This is a guest post I was honored to write for who writes the wonderful newsletter She asked me about the link between my spiritual life and mental health. For me, they are so intricately interwoven it wasn’t easy to put to words. This is my answer.
Growing up I went to church with my family. In the city, we went to a church that had a beautiful, lush sanctuary with stained glass windows and a basement for Sunday school. (Here is me being a bad Sunday school teacher). When we were at our farm, we went to the one-room country church my Mom attended growing up. Its rustic sanctuary was the only room in the building, it was heated with a wood stove and there was a small alcove attached for the minister to leave his coat and boots. The bathroom was an outhouse.
I am thankful my churches didn’t leave the scars that seem to have been deposited on the souls of others who were raised in the Christian faith. I have many fond memories of being there, including watching my bachelor Uncle stand at the altar of that chilly, country church to watch his bride walk up the aisle. He was the one who frequently declared it would be a frosty Friday before he would ever get married – and, sure enough, it was the coldest day on record!
The benediction offered at the end of our service was:
May the peace that passes all understanding be with you, and those that you love, now and forever. Amen.
I depend on this sacred unknown, a peace greater than my human heart and mind can grasp. I carry it deep in my cells and hope it spills over into everything I do. It influences me in ways I cannot explain and is available to me if I turn towards it.
It lands in my heart in the form of trust.
It lands in my mind in the form of exploration.
It lands in my gut in the form of knowing.
This trust, exploration, and knowing took years to unfold, one layer at a time. It came from hard lessons learned, as well as love, serendipity, and weird things that have no rational explanation…but mostly from asking myself questions and searching for answers.
It’s been tricky for me to allow things to unfold (trust and surrender) and not become a couch potato who sits back waiting to see what will happen, or a control freak who resists the unknown. There seems to be a fine line of tension between personal responsibility for my own life and this allowing. Perhaps that’s the whole point of gaining wisdom, the wise folks have this action vs. surrender thing figured out, while the rest of us are still learning!
What I’ve discovered is it’s not one or the other. We don’t choose fate over action, rather we take intentional, sometimes inspired, action and accept the consequences of those decisions. At the same time, we do the work of releasing our expectations and learning the skill of going with the flow.
What is the flow? I call it God or the Universe, sometimes the Divine. To the readers of my newsletter, The Bright Life, I urge them to go with what’s most comfortable to them - perhaps it’s your highest and best self, maybe it’s the deeper laws of physics that are trying to grasp the inexplicable, or it could be the name any organized religion has given to their own Savior. To me, it’s all the same - a benevolence that lives within us, around us, and will hold us in its Grace, no matter the outcome.
My faith in this unknown force is a cornerstone of my well-being, especially my mental health, and I’ve noticed this foundation helps me feel better. Connecting with a higher wisdom helps me be calmer and better prepared for what my day will throw at me. My favorite ways of strengthening my bond with the Divine include being out in nature, reading contemplative works, writing, breathwork, meditation, prayer, and moving my body. I don’t have time to do all of it every day, but I try to fit in at least one of them. I know I’m connected when I feel better but this doesn’t mean I’m always on top of the world. Far from it!
Faith is not a guarantee we will feel good, nor does it mean nothing bad will happen, but I believe it helps us navigate being a good human. This underlying belief brightens my days immeasurably.
There is a light inside each of us that cannot yet be defined by science. It is the essence of us - no matter who we are or what we have done. It is not based on our income, our weight, or anything external. Tending this inner light builds mental, emotional, and spiritual strength which, in turn, affects our physiology. These pillars of well-being are skills we can learn (in case you’re new here, here is the first article on a series I wrote about how to create deep, meaningful change) and they all influence each other. My spiritual health affects my mental health. My physical health affects my emotional health and around and around it goes. The great thing about this is that a small change in one area produces a ripple throughout our life, and from there to everything around us. I believe this is how we create change in the world - from the inside out.
May the peace that passes all understanding be with you. Thank you for being here with me, it means so much. I’d love it if you’d give me a little likey heart❤, it’s like a cyber hug from you to me.
I’m curious if you feel your faith impacts your well-being, or if you have any great stories about it? Drop me a comment.
xoxo Donna
P.S. Be sure to check out Samantha’s newsletter I Have Thoughts.
Also, my friend
is running the most amazing experience-course called Awakening Wonder. We will come to wonder through fully embodied heartfulness in this immersive offering. If you are interested in joining me as a participant in this life-changing course you can find details here.
Thanks for sharing your faith and wisdom.
It is indeed rather art than science about building an inner strength, nurturing our inner light that's connected to the Creator.