You Created This Situation and You Have the Power To Change It

A few years ago I became a fan of Angel Cards and simple Oracle Cards. My friend from hypnotherapy school had several decks and sometimes offered to do readings for me. A reading consists of me asking a question or asking for a message about an issue. Then she asks God and the angels to guide the reading. Then she pulls a card. The card has a simple message on it that can be somewhat general but always proves to be very timely and appropriate for me. Eventually I stopped thinking they were silly. God will communicate with us in any way we are open to hearing it, and the angels cards have been a first or second or third witness to me enough times that I now totally embrace them. I often do the same kind of "reading" by praying for God to guide me, and then opening my scriptures at random. It is amazing how not random it is.

So that is the long introduction to my epiphany that came through a stubborn angel card that would't leave me alone. I finally bought my own Archangel Michael deck app (by Doreen Virtue) and the last few weeks I used it often. Not every day, but more often than not, because I felt really stuck and struggling to see things some days. 

There were several messages that kept coming up in both the cards and my scriptures, but the card that bothered me so much (because it came up all the time) was this one:

 And this is what the back side said.

You have to scroll down to read the rest of the card, but this is what it says. 

"This card is a reminder that you are a powerful creator made in the image and likeness of the Divine Creator! You're not a passive victim; you have the right and the skills to rise above and change everything in this situation and relationship. However, as long as you blame others or believe that they're controlling you, you'll remain stuck. But by calling upon God and Archangel Micheal, and then taking charge according to your guidance, you can change everything in miraculous ways."

I got really sick of reading this card and I sort of dismissed it because I didn't think it was accurate. I pulled it so many times. Each time I thought that my deck must be getting clogged with energy and I need to clear it and reconsecrate it because the readings were not accurate any more. Well then a bunch of bells went off in my head. There are 44 cards in the deck and only one of these cards. Some I rarely pull and some I get often. There was clearly something I wasn't looking at. No one likes to believe that they are a victim of their own victim mentality. But I decided to read it closely. 

This is what stood out to me: you have the right and the skills to rise above and change everything in this situation.

And I realized in what way I had made myself a victim. I was blaming God and being his victim! The God who provides everything for me and who I adore and praise. 

It seems funny now, but I think so many of us do it: "You told me to move into this house, and now this is going wrong, and this and this...." Or "You told me to marry him...", OR "You promised me xyz in a priesthood blessing, so I did xyz and now look what's happened....."

We blame God for getting us into messes that we are truly responsible for. 

The other big thing is to believe one is a victim or being controlled by God's timing. It is true that God's time is much different than ours, but like the card says, as long as you continue to blame and feel others are controlling you, then you will remain stuck.

I was definitely feeling stuck. And I wanted to change my situation. The problem was to try to find the balance between being a powerful creator who relies on God's guidance rather than being a powerful creator who is mad and trying to control God and tell him what to do and how things should be. 

The card said I had the RIGHT and the SKILLS. Those words stung me. I have the right to communicate with God and gain understanding and insight. I have the right to become unstuck. I was choosing not to. But I can act and not be acted upon. 

I wondered what the skills were, but then I realized I have lots of skills. First, I am good at asking for help when I need it. So a called a couple people and asked them to pray for me. This helped a lot. I could feel it instantly. The stuck feeling lifted for long enough for me to get some clarity. 

One message I got from the scriptures was that I needed to ask God for help by calling on a specific name of God. He told me that name in several random (not random) scripture passage openings (hookums, I call them). It was a simple name: Lord God. 

And I loved this scripture that I found it in: 

Ah Lord God! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, and there is nothing too hard for thee: (Jeremiah 32:17)

I realized that another of my skills is using my imagination. So I went into the imagery state and asked God to show me how to change my situation. My guardian angels instantly stepped forward and told me they were going to help me figure this out. They told me to look down, and I saw that I was surrounded by a metaphysical lake of despair. I was floating on a barge in the middle of this lake. The barge was held up by warrior angels that my friend had prayed for. This explained the good days. 

Some days I had felt great, but there was still a feeling of not being on solid ground. The other days had been characterized by a sinking or drowning feeling. It all made sense. It was a pretty major Satanic device that was following me around and I was stuck in it. 

It had remained hidden from my view and from others' too, because Satan has lots of ways to hide these things. He had me thinking it was just normal stuff. Till it all added up to more than that. But that's how he works. It's just your period. It's just so hot outside. You just ate something bad. You are mineral deficient. It's just that your life sucks and you have the right to feel despair. You are no good. Those are the thoughts that we sometimes believe that keep us from thinking that in fact it is actually Satan being his bad self trying to stop whatever awesomeness is happening or might happen.  

So to fix the problem, I used my imagination and I invited Jesus Christ to come and help me. I had to "lash myself to the mast," (which was Him) as he dried up all the lake of despair and sent it back to where it came from. I was finally standing on a solid foundation. 

Then I sprouted my wings and flew around for a while like an eagle. I came out of the vision state totally refreshed and knowing that the problem was solved permanently.  It has been nice to feel like myself again.  

For some reason the story of Alma the younger comes to mind. (You can read the whole story in the book of Mormon starting here. It's just a few chapters.) When the angel intercepts Alma and his hoodlum friends on the road he tells them he has come in answer to the prayers of Alma's father. I always read that and think what any parent wouldn't give to have that kind of an answer to prayers for their wayward children. 

Alma probably had some good skills. But I also think a big part of it was that he was clear about things. It's hard to imagine that he ever blamed God, or the sons of Mosiah, or his life circumstances or his DNA for having a wayward child. He probably never felt like a victim. Or if he did, realized that he had the right to change, and then he used his skills and God's guidance. 

I also wonder if God guided him to pray in a specific way or using a specific name? Perhaps he called on God day and night, mantra style. Something to think about.

Another story that comes to mind is the story that takes place in the Book of Mormon right before Christ comes. (You can read it starting here.) The unbelievers say He is never going to come and they set a date. They say if he doesn't come by this date, they are going to kill all the believers. The date is coming up and the believers are sweating. So Nephi prays. He prays fervently for all the believers and God tells him, don't worry, tomorrow I am coming into the world. 

Sure enough the signs of his coming happen the next day. The unbelievers repent. It's good times. 

But I wonder how much of this is all timed down to the minute or if Mary went into labor early because Nephi's prayers were sincere. Or maybe the signs just came early to that side of the world, when in fact, he was born a week later in Jerusalem. I'm not sure how God works it all out, but it is worked out somewhere in a space beyond time, and we are not victims of time. Time is not toxic. Time is on our side. We have the rights and the skills to rise above and change every situation with his help. Through Him we are more than conquerers.