Isn’t it strange how we can be on what seems like a never-ending merry-go-round searching for joy. Constantly thinking we will find it in the perfect job, house or partner – if only I had ‘this or that’. So often we drift from one thing to the next, never really committing to life in full, always thinking the next thing will be the one that changes our life.
But what if it was not something outside of us – such as a job, a house or a relationship – that brings about true change? What if it was about making that commitment to self first that then brought the true change and lasting joy that we so long for and seek?
I have been part of that searching for something outside of myself that I thought would make me happy in life – the religion, the partying, the cool gang, the art, the guru, the yoga, the job, the travel, the hundreds of career changes, the diet, the perfect body, the relationship, the self help, the new age, the course, the qualification, all the “if only this or that then my life would be different”…
But the fact is, none of them worked. I thought they did for a while, but all they did was distract me with moments of excitement, happiness, sadness, recognition, acceptance, complication, numbness or obsession, all to avoid feeling what was really going on.
In truth I was looking for something to distract me from feeling the emptiness and sadness I felt by not allowing myself the time and space to stop and feel what I was really looking for… and that was me, my connection to God, and the love that I am and feel inside of me.
I avoided committing to myself and to life like the plague, even though it was the one thing I knew that would turn my life around. On a daily basis, this lack of commitment to self, to fully being with me, impacted my ability to fully commit to life
With the support of Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine this has changed. I now know commitment is not about some huge big thing, as we have been led to believe, but it is about everything in life, no matter how big or small. Such as:
- Booking a doctor’s appointment when I first need it and not putting it off.
- Booking a dental check up, not waiting for them to get in touch.
- Getting the car checked, and whatever needs done.
- Going food shopping, not leaving it till the cupboards are bare.
- Creating the space to prepare and eat food that will truly support and nourish me.
- Taking my time being present, not rushing, stressing and thinking about the day, week or even month ahead.
- Going to the toilet when I need to and not putting it off because I’m doing something else.
- Opening letters and not just putting them away in drawers – usually bank statements.
- Being responsible with money, not spending more than I have but also feeling I am worth spending money on.
- Saying yes when I mean yes and no when I mean no.
- Being in a job fully present, not looking for another job or wanting to be somewhere else.
- Being totally committed to being in an intimate relationship with someone and not worrying about past hurts or the future, the ‘what ifs’ or buts.
- Going to bed when my body feels tired, not staying up “just another five minutes”.
- Speaking up, in full, not holding back my expression.
- If I say I will do something, committing to it and taking responsibility, not making excuses to avoid it or doing it with resentment.
- Being responsible for myself and how I am – not dumping my day, stuff or issues on anyone else.
- Expressing myself in full, in everything I do, be it teaching a class, walking the dog, how I do my hair or what I choose to wear, not holding back any part of me.
Commitment doesn’t have to be something to avoid, dread or put off for as long as possible. Commitment to self and to life is an absolute joy that can be felt, even in the simplest of little things.
Like saying yes from our absolute fullness and meaning it, from connecting with a friend, making a commitment to stop on the way home from work to buy a certain food because that’s what we feel to eat, or saying yes to a relationship, to ourselves, I want to be with you 110%.
The truth is, when we choose to commit to life in full, to a job, a relationship, a choice, ourselves, it feels amazing, there’s not one ounce of heaviness or dread, just an incredible feeling of lightness, freedom, joy, simplicity, clarity, power and absolute strength. There is no room for fleeting moments of self-doubt or wavering thoughts, no anxiousness or ‘what ifs’ or buts, just the absolute simplicity and joy of life in full.
What I have also come to discover, is that commitment is much more than all of this: yes, this was and is a great and huge start, but I have had the opportunity to go much deeper with this – commitment is much more than what I do, it’s actually about the quality and presence I am in, or to put it another way, how I am in whatever it is I am doing.
