Spiritual Beings Having a Human Experience

After graduating from the University of Santa Monica with a master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology, I have avoided talking about spirituality. Many people I have treated lack the belief in God or had religious issues so I felt I could still reach my clients psychologically. To be transparent, it feels to me that our society has not embraced that type of thinking or the realization that this life has an expiration date, so I have focused my practice on addressing issues mostly physically, mentally, and emotionally.

When I entered the university, I knew that the school didn’t focus on meditation, prayer, and chanting, but I hoped it was. Probably because I was lazy. I didn’t want to do the deep inner work that I had heard other graduates tell me and walked into the building with all my defenses up.  

The first day the teachers told us that what they were presenting, on the spiritual level, may not be 100% accurate. They were believers in the spirituality they were teaching and were simply passing along their information. So, in this article, I will share what they taught us with you.

They believed that we were “Spiritual Beings” having a human experience. They believed that we didn’t need to take a step-by-step religious journey to connect with God, since we already had it.

Being spiritual means embracing our spiritual self, or soul. They believed the soul was eternal and lived forever. When the soul needed enhancement or repair it journeyed to this Earth plane in order to work through spiritual issues. How do we recognize a soul issue? It is when a problem keeps on revisiting us over and over again. The issues we have to face in life are there for a reason, and they show up so that our souls learn and grow.

The catchphrase of the University was “Soul-Centered Education” and the university began to get attention throughout the world in the 1980s. People from all over the planet would fly in each month, attend the course work Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, fly back home for three weeks, do the homework, and then return to the university again. I attended this university for 4 years where I received both a master’s in Spiritual Psychology and a master’s in Counseling Psychology. Luckily for me, I lived in the neighborhood.   

Think about this question: “Why did you choose your parents?”

Interesting topic for sure. My teachers believed that we would choose our parents to work off Karma or the negative things we had done in a previous life. It was apparent that I chose my father to learn how to embrace and work through anger. As for my mom, I learned to let go of gender roles and experience women as strong and the leader in the family.  

Spiritual beings, that in itself is an interesting topic. My sister traveled to India recently and had a discussion with a Yogi on that subject. He believed that everything was from God, every thought, every idea, and even every word we choose. Our society has moved far away from this type of belief.

 

 

In school, we had representatives of all faiths. Nuns, priests, people wearing turbans, a rabbi, atheists, and even a group of pagans. Our teachers believed that all faiths were pointing in the same direction and that the Supreme Being was all about love. So when people ask me about the spirituality I preach in my profession, I tell them it is all about applying love to hurt.

We often talk about the paranormal in our groups because I like to spice things up and move away from what is on the evening news. This subject brings a hidden topic to life. When I worked at the first Mental Health Urgent Care center in the country, I asked each person how they were doing with God. 80% had a belief in God and most felt like they were being damned. It is understandable to feel this way if you always had the raw end of the deal, always found yourself back in jail or having another relapse. Still, I don’t believe in a God that would turn His back on the people he created. My teachers bridged this topic with something interesting they coined as “The Stackers.”

The Stackers were supposedly helpers of God, that would see us having an issue, and when we didn’t address it fully, they would send that issue back down the pike, like when you go to the market and put your items on the conveyor belt. These stackers, or check-out people, would simply place our unfinished issues back. Thanks, but no thanks. The problem was, if we didn’t face them in this lifetime, we’d have to return. How many lifetimes do you want to face the same problems? Learning this in school got all of us students into gear. We didn’t want to face the same shit over and over again, so we dedicated ourselves to processing through all of our difficulties once and for all.

In the counseling track, we were told if we had an issue and a client came in for treatment with that issue, we would get triggered and the session would be a disaster. It makes sense with so many therapists out there avoiding deep issues, staying to their agenda, and trying to remain safe. After deep diving into my own set of problems for so many years, I embrace when a person has a deep issue. Because I have done the deep diving within myself so often, it is natural for me to do this with a client, if they are willing to go there. I learned firsthand not to push people and only proceed at their pace.  

Spirituality is not religion and there is no A B C’s to connecting with God. We already are. In fact, look around you. Where is God not? Since God is everywhere, including inside of you, then perhaps you have that God energy available to you right now. I encourage you to watch the movie “What the Bleep” it shows scientifically that we have the ability to move matter by the way we think. Yes, we are very powerful and in fact, Henry Ford knew it at the turn of the last century when he said: “If you think you can, if you think you cannot, you’re right.”

Unfortunately, we have been trained to think negatively. “What is the worst thing that can happen?” And of course, we attract negative things. When we say, “I don’t want to feel depressed,” the mind doesn’t hear the “Don’t” and focuses on depression. This type of thinking creates problems for us. If you want something, focus on what you do want. “I want to be happy.” Or, as we do so in our affirmation work, “I am happy,” is more on track.

Processing through our difficulties is a solo journey. Nobody can take away your issues, even me. I wouldn’t do so if I could because my job is to empower people. That’s why I tell people I threw away my magic wand. Learn the process of removing an issue once and for all at Basic Steps Mental Health. This is the new psychology that is concerned with the health of your soul.

Compassionate Care is Always Available

There are many more tools and strategies you can use in your pursuit of happiness. Here is where we come in. Contact us at Basic Steps Mental Health and let us support and educate you on this journey back to your loving heart center. Imagine living a heart-centered life, regardless of what is happening externally. We’d love to be of help.

For 25 years, Dr. Scott Alpert, the clinical director of Basic Steps Mental Health, has treated over 7,000 people with mental health and addiction problems, using a Psychological approach that mixes and matches ten of the top approaches used in the industry. We are here virtually and in-person to help you get through this COVID-19 pandemic and many other difficulties you may be experiencing.

May you have good mental health.