Welcome to the Grow Inward Podcast, I am your host Adrian Petrillo.
Hey there my fellow seekers, how are you today? It’s nice to be here with you again today, thank you for joining me. I have a fun topic to discuss with you today, and it is something that I believe we all wonder quite a lot about, and that is this idea of trusting the process.
We hear this phrase a lot in life, and especially in spiritually oriented work or circles. It’s an interesting concept and one I will attempt to speak on, from my own perspective of course. What does it actually mean to trust the process? When I think of this phrase, I immediately am led to the idea of faith. I say this because in the context of this podcast, we are largely talking about things like inner work, spiritual growth, and more mystical types of subjects and ideas, generally speaking.
With that in mind, faith becomes a very important element to consider when one makes the decision to walk this path. Many of the concepts and ideas are not something that you can always tangibly measure or quantify. I mean how to you quantify your inner voice? You can’t record it, you can’t explain where it comes from with any real certainty, you can’t study it with scientific methods. In fact, what you will find is that you are required to have at least some modest level of faith in these matters, and many others that we inevitably encounter in this type of work.
Faith is a very interesting subject, and the bedrock of religions throughout the world and history. Without it, many of the teachings we are asked to embrace within our hearts and minds would not be possible. This is because they cannot be measured or witnessed in any physical way. It’s interesting how science often clashes with the idea of faith, because in truth, faith cannot possibly fit into the box that science has built. This is fine, but to say that this does not limit its scope and possibility would be inaccurate. I do understand, if you can’t measure it, it does bring up a very valid question, is it real?
I invite you to take a moment and try to recall a moment in your life that required your faith and nothing more. Something that you had no real physical evidence of or knowledge of, but you had information that led you down a certain path, or to a certain conclusion, or maybe steered you in a particular direction. I am sure that most of you will be able to come up with something, possibly many things like this that have come up over the course of your life. It may be fun to pause this and think about them deeply and how they transpired, maybe have a conversation with someone else and share these ideas and ask how faith played it’s part in this event, and the curiosity of this concept which cannot possibly measured. This is a really fun exercise that makes you think about the wonder of the unseen, and how it really does interact with us in life, whether we choose to acknowledge it or not.
I actually have a story along these lines that comes to mind, where there was no logical explanation other than trust and faith that what I was hearing or feeling was accurate. I was out walking at lunch one day and I had this feeling come over me that I needed to call my friend. It was a strong feeling that just came out of nowhere, telling me that she needed me? So I took out my phone and dialed her number. She picked up the phone and was in tears over a relationship problem she was experiencing. She said something along the lines of “how did you know I needed you, you always call when I need you”? I joked and said we must be on the same wavelength? But isn’t that interesting?
I operated on pure faith in that moment, and was reciprocated for that trust with something that couldn’t possibly be measured by science, it is a pure connection to something much different and higher than the physical. When it comes to trusting the process, it operates very much like this. We can’t always see the results of our actions, we can’t always measure them precisely. They are often subtle and working on levels that we are not entirely aware of, and yet they do exist, leading us somewhere and to some end which we have no visibility into, and yet we must be willing to trust this process if we are to have a reason to continue.
Many of you may have this innate built in ability, you may trust in your faith completely. This could have come experientially, or it may just be an inner knowing that is trusting that larger forces are at work. I find this so fascinating, and I am of the mind that there are countless larger forces at work that we have not even begun to understand. There is indeed magic in the world around us, if you have the inner desire to welcome it with curiosity.
I want to say something to any listeners who find faith difficult to lean into or to accept. You may find this difficult to believe if you find these ideas challenging, but you do have this ability within you. We all have access to higher levels of understanding and ability within us and available to us. The real challenge is finding out how to access these levels of understanding or ability. It is this endeavor which we find greatly challenging because there is no physical evidence, and so faith comes into play, and herein lies the paradox. How can we trust in that which we cannot understand or measure? It’s an honest question, and to it I can only say that we must try to keep an open mind by looking at the evidence in matters which we question.