For example when I go for a walk, I am walking with me, not planning my day or thinking about everything else; or when I am teaching a class – yes I am committed to prepare lessons, turn up each day, but what makes all the difference is that I am there, fully present with myself and the children.
When I am not thinking about anything else apart from the very moment I am in, that is commitment in full, not only to whatever I am doing and whoever I am with, but also commitment to myself and to life in full.
Inspired by the deep love and commitment of Serge Benhayon, Michael Benhayon and Universal Medicine.
By Gyl Rae, 37, Teacher, Scotland
Further Reading:
Motivation To Exercise – Could It Be About Commitment?
Taking Responsibility and Making a Re-Commitment to Life
The Truth about Serge Benhayon 
This is a clincher of a statement, ‘on a daily basis, this lack of commitment to self, to fully being with me, impacted my ability to fully commit to life’. It’s that commitment that makes the difference to how your life will run with you. Non-committed impacts you constantly and the body, committed then life is right by your side, nudging you with its offering to evolve and grow. Big difference…
“There is no room for fleeting moments of self-doubt or wavering thoughts, no anxiousness or ‘what ifs’ or buts, just the absolute simplicity and joy of life in full.” – the question is how much do we allow of the former to enter into our day and our lives? And yet we are totally capable of the latter, a life of simplicity and joy. It astounds me to feel how stubborn we/I can be to hold onto those things we/I know are not supporting us/me, when we/I know or have felt the truth.
The very things that we so often try to run away from are the very things that we actually crave if we were only to realise the expansion that they offer and the connection to God that happens as a result.
That’s how reactions occur. The very thing we avoid are the very thing that is within us for healing. What we see in another that causes the reaction, is the exact thing that lives within us because we haven’t dealt with our hurts. Simple, now that’s what will let us get on with life from a different perspective. Ready to move forward?
Gyl, the list you have presented here is so simple and practical and highlights the fact that taking responsibility for ourselves is not actually difficult nor hard. And yet our reality is commonly to resist this.
Committing to life in full is joyful, ‘The truth is, when we choose to commit to life in full, to a job, a relationship, a choice, ourselves, it feels amazing, there’s not one ounce of heaviness or dread, just an incredible feeling of lightness, freedom, joy, simplicity, clarity, power and absolute strength.’
When I am committed – it feels like everything about whatever that is, every detail, every moment of it, feels very precious and I feel just so content and appreciative that I somehow am having a relationship with it.
Thank you Gyl, it’s a comprehensive and very supportive list of the ways you felt to commit, it’s given me a lot to look at! To be honest I don’t think I have ever truly looked at what commitment to myself means, I can see it’s there is some parts of my day, but I am not committed to loving myself in others – how glorious, more love to live and commit to!
Melinda I felt the same when reading this blog, wow there’s a lot here I’m not really fully committed too, it’s as though I have placed conditions on myself and God as to how I will be 😦 That’s something to stop and consider… where are these conditions coming from?
Mary I’ve asked the same thing of myself recently, “where are these conditions coming from?’, and what I came to was that they are supplied to complicate life and delay my return to my soul and God – basically, they do not come from love.
Yes it is simple really commitment to living for me means committing to honouring what I feel in any moment in my heart and acting on it. It costs nothing and as you say Gyl it can be started immediately in the very next moment.
Commitment to self makes so much sense, ‘What if it was about making that commitment to self first that then brought the true change and lasting joy that we so long for and seek?’
Love it Andrew – and yes it costs nothing … we are not forking out monthly for supplements or vitamins and having to pay anything. It is simply asking us to commit to ourselves.
Commitment to life brings a purpose and joy in all we do.
“Saying yes when I mean yes and no when I mean no.” This is a really great point as part of self care, as it places a tremendous pressure on ourselves to dishonour how we feel and what we know is true for ourselves.
Love it Melinda – the little things that matter big time. This is how self care begins and we begin to build or re-build our relationship with ourselves – that sensitive and caring part of ourselves that is so wise and gentle.
