Difficult Relationships

Excerpt from Lessons in Living by Susan L. Taylor:

Spiritual ideas and concepts alone won't bring about change and create the happiness and joy we long for. Only staying aware of and practicing them will. Our relationships give us opportunities to explore the breadth of our own unique being and to become accepting of ourselves, which is the starting place for acceptance of others. Too often in our relationships, we focus on the disruptive behavior of others rather than our own. But life is biased towards growth, and it invariably draws us to the people and circumstances we need for our highest development. Our most difficult relationships offer us the greatest opportunity for growth and change.

Understanding that these challenges are for our spiritual awakening should inspire us to examine vigilantly our own behavior, to expore our own feelings and responses with compassion and love. By dedicating ourselves to this process of self-discovery, we open the way for a deeply intimate relationship with ourselves. This primary relationship is fundamental to our sense of self-worth and self-acceptance and is the basis for creating loving relationships with others.

Our relationships are mirrors; they reflect where we are in consciousness. And if we are willing to face the truth about ourselves, our relationships offer the lessons that lead to our greatest transformation.