The only thing that can get in the way of true purpose is not recognizing who you are. We suffer not from delusions of grandeur, but from delusions of littleness, weakness, and separation. Recently a friend was speaking to me of her earlier life, of things that happened to her that were traumatic, to say the least. She said something that many of us do when looking back at a particularly difficult or painful situation or period of time: “I don’t know how I made it through that, I really don’t,” she told me. She made it through because she has a very strong spirit.

This morning, upon further reflection, I thought about how we all have an unbelievable strength within us, or better put, we each have a strength within us that is also beyond us. The truth is that most of humankind has no concept of the magnificent power available to us—we have the power of love and completion that resides in all life. One may think that we would only need to understand this power once, and we would gladly claim it as ours, and everything would change. But, as a psychologist I have seen that what more often happens is this: when we get that tap on the shoulder that lets us know just how powerful we are, when we receive those spiritual hints or whispers of our true nature, it can be frightening.

A mentor of mine from many years ago, Dr. Jim Bugental, used to point out how much we fear our own power. He taught me that this is a key that keeps people in pain and stuck in old patterns. He used a metaphorical story to illustrate: A man saves his money for years because he wants to buy a Ferrari. When he finally gets it, he excitedly takes it out on a drive. Up until now, he has been driving only a little economy car, and the ability and power of the Ferrari so overwhelms him that he quickly returns home and parks the new car in his garage. He locks it up, and never returns to it again. Thus, our purpose is to unlock our power, our beauty.

To see that: What I am is beyond every restriction of time, any confines of space, beyond distance and limitations.

This is wonderful news, but it is also frightening to fully embrace at first because it is acknowledges we are not all that we thought we were… bodies living in a limited world, always affected by the people and situations around us.

Today, and each day, I seek to embrace my true nature and my true power without fear and with the intention to see the sameness in everything my eyes rest upon, all that my thoughts hold. The following poem, if understood through delusions of “littleness,” seems impossible or egotistical, but it is precisely the truth I wish to embrace. It is my purpose.

Peace is made manifested through my holiness, through the pure love and compassion within. Because of what I am, Love, I can find meaning even in sorrow, and can see the purpose to love within all problems that present themselves.