The list of things to attend to is super impressive and reflects true commitment to life, with no task being less or more important than another. It is, after all, one life as Serge Benhayon has on many occasions presented..
Tips and tools for life have to be made practical and real – and hence can only come from one who has lived and experienced life and not just read about it from a book. Thank you Gyl for sharing your lived experience so that we can all be inspired by its simplicity.
Gyl, I love the dot point list you have given, for it shows us how simple it can be to commit to life and do what is needed. We are the ones who step in and make things complicated or convoluted with our miriad of excuses and reasons for why we cannot commit in truth to life.
I love how you broke down commitment to self and life into simple parts.
I love the list of commitments as some examples, this one was important for me today, ‘Taking my time being present, not rushing, stressing and thinking about the day, week or even month ahead.’
Thank you Gyl, this is always such a great read, practical, clear and inspiring. I have recently become more aware of the pictures I have that I believe will bring me happiness, etc, and what they really do is take me further away from myself, it’s like chasing a mirage. Even if we tick the pictures box and achieve the ideal, life still feels empty because we ourselves, our true selves, are missing. I like this line because it really highlights the futility of chasing things outside of ourselves, and what happens instead when we commit lovingly to ourselves, “What if it was about making that commitment to self first that then brought the true change and lasting joy that we so long for and seek?”
What I find interesting about commitment is the more I commit to a certain area of my life it shows me the lack of commitment in other areas I have, it makes such a difference when we live commitment consistently in all areas – a work in progress that will offer so much in return.
Work is an amazing place to build this commitment as we have many things that we either love, like, dislike or hate at work. If we think we don’t like our jobs, can we still commit and get On with what we are being asked to be and do? Or are we looking elsewhere? This looking elsewhere is draining and can consume us. Are we looking for something better? Something more? Something different – to be another person, in another job? In another flat? In another relationship?
Or can we accept everything that we have in front of us and are already part of, can we accept ourselves? And bring all of ourselves – yes the bits we love about ourselves but maybe keep back – to every aspect of our day?
When I am committed to self, being with me and my body and not distracting myself with thoughts or things to do, I am committed to everyone else around me.
Commitment is a knowing I am offering something out of this world.
I like the play on words here Rik – us being out of this world and offering this is so gorgeously true and yet the being out of this world is our true normal hence commitment to who we are is key.
Great to read this article once again. At this moment my lack of deeper commitment is showing, in doing everything in life. I do the things I should do but not with a full commitment. For example in work (a sales position) I play it small, which results in small orders just coming in at the end of the month, while I know I could so much more. What used to be enough a year ago is now blocking me. Also on the subject of commitment: this has to deepen. And as you say: being and living fully committed is light and brings an absolute joy. Getting there, though can feel like working through mud.
Thanks for what you have shared here Willem about commitment being ever deepening and expanding. Once we achieve one foundation of commitment and bringing our all the next is waiting.
I can relate to the fact that commitment has to deepen otherwise I start to sink. This moment in time just requires more of the same without looking for a end point or getting over my limits.
Oh Gyl,
I recognise so many of those behaviours on your list, work in progress and bringing love, understanding and acceptance to oneself is the only way to truly heal.
‘Commitment is much more than what I do, it’s actually about the quality and presence I am in,’ So true Gyl, I used to run away from commitment, but it’s actually a very loving thing to choose. When we begin to commit to one area of our life it becomes easier to commit to all areas of our life.
Anna this really highlights how we believe commitment is in the things we do but it’s actually in the quality of our being.
I have equally also taken on the search for something or someone to make everything feel right and content, not wanting to take responsibility for the contentment that is mine to live, wanting instead for it to be given.
Joy is forever inside us waiting to be activated… by ourselves.
Thank you Eduardo for highlighting the fact that no one else can do the joy part for us – it is about us simply re-connecting to what we know to be true and allowing that to unfold in our lives.
