TAPPING INTO THE LIGHT
by Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.

Even though I am not a religious person, I have a strong belief in a Higher Power. I experience it as a healing radiant Light that surrounds the entire Universe. This Universal Light is always there for me (and everyone else) to tap into. I find that when I tap into this Light, I draw into myself the most positive energy one can imagine. In this powerful energy, I know there is nothing to fear. Obviously, it serves me well to remember to tap into the Universal Light on a constant basis!

How did I come to this way of experiencing a Higher Power? When I was young I pictured God as a man in white robes with a long white beard, who was there to answer my prayers. I must say he was terribly inconsistent. Sometimes he answered my prayers and sometimes he didn't! Given his inconsistency, I was woefully confused about it all. And as I grew into adulthood, I was unsure whether I believed in God or not. But then one day something happened that convinced me that God was absolutely there for me, but not in the "form" I had previously imagined.

I had, sadly, just separated from my first husband and decided to take a vacation in Spain to clear my head. Having been very dependent on my husband, I was filled with great trepidation about traveling without him, but I felt the fear and did it anyway. (This was long before I wrote the book!) As I stood alone one morning in the garden of the Alhambra looking at the beauty around me, I was suddenly bathed in an overwhelming radiant Light that seemed to have come from nowhere. I felt myself blissfully dissolving into the oneness of the Universe and into a sublime sense of peace and safety. It was as if the Light had embraced me and told me without any words being spoken that I had nothing to fear.

This mystical experience lasted only a few moments but I knew I had touched a new dimension of my being, a part of me that was able to connect with a Higher Power...and my Spiritual Journey had begun. No longer did I envision God as a man in white robes with a long white beard who was there to answer my prayers. From that moment on, I saw God as a powerful, healing Light that is there whenever I remember to tap into it. This means that whenever I find myself bogged down in Lower Self thinking, I only have to close my eyes and imagine the Light all around and within me. I am immediately transported to a Higher Self frame of mind, and all is well. Heaven!

Out of curiosity, I asked a dear friend over lunch how she "sees" God. She answered that she sees God in the form of a benevolent father who watches over us and fills the world with beauty. She says that her confusion lies in the horrors of the world. How could God allow such horror to exist?

Obviously, she is not alone in her confusion. Many have great difficulty in believing in God because of all the horrors in the world. I recently saw a satirical article which explained that God MUST have "bipolar disorder"! Bipolar disorder is a severe psychological problem characterized by cycles of depression that are awful for the sufferer and his loved ones, and cycles of elation that are wonderful for the sufferer and his loved ones. What else could it be?

I told my friend about this article and we both had a good laugh. I then told her my concept...that it's not a matter of God coming down and guiding us; rather, it's about our reaching up and pulling into our being the peace and power and love and learning that are always there for the taking.

Let me share with you one way I have devised for myself to tap into the Light. The only thing you need for this exercise is the great power of your imagination.

First close your eyes.

Then, in your mind's eye, imagine a magnificent all-encompassing Light, with the radiance of the sun that envelops the entire Earth. Imagine it to be a Universal Light of healing, health, love, joy, and all good things.

Then, take a deep breath and instead of exhaling through your mouth or nose, exhale by pushing your breath through a large imaginary hole at the top of your head. Visualize your breath shooting upward and connecting with the radiance of the Universal Light.

Then visualize yourself inhaling this magnificent Light, again through the top of your head. Feel the Light filling your entire body and radiating outward through your pores touching the world around you.

Keep repeating this process until you feel a sense of peace and strength and love.

My friend tried this exercise and loved it. I suggest that you try it as well. I suspect you too will love the feeling of the radiant Light of the Universe flowing throughout your being. It is a feeling that gives you the confidence that you can handle whatever life hands you. And it is very reassuring that this radiant Light is yours for the taking. Most of us walk around with a cloud over our head. It's time now to walk around with a radiant glow around and within us. It makes all the difference in the world.

Copyright © 2012 Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.

Adapted from Embracing Uncertainty by Susan Jeffers, Ph.D.

(Important: To use all or any part of this article, go to admin@susanjeffers.com for permission.)