I’ve never been very comfortable handling birds, but I began to talk softly to this one, reassuring it as I knelt down and began working at untangling the orange yarn from its legs and the woody branches near the soil. It stopped flapping, got very quiet, and let me continue with my rescue mission. After a few minutes, it was free and it took off flying straight across the street and into my back yard. And I was left with a surprisingly heartfelt wave of emotion at having done some really kind and good for one of Mother Earth’s children. I stood still for a minute enjoying the moment.

Over the next few weeks, one experience after another—twenty-one of them in all-- showed up in my life and the lives of my husband, close friends, and clients, that were about birds tangled up or trapped and needing help getting free. The synchronicity of it all was stunning to me: from the pelican tangled up in fishing line, standing quietly by the bridge my husband was slowly cruising under in our boat few days after the ‘gardenia bird’ incident, to the two birds trapped simultaneously in my father-in-law’s home in New York and his stepson’s home in California, and it got my attention in the way that only sacred messages can.

At the same time this was happening, my family was entering the most difficult and challenging period we have ever experienced. Some family members were struggling in self-destructive ways and others were reacting intensely out of fear. Great separation occurred, something that was so painful given our family values, that I found myself saying that I thought ‘it might just kill me’. Now, I’m a very sturdy person emotionally and in every other way you can think of and those words were indicative of just how deep my own suffering was. And I know that the suffering of every family member was equally agonizing.

At some point in the odyssey of tangled birds I asked my Inner Guidance to tell me what the message was in all this. It was made clear to me that it was about helping others to get untangled from whatever was binding them emotionally and keeping them from being truly free. This proved to be my work over the next two years of my family’s struggle and recovery. And all the coaching clients who were now finding their way to me were in their own spiritual awakening process and needed support releasing themselves from the bonds of ego’s judgment and limited thinking that was causing their suffering.

The process of recognizing ego’s hold on me and untangling myself was deep and wrenching, sometimes excruciatingly so. But my own tenacity and sturdiness allowed me to confront the very real fact that I was suffering at my own hands. Resistance to what was true, to the conditions in our family, to relationships changing, was what was causing my killer pain. Each time I faced the thinking errors of my ego and surrendered to the thoughts of unconditional love my highest heart was capable of, I got relief—I found peace. Every time I held myself accountable for interpreting things in a painful way, I was then able to choose another interpretation that took into account that we are all each others’ Master Teachers and were involved in the process of learning very important life lessons. When I framed it all as ‘spiritual awakening’ I relaxed, understood it better, and gained a higher perspective, one that comforted me and allowed me to breathe and do whatever was right in front of me.

We’ve survived the awakening process and are thriving in the new energy; we are all changed; relationships have shifted to a new place, a place of more authenticity and respect; and we are more wide-awake now, living in a higher state of consciousness. And we are these days, tangled up in Love – true, unconditional, “you get to be who you are, I get to be who I am, and it’s all okay” Love. It feels very good, very peaceful, and very real and satisfying.

So if you find yourself in challenging circumstances and you know or suspect that spiritual awakening is the process under it all, keep the following 5 tips in mind:

1. Each day get still and ask your Inner Guidance for information about what Life Lessons you are learning through your personal challenges. All the information and knowledge you need is inside of you.

2. Listen to, read, and watch the teachings of high level spiritual teachers who will offer perspective and wisdom that resonates in your deepest soul. Paradoxically, these teachings will serve to remind you of what you already know, but tend to forget in the day-to-day struggles inherent in the spiritual awakening process of letting go of old limiting ways.

3. Challenge your 3-D limiting, egoic thinking and beliefs. These are easy to spot because they are operating whenever you are suffering emotionally with anger, resentment, fear, depression, anxiety, or any other uncomfortable emotion. Play with processes that invite you out of conventional thinking and into expanded thought, like the Quantum Questions in my series of WHAT IF…? books.

4. Get clear and focused about what you truly desire and find ways to flow energy to manifest what you want as you release the old patterns of thinking and acting that have kept you stuck. Habit of Attraction coaching with me deals very effectively with this.

5. Celebrate each day of your life with conscious segments and moments of JOY and APPRECIATION. This practice will instantly raise your vibration, align you with what you truly want, and prepare you to receive it. Remember that what you want-- the positive outcome of your challenges -- ALREADY has been created and is waiting for you in the quantum field of infinite possibilities, so you can relax and trust that you are moving toward it and it toward you.

These are challenging and yet, very exciting times we are in these days. Spiritual awakening is not for sissies. It’s an often arduous process with enormous rewards for the bravehearts who are steadfast in seeing it through. And you don’t need to traverse this path alone. Just as no one would attempt to climb Everest or K2 alone, it’s important to connect with others who are a few steps ahead of you on the path and are willing to lend a hand, hold the lantern, and offer comfort and wisdom.

Since I specialize in empowering individuals to navigate Spiritual Awakening more gracefully and successfully, and have “been there, done that”, let me know how I can serve you!

Wishing you an awakened life filled with JOY!

Jan Masters,

The Everyday Joy Coach
www.EverydayJoy.com