Being in the moment fully and not being distracted that is commitment to us, to life and to everything and when we live this way, life becomes so much simpler.
I love it when life is simple, ‘When I am not thinking about anything else apart from the very moment I am in, that is commitment in full, not only to whatever I am doing and whoever I am with, but also commitment to myself and to life in full.’
Being committed to life is seen through the eyes of the body that has lived to that moment. We will see, hear and read this blog with a particular willingness to be aware or not. As we deepened the relationship with our body and how we do what we do, we deepen our awareness of when we are distracted and therefore disconnected from that conversation. The more we live that way, the more we discover what is there to be re-connected to.
Life becomes much simpler when we bring the connection in-house and truly love ourselves. This for many, as it was for myself, is the missing link without which leaves us feeling unsettled and searching.
There is a lot of joy in commitment to ourselves in all the little things instead of making it all about other people and what we have to do. There needs to be a balance with all of this to be able to be fully in life.
It tends to be easier to commit to something outside of us then to commit to ourselves, to commit to feeling who we are and staying with that. There is an honouring and holding in committing to ourselves and our bodies and what it needs. It changes everything when our main focus is committing to ourselves, then it’s easy to commit to exercise, work, relationships, eating well etc.
I can feel how we might use the word ‘commitment’ when in fact we are engaged in activities to distract and drive ourselves further apart and away from our inner-most, while a true commitment starts with ourselves and it is about bringing that inner-core of ours with us in whatever we do.
I can so relate to that lost/listless searching and the excitement of picking up a lead or thread that would go only so far and then the initial shine of whatever it was that caught our attention would go dull again. The thrill of the search would distract us again from that emptiness. I am picturing someone going in circles and then realising the answer is right in front of them, in every detail of their commitment to themselves.
There is so much joy in saying being 110% in. And it is a great question to ask ourselves and one that got me considering the answer – do we want to be with ourselves 110%?
A beautiful reminder – commitment in full to self is all that matters; everything else then takes care of itself.
Saying YES to the growth and evolution on offer has been my focus the last months. And my body actually loves this momentum of ‘yes’ and clearly reveals what is in the way of going deeper and committing more.
I know that when I commit to myself it makes it so much easier to commit to life. Otherwise I am just ‘trying’ to commit without having the sense or experience of it for myself first.
Gyl your blog has put a bomb under me – I had not joined the dots of the pain of procrastination with lack of commitment – duh!! Thankyou!!
Commitment is a beautiful thing, it’s the magic word for me…one that supports me to understand so much: what’s working or not working in my life usually comes down to this one word. With commitment comes integrity and the appreciation of ourselves, of being fully with whatever you’re with….especially being with me first and foremost. I loved how you brought it back to this essential component of commitment, Gyl. Thank you.
Great comment about the half committing, I must look our for that in my own life. Kind of ticking the box but not really committing. I agree that commitment has been twisted, it can even be used as an ideal to stay in a marriage or job for example, when it’s actually more loving to let go.
I really enjoyed this Gyl, all your dot points are different ways we commit to self. Commitment as a word is a bit like “responsibility”, it’s meaning has been changed to something that feels like a burden, or a trap, and to be avoided. As you share it is not something awful at all and it in fact brings a lightness and joy to life.
Yes I agree, I appreciate the dot points because they offer an opportunity to see the many and varied ways we commit or abdicate responsibility and the power we have to change that approach at any point simply by a shift in focus and commitment…and upping our responsibility.
Commitment is not as scary as I once thought, in fact the more I commit to life the more expanded and lighter I feel, opening the way for greater love to be discovered.
Try taking every step in full. That is not a drive, but to take a step with all of you. I am sure I, and people in general, will expand, will grow in weight if we take steps like this.
Commitment to life is doing everything we do with the full of us. We are then living in purpose.
When we simply just get on with what needs to be done, it eliminates the game of procrastination immediately.
Committing to life is to be all that you are with the wisdom that there is so much more for you to be.
