Written by Anhayla Stanley

What’s one thing from your past that you wish you could change?

It’s probably something that you've thought long and hard about. Perhaps it was a pivotal moment in your life when everything was going good and one decision changed everything for the worse. Or maybe it was a person you wish you never entertained. Maybe someone hurt you fiercely and its been hard to get back on track. 

It’s time to release any emotional baggage that's been weighing you down.  Of course this process can't be done in a day, so today we’re solely focusing on awareness. Sometimes we don't even know we have baggage because we hide it so well. 

Most people have that one area in their home where they put “stuff” they don't know what to do with — It could be a room in your house or perhaps a drawer that’s easy to conceal. You always say you're going to clean it out but somehow you never get to it. You put more and more stuff in there until eventually you reach capacity and you have no choice but to deal with it. It's usually filled with things you don't need but at the same time you don't want to get rid of it yet. Sound familiar? 

This is similar to how emotional baggage gets stored in our minds. When bad things happen to us in life, we put those experiences in a “spiritual” room, close the door and say we’ll get to it later. Of course later becomes tomorrow and we get distracted by the next bad thing that happens.

This cycle keeps repeating until the abundance of emotional baggage starts to taint your decisions and self image. Here’s the thing…the more emotional baggage you have the less room you have for something better that God has for you.

This journey is about cleaning out that room of past disappointment, guilt and shame so you can find your peace that's been tucked away. It's not about forgetting what happened to you, it's about addressing your pain and creating space for the lesson it has for you. 

Healing is a process and it takes time. I'm constantly clearing things out of my spiritual room that no longer serve me. The moment I think I've “arrived”...that's when I notice something else that needs attention. I've learned to be patient with myself and give myself grace instead of frustration. 

Be kind to yourself. Evaluate where you’re at but don't be too hard on yourself. Everything that happened to you made you who you are today — there is beauty in that. You are not your past mistakes. Be thankful for the lessons you’ve learned and release anything that is no longer serving you.