How to Have Hope in Desperate Times Pt 6

Connecting to spirit is the best way I’ve found to have hope even in desperate times. But that means a lot of different things to different people. After studying love for 15 years, I have a definition for spirit that might make you re-think some of how you’re connecting.

It’s funny too because Spirit is even speaking through the logistics of this post.

This morning in the shower, I was reflecting on a recent conversation I had about global anti-Blackness. The pastor I was speaking with said he thought there may be a connection to the Pentecost in Acts.

I’ve been pondering this point all week and then the scripture from Genesis 1:27 – 31 came to my mind. The only part I recalled at the time was “Created in the image of God”, which brought to mind the white Jesus so many follow and what the statement “Black Woman is God” incites in some groups. I mean… Black Woman is the image of God just as much as every other human, including white man, right? Why so much resistance to the idea?

Then, I sat down to write this post for you and noticed that this is the 6th post in this series and this topic was also the 6th post in a different series I wrote about a similar topic.

So, I decided to research the meaning of the number 6, which I recalled meant something about man in Biblical references, and definitely in the worst sense. In numerology, the number 6 often represents the balance between the material and spiritual and signifies healing, selflessness, and unconditional love.

This illustrates my point about why I had to reach beyond Christianity to pull The Hart Habits together because the meanings for the number 6 are both quite varied and totally related.

On the one hand, 6 represents the day (in the Bible story) that humans and all life on earth were created. The Bible says that both man and woman were created in the “image of God”. Everything else was also created that day and humans were to “rule” the birds, sea animals, and every creeping thing and to eat any plant or fruit tree that bears seeds. (Let’s hear it for the vegans, eh?)

There is a big emphasis in Christianity that 6 is the number of man and represents imperfection while 7 is the number of God (man+1) and represents perfection. Imperfection is the most important message in this context and the predominant take away is unworthiness.

In numerology and secular number systems, 6 represents a balance between material and spiritual. It almost syncs up with the Biblical meaning but instead of being a lack of something, it represents a bridge between one thing and the other or a fulcrum for them to balance on.

It also illustrates how differently that scripture could be interpreted when the emphasis is on our connection to every other living thing on the planet and in the heavens as opposed to our “lack” of “God” (which is 7 – the day of REST actually).

If we are in fact created in the image of God, that includes EVERY human on the planet, right? So, do we look like God or does God looks like us?

Is God us?

Is God THEM?

As you can see, this conversation can go on forever with no real conclusion that everyone is going to agree on but after 15 years of studying “love” through the eyes of various disciplines, sciences, and storytellers, I came up with a definition that finally made sense to me. (Hint: yes, God is ALL of us and every single other molecule in the universe)

To me “Spirit” (by any name) is the energy that flows between us all that causes each to manifest their greatest creativity.

And as I moved through my journey to study love, I found there were specific behaviors or habits I could engage in that would increase this type of energy flow in my personal relationships.

Then, I realized I could also access this energy through connecting to the parts of our universe that have no choice but to operate in their greatest manifestation – things like nature in it’s native habitat or the stars, moon, and galaxies (check out these new pictures of the furthest reaches of space from JWST @NASA!).

Finally, I realized that by connecting to Spirit intentionally myself and then making efforts to connect to others in the same way I could increase this flow exponentially around me.

What do I mean by connecting to Spirit intentionally? I wrote about it before, but to recap, it’s a simple (though not easy) two-step process.

In a nutshell:

Get Quiet
Get Connected

Get Quiet

The first part is SUPER important and probably the most difficult because our society does not operate in a way that supports getting quiet or still. In fact, you’ve probably seen or experienced “the hustle culture” since you were in kindergarten being rushed to learn how to read.

If being able to quiet your mind or sit still for a period of time sends you into a mini panic attack, you may need some actual sleep before you’ll be ready for the type of quiet I’m talking about. That’s okay. Get the sleep. Come back to this when you’re rested and ready to move into your greatest with confidence.

If you understand what it means to “get quiet” though, you’ll recognize some of these activities or practices as good ways to get there:

meditation (by far my favorite, most difficult, and most effective method)
yoga
silent retreats
prayer
tai chi
nature walks
swimming
gardening

There’s so many more (and I would love to hear yours) but this small list will give you a few great options to try if you’re wondering where to start. It’s also important to note that this practice of “get quiet” really applies to every facet of life.

In order to listen, we have to be quiet.