I love what you describe here Gyl, as it shows that all that it takes to live a fulfilled life is to be there in every moment and not think about any other moment, past or future, as better or worse, but just be present and feel the fullness of every moment.
Yes, I agree, and it is simple as that. All our complications are just a distraction to avoid the power and the space that is there when we are completely present in the moment.
“commitment is much more than what I do, it’s actually about the quality and presence I am in, or to put it another way, how I am in whatever it is I am doing.” Totally with you Gyl, as without a quality of presence in all we do we cannot be fully committed as we simply are not there.
In the honouring of what is there to be done each day, a forward plan of life that supports the days ahead is created. If that drops, I find myself with a backlog of duties to complete, and that ensures being in the present is not easy.
Thank you Heather. When I let things slip and don’t attend to what needs attending to I can create a back log that is overwhelming and I either get irritated and annoyed, frustrated with myself and/or I can feel like giving up and giving in – both these reactions effect my relationships, the way that I am with others. I feel the huge difference that honouring what is there to be done each day makes. As I do this it is as if I create space for whatever is next and a lightness that supports my movements.
The eternal pursuit of happiness through getting to be an appealing image. This is a way of doing life that lacks and is incapable of building foundations.
Commitment is lightness, joy and simplicity, that when embraced in full, leaves no room for anything else.
I love the depth of understanding and different examples you offer here about a commitment to life. It shows how simple it is and the depth of the benefits on our bodies. Anxiety decreases, I can speak from my own experience on that one and when it increases, it is worth coming back and asking myself where I went!! Chances are I have galloped into the future and not stayed present in the moment. I will enjoy deepening this relationship with commitment today as a new foundation.
Commitment to being in life is an ever developing process, that gradually removes all the ways of not being committed to life, for example alcohol to name but one way of escaping.
Great blog to read today on commitment as I am currently reimprinting my commitment to self and to life, and already I feel the subtle difference in my movements – there is a renewed purpose to be fully present and to move my body more as I have a habit of sitting too long on the laptop.
Thank you for your comment, I haven’t really examined in full where I live the false version of commitment, but I can relate to your comment as a beginning point that not taking sufficient breaks at the computer for work highlights being committed to the job above my own wellbeing.
It is through the consistency of our commitment to self that life becomes effortless, there is no trying needed only the surrendering of our bodies to that which is divine.
I love this response Francisco – it is as inspiring as Gyl’s article – and deepens its message.
Reading this, I realise there is another level to go to with my commitment and that is saying yes to how I am doing the things I am doing. That means saying a big fat ‘yes! I am here doing these things because I choose to and doing them in this quality, with me, is my choice too.’ rather than a task list of things I need to do. This brings me back into the equation. Is there any point in doing the things we do unless we are really present and there?
Without ever reading the blog yet, the title says it all. I am exploring commitment to life at the moment and have realised that there are basics around exercise, food, emotional wellbeing and sleep that I’m not covering. we can trick oursleves that we are committing to our jobs more, to relationships more, expression appreciation etc. but without these basic bases being covered then where is our commitment really?
“I avoided committing to myself and to life like the plague, even though it was the one thing I knew that would turn my life around.” To me this beautifully sums up the absolute arrogance and irresponsibility so many of us live with. We are more than happy to cry “Poor me!” and yet we know the way out of our misery is at our fingertips and we are refusing point blank to take responsibility for ourselves, preferring instead to blame others for our woes and expecting them to get us out of it.
We do know our power to make changes in life, otherwise how would we know how to deny it?
Commitment to life ultimately comes down to be committed staying in the body every single moment to the best of our ability: in that way we see that we run on the right energy, and every thought and action will then be the result of that. It is the opposite of being in the head, and not feeling our body.
No day is wasted if we make it about returning to Soul – the great love and light we each in essence are. We live on a planet where we are blessed with endless cycles to assist and support us shed what has got in the way of our true expression, until this journey is complete. And even if we walk with eyes downcast to such beauty, we are forever showered in love on our path back home to the immense and undying love within our hearts.
