losing faith...

Thread originally posted on the Aeclectic Tarot Forum on 12 Oct 2002, and now archived in the Forum Library.

anjocoxo	12 Oct 2002
As I read some things you say, I believe my "psychic powers" are small, but that never bothered me (I think that things happen more than I realize, but...). Anyway, I don't know how, but I'm begining to wonder if my psychic powers are simply coincidences or something like that. What if it's just my imagination? Did you ever had times in your lives when you doubted your psychic powers??? Maybe it's just me being insecure, or maybe it's because everybody keeps telling me "Oh, but was a coincidence, nothing more" and now I'm starting to think that perhaps I don't have any psychic stuff (but I totally believe in your habilities). I think I need advice, but good advice, because I'm sick and tired of hearing other people's opinion - especially logical and racional people :*

ladycj	12 Oct 2002
Everyone goes through times in their life where they doubt themselves and their abilities. Don't dispair. This will pass. Just remember that you do not require others to validate the gifts you have. Only you know if what you experience is real. Most people will tell you that it is not real, because to say that it is real is to delve into things they are afraid to think about. Trust in yourself. We believe in you. Blessed Be.

Kismet	12 Oct 2002
The best advice I can offer is to surround yourself with those that do believe and understand the gift you have or people that are open to enlightenment. People often discount those with gifts due to lack of knowledge or inability to understand. These type people bring negativity with them and I'm sure it is part of what causes your current lack of faith or self doubt. Sending you positive energy, Kismet

the hermit	12 Oct 2002
Quote: Originally posted by anjocoxo I think I need advice, but good advice, because I'm sick and tired of hearing other people's opinion - especially logical and racional people :* anjocoxo-- i think of myself as a logical and rational person. i have a college education in science (geology). i've studied many things in my life (i'm 51) of both the scientific and metaphysical world. more and more scientists are willing to admit that science can not explain the universe and it's workings. science can describe much of the phenomena we see around us each day, but it can not always answer the "why" or "how" questions that we humans desire so much above everything else. unexplained psychic phenomena exists, it can be addressed but often neither proved or disproved. personally i believe that we are all psychic. some, perhaps, have more "inborn" abilities than do others. some may have learned to better harness those abilities than have others. but do not doubt that they exist, both in yourself and in others. what they are, why they exist and how they work can be discussed and argued... and have been... for centuries. remember that much we now call science today would be howled down as sorcerery and witchcraft less than 100 years ago, let alone 1000. who knows... 1000 years from now the "occult" may be considered "mainstream" science as we move forward in our understanding of this magnificent cosmos of ours. in the meantime, keep faith in your own abilities, ignore those with less open minds and pity them who refuse to listen to their own hearts. as kismet said "... surround yourself with those that do believe and understand the gift you have (is f)or people that are open to enlightenment."

ssplam	27 Oct 2002
I personally believe that everybody is psychic, just that not everyone knows it. We were all given the gift of sixth sense by God, and those of us who know it are very lucky to have a higher awareness of our connections to God. I also believe that there is no such thing as coincidence. Everything happens for a reason... don't you think it's possible that God arranged for the "coincidense" to happen... to make you pay special attention to something you may have otherwise ignored. Be thanful for your gifts... let God know that you are thankful for what you have in life and that you have life and wonderful people to support you. I read recently that there are two main sources of emotion and decision... love and fear. You're gifts are of love and the people who argue, come from fear because they don't understand. Embrace your gifts and let them help you grow. Have a blessed day, week and life ~Christina

Alissa	28 Oct 2002
anjocoxo, it's really hard not to rely on outside verification of your psychic abilities. Without it, it seems like maybe everything is random and coincidence. With time, I hope you may find the sense of the "truth" when you just feel it inside you, in your own psychic sense. Build the gift when you can, and rest when you need. It's hard to let it be true just because "you just know". Your doubts are completely understandable, and I have them myself at different points, so I'm very sympathetic to where you're at with this. namaste~!

Fuzzmello	28 Oct 2002
Ho, yes! I doubt my powers all the time! This insecurity you're feeling is good, actually. Stay with it for awhile, just feeling it and looking it over without completely giving in to it. Try to see it as something that's floated into your brain from somewhere else, not something you hatched yourself. Your powers aren't going to go away because you doubted them. They might atrophy with prolonged misuse, but they'll never disappear. Doubting them is a mistake in my book, but mistakes are how we learn. Don't be afraid to knowingly make a mistake. Fuzz

anjocoxo	28 Oct 2002
thanks a lot for all your advice. what i do now is to ignore those people and to rely on myself.... usually the first thing you think is the best, so it's better to trust my first instintcs than to ask ohter people about it... ;) thanks for listening to me

