When difficult or traumatic experiences occur in our lives, we naturally wonder, ‘Why did this happen? What does it mean?’ Often, such experiences may appear not to have any particular meaning; they may seem to be nothing more than purposeless suffering.
Yet, in my years as a spiritual author and teacher, I have found that not only are our greatest challenges rich with meaning and purpose, but also that very often we ourselves planned those experiences before we were born. I explored this premise in detail in my first book, Your Soul’s Plan [200606, £9.99], and I do so again in my new book, Your Soul’s Gift: The Healing Power of the Life You Planned Before You Were Born (now available in the UK from Cygnus). This article, which focuses specifically on suicide, is the first of six I will write for this publication about the pre-birth planning of certain life challenges. In this article I will share with you one of the most profoundly healing pieces of information I have ever discovered in my work.
Discovering the Soul’s intention behind life challenges
First, a word about my methodology. In both books I interviewed people who had experienced common life challenges like physical illness, the death of a loved one, addiction, or mental illness. Those individuals then had sessions with gifted mediums and channels in which I asked Spirit, ‘Was this experience planned before birth, and if so, why?’ In my books I present all the wisdom that then came forward. My intentions are to help people see the deeper meaning of their life challenges and, in so doing, heal from them. It’s important to understand that painful experiences can catalyze profound healing for our souls if we, the incarnate personalities, respond to those challenges with love (including self-love) and an open heart, and if we learn the lessons offered by these experiences.
In the Suicide chapter in Your Soul’s Gift, I share the story of Carolyn, whose only child Cameron committed suicide shortly after he graduated from high school. Carolyn and I had a channeling session in which we spoke with Jeshua (Jesus). Jeshua began by telling us that suicide is never planned prior to birth as a certainty, but it is often planned as a possibility and sometimes as a high probability, as was the case with Cameron. In other words, Cameron knew that he was taking on so much in this lifetime that a suicide was likely.
A compassionate, healing perspective
One of the difficulties Cameron had while he in body was that chronic depression blocked his capacity to feel his love for his family. Jeshua tells us:
While physically alive he could not feel his love for them anymore. When dead he realized the full extent of his love, and from the soul’s perspective this was a great breakthrough. The suicide forced change upon Cameron, and in his case it worked out well. It was a turning point for his soul.
This is a radical yet powerfully healing perspective. Our society views suicide as perhaps the ultimate failure, and yet Jeshua tells us that from the soul’s perspective it can be a blessing. As souls our highest intention is to give and receive love. While in body Cameron was unable to feel, and therefore unable to express, the great love he held in his heart for his family. Now, in the nonphysical realm, he feels that love intensely, and for his soul that feeling is a triumph.
In addition to viewing suicide as a failure, we also tend to see it as a sin. Yet in the conversation with Carolyn, Jeshua tells us:
No judgment, no blame
From a spiritual perspective, there are no acts that are absolutely wrong or sinful. The deepest act of self-betrayal can lead someone into a state of inner clarity that may help forever. The darkest point may become the starting point for a new direction toward light. You see, spiritual evolution does not proceed in a linear fashion. It uses the polarities of light and dark to create dynamics and change.
In saying this I wish to take away the traditional judgment about suicide, that it is the gravest sin. God or Spirit does not feel that way. God has the greatest compassion for people who take their lives in despair. There is always help available for them on the other side. They are never abandoned.
Through the medium, we spoke directly with Cameron, who confirmed that indeed he was not abandoned. Upon returning to spirit, he was greeted by loving guides, who nurtured and supported him through a process of emotional healing and through some very difficult conversations with Carolyn which occurred in her sleep state.
If suicide can be prevented, it always is
And what of Carolyn’s healing? Since Carolyn has no memory of her pre-birth plan – just as most of us don’t – she quite naturally felt that she had failed Cameron. She was filled with guilt and self-blame, wondering what she could have done to prevent her son’s suicide. In response to those feelings, Jeshua shares with us one of the most important, startling, and powerful pieces of information I’ve come across in my research. He tells us, ‘Every suicide preventable by outside forces was indeed prevented.’ What he meant is that if the suicidal person has the slightest openness to changing their mind, the Universe will stage an intervention. It could be something as simple as a bird flying by and distracting the person, or something as dramatic as an angel assuming human form and physically interceding. If you have lost a loved one to suicide, know this:
There was literally nothing you could have done to save them
You are not to blame.
You are not at fault.
You did not fail them.
Therein rests your healing. Therein lies your peace.
Robert Schwartz is a hypnotherapist who offers Spiritual Guidance Sessions, Past Life Soul Regressions, and Between Lives Soul Regressions to help people heal and understand their life plan. He will speak at St. James Church in London on July 1st 2013. For more information please visit www.alternatives.org.uk. Visit Robert online at www.yoursoulsplan.com.