? Or do you struggle to get through them? 
 
What ones are in your life now?  How are you facing them?  

If you’re faced with the same challenges again and again, not sure how to move through them, you may start to lose your motivation to face the issue and the possible learning that exists within it. You can begin to spiral into despair and frustration. 
 
You may know inwardly that you can overcome these challenges, but how?  It may be hard to see in the midst of the storm. 
 
St. Hildegard shares in images in her 3rd vision in Scivias what we may experience in the midst of a challenge, “This gloomy fire is shaking…with all of its strength – full of sounds, storms, and very sharp stones... and the wind and the air …are being shaken…”
​

​It’s at this time that we need to remember who we are and why we are here upon the earth.  We need to reconnect with the Divine for support. What St. Hildegard describes as, “… a caressing rain with softness… a certain wind (that) also blows out its turbulence from this air.”
 
Then, you’ll remember that you’re on a journey to a higher state of consciousness where you can see your challenges as opportunities to get a glimpse of your highest self. 
 
These 4 virtues are gifts that St. Hildegard shares as a foundation of support as we strive to discover how to bring forth that “caressing rain” and “wind that blows away the turbulence.” 
 
Stay Grounded
You’ll find your stability if you remember to stay grounded.  Breathe in, breathe out.  Don’t forget to breathe! Our breath is the source of life. Better yet, go outside and put your feet upon Mother Earth and breathe deeply for a couple minutes.  A wonderful way to stay grounded. 

​Connect with the Divine
Remind yourself of the higher wisdom that is the foundation of all of life. Reestablish or strengthen your connection through prayer, meditation, study, or time in nature. 
 
Discover Your Strength and Fortitude
Find inspiration and strength to be present with this challenge in the image of St. Hildegard holding her abbess staff as she speaks, “God created me… God is also my strength… Through God, I have living spirit.  Through God I have life and movement.  Through God I learn, I find my path…” 
 
As you stay grounded and connect with the Divine, you discover that center that’s still and quiet within the whirlwind of turmoil. You can access your inner strength and power for your life’s journey. Here you can be open to guidance and discover what you need for this moment in your life. 

​Access Peace Within  
When you enter into this still and quiet place, you can access a greater wisdom within yourself and in the universe. You open to listening for communication that can come from the Divine.  A sense of calm and peace can flow through you. 
 
Challenges are your opportunities to grow in life.  They guide you to awareness of yourself and your potential which is infinite and active in every moment. 
 
If you want to explore getting my support as you navigate a storm in your life, I encourage to sign up for a free 30 minute consultation with me.

​Summer’s beginning to wind down and a chill has come into the air in the early mornings. It’s harvest time!  And the gifts of the season are abundant. As the time of daylight decreases and the darkness of the nights increases, it’s a time for us to keep our inner radiant light shining, as we move into the darker time of the year. 
With St. Hildegard’s Feast Day this week, September 17th, I’m once again inspired by what courage she had to overcome her own fears and anxiety about recognizing and living her soul’s purpose in the world. Shining her radiant light into the world! 

​As you’re journeying down the path of your soul’s purpose in this phase of your life does fear or anxiety rise up within you?  Do they become stumbling blocks to moving forward? Fear that maybe you’re inadequate or not enough?  Fear that you’ll fail or that others won’t want what you have to offer?  Does this cast a shadow on your shining light that stops you from moving forward on your path?  

Fear is a natural part of being human, of course! But we can take charge of how we respond to our own fear. Whether we let it paralyze us or overwhelm us or whether we work to move beyond it so that we can bring what the world is waiting for us to share. 
Be curious about the fear or anxiety that arises in you.  Why’s it here?  What’s its origin?  Does it remind you of a fear that served you in the past?  Is it serving you now? 
After understanding this better, remember that your soul’s purpose is waiting to be shared in the world. Now’s the time to gather your courage to move beyond any fear or anxiety. To overcome your own inner dragons that may manifest particularly during this season.
“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” Marianne Williamson
With this impulse of courage to let our own light shine, we can bring about new and powerful ways of thinking and living in our communities that will be fruitful. And others will find their own inner strength to do the same. 
I hear St. Hildegard’s words from her Second Vision in Scivias, as she shares, “And again I hear that one speaking: ...For when the land is tilled with a great deal of labor, it brings forth a lot of fruitfulness. It is similar with the human race because after the fall of humanity, many virtues rose up to help...

​This week let’s explore 3 virtues that we can call upon to help us with the hard work of “tilling the soil” or gathering our courage to move through fear and anxiety to shine our light in the world. In so doing, our harvested fruits can be shared, and even grow and flourish in the world as others receive and feel empowered to do the same. An abundant harvest, creating transformation in the world!