Spirit is always telling us what we need to know and do to get our greatest outcomes, but we often can’t hear because we’re too busy talking or listening to the loudest messages in our face instead.

One of those VERY loud voices in the USA is white supremacy culture. It’s been a cancer in the United States since our conception and has tainted every aspect of our society and socialization. That’s why you’ll often hear me say “Listen to Black Women” and “Follow Black Femme Leaders” because their voices have been the most silenced and marginalized in this culture.

When Spirit speaks it’s rarely a yell or a scream. Often it’s a whisper.

The quietest voice in your heart – telling you the hard but real truth.

The kid looking at you with wide eyes to affirm or validate what they feel.

That feeling in the pit of your stomach or that flittering of a friends’ face in your mind.

The realization that you have privilege and that you should use it to shield those who don’t.

It can be blatant and open too, like a favorite song or a commercial that keeps coming on at the right/wrong time.

Spirit constantly offers the wisdom but it’s ALWAYS our choice to accept or reject the gift.

How to accept it? I’m so glad you asked. 🙂

Get Connected

We accept and apply that gift of wisdom from spirit by connecting to the other life forms we encounter very intentionally.

I say life forms as opposed to people because I want us to expand our thinking beyond our spouse, our children, and our parents. I want to expand our thinking even beyond the humans we encounter each day at work, school, shopping, playing, and in our neighborhood.

Yes, connecting more intentionally and deeply with ALL these people will help to connect you more deeply to spirit, and also…

The plants, insects, birds, and animals that live in your neighborhood, on your block, maybe in your walls can be connections to Spirit as well.

Understanding how recycling programs work in your area and what happens to your garbage when it leaves your hands can connect you more deeply to spirit.

Learning the links between water, wind, earth, fire and indigenous practices – both your own people’s indigenous practices and those of the people on whose land you live can connect you more deeply to Spirit.

You might notice that when I talk about connecting with Spirit, I’m not talking about a lot of “Doing” but more about “BEING”, especially in a state of reception, gratitude, and celebration of everything around you and about you.

Being in relation with and learning more about everything that is not you will benefit and feed your connection to spirit.

Yes, this could even include going to church, temple, or some other religious or spiritual service. It’s just not confined to those types of environments or events. Those are a few examples of millions, maybe billions, of ways we have been gifted to connect to Spirit.

To bring this post back around to the original topic of the series “How to Have Hope in Desperate Times”, connecting to spirit is one of the ways I teach people to “look in the mirror” or get re-connected to their Self – the very first Hart Habit.

If you are a white person who lives in the US, I highly recommend the specific activity of “FOLLOW BLACK FEMME LEADERS” as a way to get more connected to Spirit because it’s a way to listen to the “quiet”(ed) voices in our society.

When I talk about being connected to Spirit, it’s not really an inside activity. It’s not about the meditation or the prayer time or how powerful we are a “spiritual individual” or how exactly we quiet our mind, but rather about what those practices will (or will not) cause us to contribute to our community with our resulting behaviors. It’s about how that energy flows BETWEEN you and others and about what you are both giving and receiving energetically.

White supremacy culture taught us to take and take and take from the world around us as if that was our birthright. But it forgot about the give. The time has come where the universe is about to force the give, because that’s the nature of cycles, but you can be on the front end of that by learning how to give first. Then it won’t hurt when that pendulum swings because you’ll already be aligned with it.

Being well connected to our “self” is crucial to having what it takes to find hope. I’ll dig into that further in my next post, but remember – you are own greatest asset in every regard. You are one of a kind. There is no one else on planet earth with exactly the same set of experience, genetics, or circumstance as you. You are the Prototype and your “imperfections” are exactly what make you perfect.

I do coaching and consulting for business leaders who are finding themselves at a block in their business. Usually, things have gone really well for them and they grew quickly until they didn’t. They hit a plateau or have created bottlenecks they don’t know how to unclog. My system helps them identify the core issues and their choices for how to work through them. Then we execute the plan together with practical methods based on love.

If you’ve been reading along and feeling like you are experiencing some of these blocks I’m referring to, let’s chat. I’d like to see if I can support you through the next big transition in your growth journey.

Talk soon. I love you.

QUESTION(s) OF THE DAY — How do you connect to Spirit?

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📕 Recommended Resources:

⚡The Hart Habits by Bridgett Hart: https://theharthabits.com

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QUESTION(s) OF THE DAY — How do you connect to Spirit?

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