When I was in my early twenties and heartbroken, I fell in love. I saw him in a bar and decided right then and there that he was the One. For a while, it looked like I could be right. It was a whirlwind romance, complete with a wedding proposal in Italy. Everything looked perfect. There was only one snag: he had a terrible drinking problem.
As the relationship began to unravel, I tried to stay positive. I planned our wedding, bought a dress, found a DJ. Finally, the night before the wedding invitations went out, I had a vivid dream. I was being suffocated. I woke up gasping for breath. I knew what God was trying to tell me: there was a way out….. if I wanted it. I ended the engagement. I was confused and angry. I didn’t know what the future could possibly hold.
And then the DJ called me up. We’ve been married now for 19 years.
This is what I call a “God shot.”
A “God shot” isn’t just a coincidence. It’s an event that bears the handprint of your Higher Power. When a “God shot” shows up in your life, you know that your Higher Power is working on your behalf, and two, that it is working according to a larger plan. God shots help shape our lives and get us to where we need to go. They divert us onto another career path. They lead us to the loves of our lives. They come in and shake things up. They are catalysts for our spiritual growth.
But here’s the rub: sometimes – actually, a lot of the time – they arise from disappointments. Getting fired. Getting cheated on. Getting divorced. Breaking an engagement.
Which can, understandably, make a “God shot” easy to miss.
We’ve all heard the adage: “Everything happens for a reason.” Perhaps not everything has a reason, but if we choose to believe in a benevolent Higher Power who wants only the best for us, we start to see that even a negative experience has the potential to yield a blessing. We can begin to reframe our losses and traumatic experiences. We can choose to put our belief not in chance and luck, but in something bigger than us that loves us and wants us to thrive. We can start to live a more spiritual life, whether or not we believe in “God.”
The next time we are confronted with something negative or difficult, try these exercises to see if it, in fact, may be a God shot:
- Embrace the ugh. When something horrible happens to you, it’s normal to want to see the Universe in the same light. But see if your outlook changes when you ask yourself, “What can I learn from this?” If you can find something – anything – that may be a learning experience from this event, then chances are it’s a god shot.
- Step Back. Try to see the bigger picture of your life, and where this event may fit. It may not be completely possible yet, but it will usually reveal itself over time. You may already have an inkling of what your Higher Power is trying to tell you. Listen to it. Reserve judgment until more has been revealed. It will be.
- Everything is helping you. Simply choosing to maintain this belief, no matter how hard it may be, can do wonders. The truth is that nothing worth having is easy. Nothing. Setbacks and disappointment are not signs that something isn’t ever going to happen. It usually comes with anything worth working towards.
- Keep a journal. If you really want to believe in a Higher Power, keep a journal, and then crack it open in five years. You’ll probably be amazed at how the hard parts of your life led you to people, places, and opportunities you would never have seen coming.
If you need help reframing the events of your life, contact me to schedule a complimentary thirty-minute session.