1. Compassion – as you struggle with your own anxiety and fear, take a moment to find compassion for yourself.  Be gentle and kind.  Offer loving kindness to yourself for who and all that you are. Then offer loving kindness to others in the world.  Know that they too struggle and experience fear or anxiety.  Feel compassion towards them on their paths in life.
 
2. Tranquility – When a surge of restlessness or anxiety or anger flows through you, search to find a place of peace and tranquility. Lean upon the help of Mother Nature who will calm us. Then do some slow, conscious breathing.  As a wave of tranquility moves through, think of others who may also be in need of this. Recognize that they are also in need of tranquility at times of anxiety or anger.
 
3. Generosity – As obstacles arise in your path, be especially generous in love for yourself at this time – generous with compassionate understanding and kindness toward yourself. Generous in self-care and recognition of the light that longs to shine.  And then extend this generosity to others – offering understanding and kindness as they work through their own obstacles. 

​As we call upon these virtues to support us in walking the path of our soul’s purpose, our light will shine through the darkness. And an abundant harvest we’ll have! The fruits of our labor. 

​Have you found what is your own bright light to shine forth in the world?  Your purpose in life? What you were meant to create in this life? 
 
Do you know that you have a purpose, one that is unique to you, one that only you can contribute to the world?  Are you clear on what that is?
 
The world is waiting for you to share it! 

​Your soul has a yearning to live your purpose, whether you choose to follow it or not.  Whether you’re resistant to it or not.
 
Know that your soul will continue calling to you to live your soul’s purpose. This will always be within you throughout your life. 
 
Life will, of course, continue to move forward, whether you follow your calling or not. For life, by its very nature, lives and breathes within humanity and within the universe, deriving its energy from the Divine.
 
Yet, if you wish to share in this abundance in life, to truly thrive within this divine flow, you must give of yourself in a meaningful and committed way to your purpose in the world. For you are part of the Divine. But you have the freedom to choose if you’ll dive into this divine flow or not. 
 
Every morning you awake, you’re given another opportunity to respond to this inner yearning, to realize it.  Yet it’s your choice to engage or not. 

​St. Hildegard of Bingen inspires us to drink from this fountain of divine abundance. In her first vision shared in Scivias, she encourages us to “…extend yourself in the fountain of abundance” and to share the “flowing of your water” with the world."  
 
It’s time to dive right into the fountain of Divine abundance.  Hear the calling of your soul’s purpose and understand what it is! Then respond to the call.  Follow it with courage, shining your bright light with others in the world. 
 
St. Hildegard continues, “For you do not take the understanding of this profoundness from humanity, but you receive it from above by celestial justice…With a bright light this serenity will shine forth strongly among those people who dare to shine forth.”
 
 St. Hildegard calls us to rise with boldness to commit to our own individual purpose in life, seeking support in the Divine. She encourages us to not hide and not be afraid. 
 
We’re born as radiant beings longing to find our purpose upon earth and live a meaningful life.  But, we may experience obstacles. Fear or shame in expressing our true self.  We might hide our gifts rather than risking failure or disapproval. 
 
We may believe our thoughts and contributions aren’t good enough or that we’re not good enough to contribute anything noteworthy to the world. Still, we must move forward, St. Hildegard encourages us to commit to our true purpose that is our soul’s yearning. For it so longs to find its way in life.
 
Only you can share what you have to give to the world.  Only you can discover who you are and what you’re meant to bring forth into the world.  The world won’t discover that and bring it to you.
 
As you begin to shine your light of your soul’s yearning into the world, it might feel like only a small spark. Tend to it with care and it’ll grow into a crackling fire ready to warm and awaken others in the world!  

St. Hildegard encourages us further to “Arise therefore, cry aloud and say what is revealed to you with the strongest power of divine help.”
 
Do you know what needs to arise and be spoken from you?  The world’s waiting for you to share!
 
Your radiant nature is always there, even beneath limiting beliefs and thought patterns. 
These will dissolve over time if you spend time being open to listening to your soul’s yearning.
 
Take time to find and explore the purpose that you’re meant to live. Commit to manifesting this in the world!
 
Here are 3 useful tools to help you discover what the world’s waiting to receive from you.

1. Sit in quiet contemplation. Listen for your soul’s yearning. What do you hear? What’s it longing for?  What’s it calling you to bring to the world? Bracket your quiet time with a song. Sing it quietly to yourself. One of my favorites is :"This little light of mine, I'm gonna let it shine" Pick a song that speaks to your soul.  