So commitment to life is simply doing that what is there to be done with our full self and not half hearted or something full on and other things less, because in the end it is our self that we deny and dismiss and not the task at hand.
The cycle of always looking forward to the next high is like going on a roller coaster, never feeling content or steady. Then when there isn’t anything exciting around, the next best thing could be starting an argument or making drama out of nothing. What I’ve been finding is committing to live and what is needed keeps things super simple and my energy levels balanced.
Commitment to self and commitment to life have always been big issues for me . . . on the other hand commitment to dreaming, distractions and reacting to life has never been a problem . . . so it is really just about transferring my priorities!
So well put Kathleen, we are committed to lots of things and ways of living but do they support evolution and growth or stagnation and exhaustion.
You are correct Kathleen, we can’t really say in this context that we don’t know how to commit, because it takes tremendous commitment (or is that stubbornness?) to continually do the things we do that are not truly loving for ourselves.
“If only…” can be such a distraction and dis-empowerment to ourselves – thinking we need a certain thing from outside of us before we can be truly who we are or be truly content/ joyful/ complete…
I agree that by you being present in full with yourself and the children you teach will make a big difference, ‘commitment is much more than what I do, it’s actually about the quality and presence I am in, or to put it another way, how I am in whatever it is I am doing.’
I am sure many people can relate to this, distracting ourselves with numerous ‘things’…the list is endless, ‘In truth I was looking for something to distract me from feeling the emptiness and sadness I felt by not allowing myself the time and space to stop and feel what I was really looking for… and that was me, my connection to God, and the love that I am and feel inside of me.’
“I avoided committing to myself and to life like the plague, even though it was the one thing I knew that would turn my life around. On a daily basis, this lack of commitment to self, to fully being with me, impacted my ability to fully commit to life.” I know this feeling, only too well. I never saw the connection to life being about committing to fully being me though.
It is shared here about committing to a relationship with ourselves. This is very poignant, when I choose to do this it is to me a commitment to being fully with my body, open and willing to allow my essence from within to move my body and prepare me as I live. For life brings to me, whatever is needed for me to evolve.
Choosing to commit to self and life in full can be amazing, ‘When I am not thinking about anything else apart from the very moment I am in, that is commitment in full, not only to whatever I am doing and whoever I am with, but also commitment to myself and to life in full.’
Commitment to me and life is just like self love, very simple and practical and o so joyful.
Commitment is knowing without a doubt that you are an integral part of the whole.
And knowing that your part counts.
When we feel that sadness deep inside of us, it usually means we are disconnected. If only we taught this in schools. It would be so supportive, to learn that this is the case and learn how to come back to oneself, a life lesson that would change the world.
I too used to search outside for that missing something, whereas the joy and love is inside us when we choose to connect and commit to ourselves – a bit like my middle name, joy, which I used to keep hidden, but was there all along.
That’s a beautiful analogy Lorraine.
Commitment is knowing without a doubt who we are and living in the responsibility that this knowing brings.
With everything that is on offer in this world promising fullfilment, satisfaction, eternal happiness and delight – nothing can come close to the enormity of who we actually are and where we are from and our bodies are the only way for us to connect and feel that majesty.
Gyl I like your practical list of ways to commit to looking after yourself.
Thank you Gyl, there is great power here in being committed to even the simplest parts of life, as they are what makes up the life in whole and so no part is left out or forgotten, neglected or dismissed. Everything matters and therefore everything can be full of the joy of being you – even in the toughest of times, you are still in there with all that love and commitment.
It’s very interesting how we could be really into something while distracting ourselves at the same time.
Our commitment to life, or the lack of it is indeed shown in the simplest of things. The fact that we don’t open a letter on the day that it arrives, or answer an email with a a day are the seemingly small things that show that.
