Photo by Greg Rakozy on Unsplash
Often we hold conflicting thoughts:
—I am awesome. I am the worst.
—That was a horrible choice. That was a good choice.
—I like this body. I hate this body.
—I should have known better. How was I supposed to know that?
Moses had two conflicting thoughts:
—Man is nothing (Moses 1:10)
—I am a son of God (Moses 1:13)
Can I be nothing and Godly?
The answer is YES. You can be nothing AND Godly. You can be the worst and the best. You can be hateful and loving. We can find evidence to support our contradictory thoughts.
Holding space for both thoughts means we aren’t quick to judge them.
We take time to reflect on the thought and try to learn from it.
I’m curious about the road a thought takes me down.
When I think “I am nothing,” I tend to go down the “I don’t matter” road.
—I’m not important.
—No one knows I exist.
My actions become a reflection of those thoughts. I feel discouraged. I self-loathe. I stop taking care of myself. I withdraw in my relationships.
The result is I live small—I am infinitesimal.
I wonder if the thought “I am nothing” could take me down a different road.
—Wow! So much growth is possible.
—This world has so much to teach me.
“I am nothing” excites in me the opportunity ahead. I feel humbled. My actions reflect those thoughts. I seek my purpose. I strengthen my relationships because I’m willing to learn from others. I seek feedback and then implement what will help me grow.
The result is I live big—I am infinite.
Holding space means just being aware without judgment of where a thought takes you and what feelings, actions, and results stem from that thought.
I can have the same curiosity with “I am a daughter of God.” When I think that sentence, I have the same opportunity to go down the road that shows how far I am from being Godly or I can see my potential. I can incriminate, judge, and see the deficit OR I can hope, emulate, and embrace my worth.
We want to dismiss the thoughts that we don’t understand. Or maybe we do understand them and they create discord. Then we either want to dismiss them or sometimes we decide to hold on to them and make them our dogma for living. Holding space just allows you time to sit with whatever is going on and examine what you can learn from the experience. Be curious about other ways to think about it. And no judgment is allowed.
