Precious to the Divine

I was highly inspired by a client that consulted with me last night. At one point I said to her, "Accept the fact that you are worthy and precious to the Divine! Cultivate a humble yet profound acceptance of the Divine. Allow that divine presence to fully inhabit you, call you, inspire you, animate you, to be your greatest self in the world." This morning, I was thinking about all the ways we distance ourselves from the Divine . Addictions are one way: smoking, food, alcohol. But there other addictions that are more insidious and less mainstream: video games, television, the news, life drama, obsessions of any kind, really, anything that takes us out of being present in our bodies. These recreational activities all have their place, to be sure, but everyone knows they have that little vice they do a little too often. Why? Why do we distance ourselves from the Divine? Well, it seems that in our society, we are taught how to do this very effectively. We are given negative reinforcement, we are surrounded with cynicism, some of us are taught that the Divine is something to be feared, some that it is something to be loathed. Ultimately, distancing us from the Divine also allows us to stay right where we are, in our "comfortable squalor" of lack and unworthiness. I find myself distancing from the Divine by lazing in front of the TV and eating, and getting caught up in the news and politics, becoming overly involved in things that are both out of my control, and that are not directly affecting me. What am I doing -really- when I'm unbalanced in my use of food/TV/drama? Beneath it is often some strong emotion that I am not sure how to deal with, such as overwhelm, or fear and there is also a pervasive sense of lack and unworthiness. What is the remedy? To re-connect with the Divine. To turn off the television for a moment, and sit in silence, allowing the Divine presence to enter and fill you completely. To know that you are precious to the Divine. To know that you are an essential piece to this vast puzzle. To know that there is a plan for you, and to ask for guidance to see that plan. Also, to pause and get back INTO your body, and revel in it's miraculous existence! Even a moment's pause can really change and interrupt the pattern of distancing oneself from the Divine. It's in line with a psychological technique called "Opposite to Emotion Action" where one takes an action opposite to a strong emotion (e.g. depressed opposite action might be walking or going out with a group of friends). Some more examples can be found here. Ultimately, as stated at the start of this post, it is a FACT that you are worth and precious to the Divine. Our only job is to learn to take that fact into our hearts and souls.