Well said Williem – and these movements are simply delay from the fact that we will have to open that letter or answer that email – the same as us returning to Soul – we can delay it, put it in the to-do pile and delay all we like, but it will happen.
Life is super loving to us, everything that I feel I dread is a message from life saying, hello commitment? And it is really up to us to choose to hear these light hearted messages or not, and these messages will escalate in intensity if we ignore them as love just does not give up and its expression, and the constellations in life just do not give up in loving us, and showing us the deep love that we are.
I hadn’t considered the moments I dread in that way, thank you for the nudge to consider those moments in a more positive way. To take a step back and re-assess, remind myself I have the skills to deal with what is in front of me and then re-commit in full feels so supportive.
I still have a belief that committing to life, to me, to being fully present in what I do is tedious and tiredsome, I tell myself it’s hard work and if I do it for a while I praise myself for being committed. The thing is how can committing to me be hard? Why would I think that being with me, with God is tedious? I know when I commit to something in full it feels amazing, the issue for me is that it is inconsistent. So I ask myself, what if I committed in full consistently today (as a start) to everything I do, equally so?
‘I have been part of that searching for something outside of myself that I thought would make me happy in life – the religion, the partying, the cool gang, the art, the guru, the yoga, the job, the travel, the hundreds of career changes, the diet, the perfect body, the relationship, the self help, the new age, the course, the qualification, all the “if only this or that then my life would be different”…’ The list you describe here Gyl could literally have been written for myself. I have searched fruitlessly in all the same places thinking, ah this one must be it surely but nothing would change the way I felt within. I guess that’s the clue, if it’s our inner world that feels unsettled why are we so fixated on our outer worlds because surely the key is by looking within?
Committing to life is a fun exploration and discovery of what feels right for my body. Its like a continual stocktake and refinement of what works and what doesn’t to continually deepen my relationship with me more and more. I was also one to daydream and think about where I would be next week or a year ahead and that was also very draining on my body. Being present and connected to our lives in moments offers us a grander scope for learning and an expansion of joy that is beautiful to feel and the flow of the day is much more simpler too.
Ah.. That old chestnut… ‘My life will be great once this happens’ or ‘everything will be fine and I’ll love myself more when my body looks like this.’ And so on. Do we realise that we can live the future now. That everything is available to us right now and the only reason we delay is because we don’t give our bodies a chance to express the fact to us.
The practicality and normality of commitment and responsibility comes across in this blog. Neither are onerous, heavy or burdensome. The opposite in fact – light, joyful and simple if there is a willingness to accept them fully.
I feel like you have supported us all to see commitment as completely normal and highlighted how we check out and get distracted which makes for a trail of ‘what if’s’ or ‘if only’s’. Committing to life in full is vital for good mental and physical health.
This is a beautiful sharing Gyl on true commitment; I would often leave many loose ends and not commit to seeing things through to completion and how this drains my energy long term. I am now being more responsible and instead of creating many loose ends I am choosing to commit to what’s in front of me and it’s interesting how simply things will complete then that allows me the space and the energy to commit to another area in my life.
This morning I have been feeling all the areas of life that I gloss over and ignore because I can’t be bothered to deal with them, I think I’m too busy or that it doesn’t matter if it gets left and undealt with, like I can get away with it but I’m starting to feel the impact this has on my body and how dismissive it is and arrogant not to take responsibility for all aspects of my life and not just the ones that I’m good at. Great blog to come back to again.
‘The truth is, when we choose to commit to life in full, to a job, a relationship, a choice, ourselves, it feels amazing, there’s not one ounce of heaviness or dread, just an incredible feeling of lightness, freedom, joy, simplicity, clarity, power and absolute strength. There is no room for fleeting moments of self-doubt or wavering thoughts, no anxiousness or ‘what ifs’ or buts, just the absolute simplicity and joy of life in full.’ I love this paragraph, as we can so often get caught up in the anxiousness, self doubt or otherwise when all that we have done is chosen not to commit to life, to ourselves.