If you find that it is difficult to find this kind of faith in the unseen, there are some things you can try to do to help you develop it over time. A great place to start is by being willing to explore some of the evidence that these things have indeed served people in incredible and impossible ways. Hearing stories along these lines can really open your mind to the possibilities, if you are willing to hear it? For many people, challenging their belief systems can be too confronting to accept into their reality or frame of reference, it’s simply too much. A great example is the UFO abduction phenomenon. Although there are mountains of evidence that conclusively prove that this absolutely exists and is very real, some simply refuse to accept it despite the evidence, likely because it is too confronting to their existing views and beliefs.
There is no right or wrong here, it’s simply an honest observation, and and important consideration. Once again, I can only encourage you to try to keep an open mind if you find this concept challenging. Listening to other experiences for some context and information on these subjects may be very helpful. You will find that much of the information out there concerning faith is largely centered around religion or god, which may serve you perfectly. There are however other resources that are more directed at having faith in yourself, what you believe, and the process of personal growth. Try to seek out whatever is inspiring to you personally.
I think that another great way you can develop this is to start with a small challenge for yourself. I keep bringing up a 30 day meditation challenge as an example in several of my podcast episodes. I think it’s a really good one, because it is such a beneficial addition to your life and practice for so many reasons. It may be a really good way for you to test this idea of having a little faith, and trusting the process, especially when it feels really awkward or uncomfortable. If you have never done meditation, it can feel that way for sure, like you have no idea what you are doing. The funny thing is, that despite feeling this way, there are larger forces at work, and the very act of sitting and calming yourself will indeed benefit you over time.
If you would like to try this, have a look at my blog post on meditation for some instructions, or grab the free pdf. I will include links to both of these in the show notes. I encourage you to use a journal for this 30 days to document how you feel when you start, and then compare that to how you feel at the end. You may even intend for a particular outcome or quality to measure before and after, such as your ability to let go of your attachment to thoughts or your general sense of calmness throughout the day?
I should note that when you find yourself working with these types of things, I have found that a journal is extremely helpful. It is a great place to pick apart your thoughts and your progress over time. It’s a nice historical document that can give you some great context for where you began and how you have improved. It’s easy to forget these things if they aren’t written down, so a journal is a really useful tool to consider.
Nobody knows you better than you know yourself. While I have offered some ideas to help you work on this trust and faith, be creative from the center of your own perspective and experience. Consider the different ways that you might be able to develop these skills using elements that are particularly meaningful to you. Don’t be afraid to experiment and have some fun, these are some of the best things about doing inner work. It’s a journey, not a destination, and the possibilities are endless. Enjoy the connection and experiences with yourself.
I would also like to encourage you to manage your expectations. Be careful not to set such high expectations that are beyond your level or ability to reach. Start with smaller and very realistic goals which you can slowly build and expand upon. Some of the most helpful tips I can give you with all inner work is to be slow, deliberate, and patient with everything that you try to explore and learn. These things take time and practice, which is why we call it a practice right?
Remember the reasons that brought you to your practice in the first place. You likely have some kind of outcome in mind, but be careful not to place all of your attention on the outcome. So much of the joy of personal growth is in the journey itself, not the destination. What are the most important qualities that attracted you to being willing to even try? Explore these fully along the way, and be consistent without leaning too heavily on the results. Try to remain aware of the fact that living a better life and reaching higher levels of health, awareness, spirituality, consciousness, etcetera, these are things to embody in the way we live our lives to get the most out of them. They aren’t so much about the destination as the experience, in my opinion. These are just some things to take into consideration, but as always, form your own views and directions, but just be sure to keep a smile on your face and a lightness in your heart with every step okay!
If you can do that, you will be successful every single day!
I hope you enjoyed this episode. There are links below to the meditation blog post and pdf document. I am sending you lots of love and encouragement today. Until next time, never underestimate the power you have within you, and keep Growing Inward.