Red Emma	30 Oct 2002
This may be a bad day for me to answer this question, because I'm really, really ticked at my sister. If I sound kind of angry, it's probably because I am. She's a control freak, and she doesn't want to hear about insights into any realm which she 1) doesn't understand and therefore, 2) can't control. 3) And probably couldn't control if she could understand it. Which terrifies the hell out of her. Okay, she represents one part of the mega-tribe of disbelievers. (Or is it unbelievers?) Another type are the people who are terrified of the unknown because it is unknown. They want life to putt putt along in the safe, well-travelled road of the conventional, the ordinary. Anyone who puts one foot off that narrow track is highly suspect. In fact in times past they were burned at the stake after sessions with the iron maiden, the rack, and other dungeon toys. (Did you see PBS-TV's program on Galileo? It was shown last night, October 29, locally.) It would be ideal to only see people who believe as you do, but sometimes not possible. As with my sister, they spring from the same roots as you, and you have to put up with them. Just try to avoid the subject if you can. I strongly agree with others on this thread who've said that everyone has psychic skills. Some more than others, just like singing abilities. Or any other basic human skill. I'd like to suggest a great book on the subject, "Awakening Second Sight" by Judith Orloff. It's more an autobiography of a skilled psychic whose parents tried to block it out of her. It had a highly destructive effect on her life. In the end she became a psychiatrist, where her psychic skills were highly useful. You might also like to read Russell Targ's book about setting up a program for the CIA to use psychics as spies. It was smashingly effective. Of course I can't find the dumb book right now so I can't give you the title. I think you can find it if you look under Russell Targ's name. Any librarian or bookstore clerk can help with that. Targ was a co-founder of the Stanford Research Institute for study of psychic abilities. As you can see, in academic terms his background and his credentials are spotless. That still doesn't mean that the fearful and conventional in the academic community are going to give him the time of day. Unfortunately, these types control a lot of academia. Contrary to popular opinion, there are quite respectable academic studies on the various sides of the subject. I don't remember the specifics of the studies' titles, or who did them, but any librarian should be able to help you. As is the Hermit, I'm older (76) and have multiple degrees in things like city planning, psychology, sociology, public policy formation. After all that study, I'm not easily bamboozled. I guess my point is (I tend to get a bit windy) don't let ignorant, narrow people make you doubt your God-given abilities. Use them for good as the good lord intended you to. Best wishes, Red Emma

Red Emma	30 Oct 2002
Sorry about that, guys. I had trouble getting the (system, I guess) to accept my posting, so I kept trying. Boy. When it was accepted, it was really accepted. My husband says I don't do anything by halves. Embarrassed, Red Emma

Umbrae	30 Oct 2002
When we begin to lose faith – when our spiritual well runs dry – it means only one thing. We are serving ourselves. Once you take it upon yourself to begin walking the spiritual path, it becomes your onus to help others. When you feel empty – it is because you are. If you keep drawing from the fount, without putting anything in, it becomes empty…If you are bored, it is because you are boring. Get out and help somebody! The world will seem brighter when we do things for others, instead of just ourselves. Just do right by others. Each time you do, it shines the light a little farther into the dark. Even when we die that light keeps shining on, pushing the shadows back.

zorya	30 Oct 2002
yeah! what umbrae said :D ... one more little thing that has helped me, a great deal, with believing in my own psycho.... i mean psychic abilities ;) is to act as though i believed in them. act as though all of those 'hunches' were the real thing. make choices based on your intuition. ask the cards or look for signs when you have a question. before long you will have no doubts....until the next time you do.... and then you act as though you believe......

Diana	31 Oct 2002
Quote: Originally posted by Red Emma Sorry about that, guys. Red Emma Red Emma: What are you sorry about? Being yourself? Please please allow yourself to be true to your heart on these forums. I for one enjoyed your above post very much and found it most interesting.

anjocoxo	31 Oct 2002
Well, thank you for your advises... truth is, i'm not speaking with anyone again about my hunches, I just believe in them and act based on my hunches and that's it. after all, there's no use talking to people about it, b/c most of them look at me like "you are not normal, are you?". The funny thing is when sometimes I feel like someone is having some rough times (and he/she is trying not to show it) and i suddenly ask "is everything ok with you?" people just stare and answer: "well, now that you mention it, i'm not feeling very well, but did you know that?". Now they are starting to believe my hunches b/c sometimes i can feel if someone is going through bad times... anyway i'm trying to say that i don't speak about my habilities, but slowly people are getting more convinced that not all are coincidences..... it's perhaps just something they don't want to think about Anjocoxo PS- sorry if my thoughts seem blurry.... hope you understand them :)

The losing faith... thread was originally posted on 12 Oct 2002 in the Spirituality board, and is now archived in the Forum Library. Read the active threads in Spirituality, or read more archived threads.