Part of our natural expression is responsibility and commitment. I cannot be myself without being both of these qualities too. They walk hand in hand.
I absolutely love this blog Gyl. I’ve just been through a period in my life where I felt unsure about many things and the self doubt felt very real and absolutely debilitating, I couldn’t move forward with anything. When I began to commit to my life in full everything that was murky became clear and like you say this clarity brings joy and purpose. Commitment is not the burden I thought it was, in fact lack of commitment is what makes me feel burdened.
So true Leonne – it is our lack of commitment that weighs us down in life.
Well said Gyl, it’s the commitment to live our every breath in the truth of who we are. To feel that we are already full, it just needs to be claimed and lived.
I find it seems sometimes easier to commit to things outside of myself – as in for others or because others are saying I have to do it – than to commit to things I feel to do out of myself, things I feel need to be done and are important. This is exposing that I have a lack of self-worth I am feeding with this behaviour, but oh yes how beautiful to start making a change and commit to everything as even the smallest things are important.
Lieke, I am with you, I do exactly the same thing, it is like the list of chores that need doing for myself pile up on an undealt with list whilst I am quite able to commit to what I have been asked to do by others. It is very exposing of the lack of self worth we so often carry as women but what you are sharing is the joy in becoming aware of it and therefore our ability to change this pattern to one that truly supports.
True Gyl, our commitment goes beyond what we do, it is only the quality we are in and thus give others a true reflection, that’s what it is about!
It’s such a trap and yet we all fall in at various times ‘always thinking the next thing will be the one that changes our life.’, when in fact life is with us now and how are we with it, are we with it, as fully as we can be in any given moment, willing and open to deepening the connection with ourselves and thus life? Are we ready to turn up, fully on and willing to be there in however is needed? Are we willing to simply be us?
I am finding that it’s the simple steps of our daily living that really build our foundation for commitment like applying my makeup seated at my dressing table with presence or opening the door to my car etc. It’s these little daily processes and the depth of our presence that can truly bring change to our commitment to life and it’s a lot of fun exploring it everyday.
I used sport to avoid feeling what was going on, and each time I would stretch myself further, until I came across Serge Benhayon and Universal Medicine, then I realised that living from the inside out and connecting to life fully from being who I truly was first was what I was truly looking for.
I really love the examples you’ve given in your blog Gyl about super simple and practical ways we can commit more to ourselves and life. We shy away from commitment but it isn’t as scary as we make it out! Life actually becomes a lot easier when we apply ourselves in full…
Commiting to expressing how I feel when I feel it and not waiting or shoving the feeling under the bed for a while to revist or for it to build up, to everyone without exception is one of my many daily practices. As this is an area I have held back immensely with family and close ones, often I find that when I practice this with strangers it builds appreciation and familiarity, and it gets easier in situations where I find more difficult to express myself. This exposes an attachment I have with family—a need to be accepted and to be loved, which is based on need and not true love.
This exposes a lot about my own choices to be needy. This is so unfulfilling. Leaving me feeling empty and sad.
The difference I feel when I fully commit to something is huge. When I’m not committed and am feeling half-hearted about doing something, because I feel like it’s a burden, it’s me who’s making it a burden by resisting doing what needs to be done -and it takes twice as long. When I commit to doing something in full, all the energy that I need to do the thing is right there – and it just gets done. What I’m also learning is that it’s my resistance to saying what needs to be said, to doing what needs to be done, controlling every outcome, that makes me exhausted. When I allow life to flow, feel what’s needed next by going by my body instead of my mental to-do list, it takes no effort and life feels more enjoyable and expansive.
I agree. Be it saying yes to a job or relationship, or to doing the ironing, a simple yes to doing something, and the thing is practically already done. It definitely takes out the heavy burden of anxiety and doubt about whether it will be done or not, which drains us.