Identifying the Blocks In Your Life

Whenever asked if my husband and I will move back to Northern Virginia once he finishes grad-school, my answer has almost always been "no".  Our reasons varying but mostly due to the expense, the traffic, and the glorification of being busy.  All of these reasons are valid and honestly should be considered when deciding on where to live, however I've always known that there was something more to my response...  In the past, whenever the topic of possibly moving back up to Northern Virginia has came up between Kyle and I, I've either: one, shut down; or two, reacted with a fierceness that made Kyle and even myself pause and question the intensity behind it.  For the longest time I wasn't able to figure out why I haven't wanted to move back until one evening recently.

Kyle and I were talking one night, when the topic of possibly moving there came up once again.  I tried my best to be open to the possibility but was having a hard time with it.  After a few minutes of silence it hit me.  I rolled over and slowly explained to Kyle the real reasons or "blocks" behind not wanting to move back.  The first being that while I have a lot of happy memories of my time there (with family and friends), I also have a lot of sad ones (memories of some depression).  Second and most importantly, I was scared that if we moved back up to Northern Virginia that our relationship would change.  We are so incredibly close now and have the luxury of spending a lot of time together; I worried that if we moved that might change.  The base of these two blocks was obviously fear.  

Immediately after I sharing these blocks with Kyle, I felt at peace...  It was as if someone had lifted a weight off of my chest so that I could now breathe.  I was still a little hesitant about the idea of moving back up to Northern Virginia but I felt God's presence with us and that, no matter where we live, our values and love for one another are not going to change.  God had a plan when he had has grow up in Northern Virginia, He had a plan when he brought us to Williamgburg (a place that has represented rest and healing for us), and He certainly has a plan for where He is taking us next.  By surrendering my fears to Him, I've been able to shed and to expereince freedom.

In the following days after breaking through this "block" in my life, God has given me new eyes to see.  Now when I consider living back up in Northern Virginia, I see opportunity and possibility to serve my community, neighbors, and clients.  We would also be closer to family which would be wonderful!  When we meet blocks in our life with resistance like I did, we're going to continue to be "stuck".  The issue isn't going to go away and like it did with me, it will continue to come back up over and over again, in different forms.  By contrast, when we meet blocks in our lives with reflection and gratitude, we open up for endless possibilities of growth and freedom.

How To Identify "Blocks" In Your Life

A block is anything that is in your life that is rooted in fear and that is holding you up from experiencing true freedom and peace.  While we may be aware that there is an issue that needs to be addressed, we often have a hard time identifying what that issue, or block really is.  As human beings, we are generally operating from a place of love or a place of fear.  When we are operating from a place of fear, we are blocking things from opening up and are producing negative energy, whereas, when we are operating from a place of love, we are making room for abundance, spaciousness, freedom, and blossoming; producing a positive energy.  It's all about how we open up to what is presented in life.  While there is a lot that we don't have control of in this world, what we do have control of is how we respond, react and perceive what's presented to us.  When we meet challenging situations with openess and gratitude, we have the potential to turn the situation into something amazing.

How to Work Through"Blocks":

Reflect

• You won't be able to identify your blocks if your always on the go or distracting yourself, so make sure to take some time to slow down, be still, and just be.

Journal

• Getting our thoughts out of our head and down onto paper is huge.  Keeping a daily or weekly journal is a great way to check-in with yourself.  You may start writing about one thing and end up writing about what's really going on in your heart.

Go Deeper

• Often with blocks we'll identify reasons for why we feel a certain way however these reasons don't bring peace - they don't necessarily get to the root of things.  Encourage yourself to go deeper.  Continue to reflect and journal, as you identify the blocks in your life.  It can also be beneficial to seek professional counseling, as they are trained to assist with this.