2. Ask the Divine for support. The Divine’s always available to support you but you must ask. For it’s your choice. So, ask for guidance in discovering your soul’s yearning.  And when you think you might’ve discovered it, ask for guidance about whether you’re on the right track or not. One technique that is especially potent is to take a blank piece of paper. At the top of the page write the sentence: "God, show me my soul's purpose." Then with your non-dominant hand write out or draw whatever thoughts, feelings or images that come to you. 

3. Observe and listen over time. As you sit in daily quiet contemplation and as you go about your day-to-day activities, observe and listen to what comes to you.  In your thoughts, in your feelings or in what someone else says to you, or what simply arises in a moment.  What response comes that helps you to see with more clarity what the world’s waiting for you to bring?   

​I look forward to seeing what you bring!

Know that I am always available for private sessions if you feel you need support in how to discover your soul's purpose. Contact me to explore private sessions.
 

​Do you sometimes think that maybe you missed your true calling in life and now you’re too old to follow it? Do you feel it’s too late to discover your true purpose?
 
Maybe you feel a burning fire within that wants to be fulfilled but you feel your time has passed already and you’re too old to satisfy it?  Or you remember your childhood dreams that never have been realized but now you feel like it’s too late?  

​Whenever thoughts like these float into my mind, I remember St. Hildegard and how much her life inspires me. She lived to the ripe old age of 81 following her calling in a time where a typical lifespan was half that!  She worked with determination to bring her gifts into the world despite many obstacles including even her own limiting beliefs about women and herself.
 
When she was 52 years old, she felt called to leave her home of 40 years, the Abbey of St. Disibod, and take the bold step to build her own abbey where St. Rupert’s church on the Rhine River had been destroyed. The inspiring work of St. Rupert in the 7th century fueled her commitment to move forward with this project. 

​And yet, she was faced with many obstacles along the way. The monks at St. Disibod strongly objected that she was leaving. Understandable, as many sisters leaving with her meant that the monks’ financial support would too. 
 
Yet, she continued to find her courage to do what she felt called to. And she moved forward. She built Rupertsberg, a place for her to manifest the Power of the Living Light.
 
The early years on the Rupertsberg were difficult ones. Some sisters even left. Still she persevered with the passion she had for the project.  And then at the age of 67, marching forward, she created a second abbey!
 
Even as she entered into the last decade of her life, she stayed active each and every day  - writing texts that would share with others her plant remedies for healing, developing her own forms of worship and dress at the new abbey, and writing letters to the Emperor and the Pope.
 
She stood up for a revolutionary youth who, upon death, had repented and so she agreed to have him buried on her property, in spite of the consequences. The authorities were upset and her convent was placed under interdict.
 
Yet she fought against this injustice and won yet another battle, shortly before she died at age 81. 

What wisdom and experience, alongside determination, courage and action she displayed in her later years!
 
St. Hildegard is such an inspiration to me as I enter into this period of my life. We’re never too old to take up a passion, to find meaning in life, and to try something new!
 
Here are a few tips for thriving, not just surviving, in your later years of life, that I’ve learned from St. Hildegard in my life.  May they support you too! 
 

1. Have a purpose or a reason to get up in the morning – something meaningful in life. Consider where you can share your experience and wisdom gained over the years. Consider what you have longed to do in life and haven’t yet.        Then take steps to begin it!  

2. Celebrate and cultivate social connections – Loss of loved ones is inevitable as you grow older. Make new friends and not just ones your age. 

3.  Keep a rhythm and routine in your life – having rhythms helps to give you strength.  Wake up and go to sleep at the same times each day. Eat meals at regular times. Find some consistency throughout the week of time in nature,   exercise, and social activities.   

4. Don’t be defined by obstacles – Remember how you crashed through obstacles when you were younger with idealism and eternal optimism? Maybe you’ve grown wiser since then but hold on to an attitude of positivity and               gratitude, not bitterness, as you age.  Don’t let yourself be defined by an illness or your age.   

5. Try new things – it keeps your mind and body flexible! And you may discover a new passion!  

​6. Let go of the limiting beliefs of old age - There are numerous stories of people living their passions in their later years.  Read a few of them to inspire you! You’re never too old.  
 
In this third phase of life, when the busy time of raising children and building a career passes, we can begin to savor the moments of life in a new way and not let them rush by. Friends, family, new experiences, and nature can be more deeply enjoyed. Passions that have been dormant can now begin to blossom!  

May you find meaning and purpose that fuels your passion in this phase of your life!
 
Check out the many resources available to support you on your spiritual journey in my Free Healing Library here.