reconnecting with the divine?

[KylalaKitty]

Bad stuff happens, and sometimes all at the same time. Your grandfather passes away, you wrecked your car, you lost your job, your credit card was stolen, there is a number of things that can go wrong in life. With all this going on sometimes you feel like your Deities are completely ignoring you when in fact it was you who pushed them out of your life. My question is, when life turns to crap how do you or how did you reconnect with the Divine? I've been doing morning prayers even morning and it seems like thats helps only a very small amount. Any advice?

[Against The Tide]

It can take me a while to reconnect to the divine. I never feel like the Gods are responsible for the things that happen to me - but when life does go down the pan, it takes a while for me to warm up to them (I might *want* to, but you can't force emotions, not even your own).

Like you, I do small things daily. Maybe you should write a letter or have some kind of open conversation with your God? And then I wait.

[Deerwoman]

I remember what my mother told me each time I complained to her about something bad or unfair in my life. She would always say "life's not fair and then you die - get used to it".

When bad things happen in people's lives they tend to blame the gods, but really bad things just happen sometimes. Other times it's your actions that lead to bad things happening so personal responsibility needs to be accepted and changes made.

Bad things happen, it's just the way life is. Everyone has both bad and good things happen to them, it's called balance. In my life when things go wrong they tend to do so in multiples all at the same time. When it's all over I thank my gods for giving me the strength to get through it all. If you are inclined to do so you can petition your gods for strength, help, support, blessings, and/or good luck while the bad things are happening in your life. I usually do a working to help me let go of all the stress and anxiety I'm feeling - you can give these feelings up to the gods, or release them to the earth, or write them down and burn them. It really helps to clear my mind and gain the strength to tackle whatever the latest issue is.

[*oonagh*]

remember to be grateful.
i know that is probably the hardest thing to do when all is going wrong. however, it *really* helps. be grateful for whatever you can come up with...water...air...food...anything and thank the great spirit for it (or whomever your god/goddess may be).
it will heal you and it will connect you.

[Cunae]

I've had times, too, when I felt disconnected from God. There's a Christian saying that could apply to all gods, I think:

"When you feel distant from God, guess who moved away?" ... or something to that effect.

I think we're the ones who get preoccupied with life's demands and forget who gave us life and sustains us in life. It's on us to spend time in prayer and worship. I think we get the relationship restarted by simply sitting down for a one-on-one chat.

[MonSno_LeeDra]

I find that many times it's not a matter of devinity moving away from us but our expectations of what it is and how we believe it should respond or interact with us that leaves us wanting.

To some extent the feeling of being left alone is nothing more than our own sense of understanding telling us we had it wrong to begin with. When our expectations or beliefs no longer are supported or challenged then we find we built them upon a hollow shell that was of our making not that of the devine.

It is in the realization of that fact and our coming to know our diety as they intend not as we think they should intend that we appear to grow closer and more stable. Yet we still suffer the possibilty that it will still be our own creation and will agian suffer the sense of loose and bewilderment as it collapses upon us.

[amazonkls]

It's very easy to blame your divinity when bad things happen, especially if you tend to think of them in a guardian/mother/father relationship. Each of us are holy. It may be that you need to re-connect with the spark of your own divinity first, and your feeling of connection with all else will follow. Because you want it, it will happen.