Children are in a constant state of renewal. They have many rituals to mark their evolution – birthdays, first and last days of school, graduating to the next grade, growth spurts, etc. As adults plateau in their lives, they can get lazy about renewal and change. They settle for things being “fine enough” and don’t realize that they can also be consistently clearing out the old and embracing new possibilities and potential.
It’s important for adults to consciously choose rituals of renewals, and even more important when you are on a journey of spiritual awakening. When you don’t consciously choose rituals of renewal, you can easily get lulled into a static way of being and a complacent belief that “this is just how things are.” Complacency is one of the most insidious obstacles to real growth and transformation.
When you don’t give yourself the chance to clean out and renew, it’s difficult to take advantage of the potential of this moment; the undertow of past habits will keep pulling you back. When you do clear out, release, and renew, you give yourself more immediate access to the wisdom, truth, and potential of your life today.
In my personal experience, rituals of renewal have given me the clean slate to catapult growth and change in my life. When I think back to the significant turning points in my life – spiritual, physical, practical, and psychological – many of them were catalyzed or marked by a ritual of renewal.
Last week, as we waited for my brother and his wife to come home from the hospital with their new baby, a family member lovingly cleaned their entire house. The house hadn’t looked dirty, so we had no idea how much of a difference the cleaning would make. After the cleaning, their home felt new and refreshed, ready to welcome home a new little family and a new phase of life.
Much like this house cleaning, you may not realize how much you need a clearing and renewal. Sometimes you don’t notice that there are old habits, thoughts, and ways of being that are clogging the pipeline of your authentic true expression. Once you do clean them out, you will feel spaciousness, freedom, and possibility.
There are different categories of renewal – physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional. Each is important and together they work in harmony. In traditional spiritual paths all over the world, all four are used in support of the journey home to God.
There are a multitude of examples of renewal rituals. In just the last few weeks, many clients have shared with me different examples of renewals:
- Silent retreats
- Healing rituals to release old emotional patterns and embrace new wisdom and love
- House blessings
- Trips to the spa
- Liver cleanse
- Spiritual pilgrimages
- Clearing out clutter in the house
- Yoga retreats
- Camping or long hikes (extended time in nature)
- Energy clearing
Even private sessions have served as renewals when we approached them with that intention. I have engaged in all of these rituals at different times, and have found them all extraordinarily powerful.
What does this inspire for you? What kind of cleansing and renewal are you craving?
And perhaps the most important question — What would best prepare you for the next phase of your life?
Blessings for renewal and for embracing the potential of the new year
