Spirituality for the Politically Incorrect

Nancy Showalter
  • 5.0 (6)
  • Spirituality
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Hi, I'm Nancy Showalter. And this podcast is for you if you instinctively know that there is more to life than what you have been taught and you're not afraid to explore beyond conventional belief systems. Remember how everyone thought the world was flat and if you challenged that you were crazy? Or how people said if we were meant to fly God would give us wings? What about, "civilization is only four thousand years old," but science tells us differently? Very few of us are living to our fullest potential. I believe that is because most of us do not access the divinity within--the part that is one with our Creator. And how do we do that? That, and more, is what this podcast is all about. nancyshowalter.substack.com

  1. 1d ago

    The Hidden Hunger of the Soul

    Hello everyone, and welcome back to Awakening the Divine Within. Over these first few episodes, we’ve been talking about what I call The Great Forgetting—the loss of our awareness of who we really are as spiritual beings. We’ve talked about the emptiness so many people feel inside. We’ve looked at the spiritual crisis behind many of the problems we see in society. We’ve talked about humanity forgetting its divine nature. And in our last episode, we explored why we so often search outside ourselves for something that ultimately has to be discovered within. Today I want to bring all of those ideas together by talking about something I believe exists in every human being. I call it the hidden hunger of the soul. Have you ever had the experience of knowing that something was missing from your life—but you couldn’t quite identify what it was? Maybe everything was going reasonably well. You had people who loved you. You had a home. You had work to do. Maybe you had achieved some of the things you once believed would make you happy. And yet, somewhere beneath the surface, there was still this feeling: There has to be more. I think most of us experience that feeling at some point in our lives. And our first reaction is usually to assume that something in our outer life needs to change. Maybe I need a different job. Maybe I need more money. Maybe I need a relationship. Maybe I need to travel. Maybe I need a new project. Maybe I just need something exciting to happen. And sometimes we really do need to make changes in our lives. But there is another possibility that we don’t consider nearly often enough. What if the hunger isn’t coming from your personality at all? What if it is coming from your soul? The soul has needs just as the body has needs. The body becomes hungry for food. It becomes thirsty for water. It becomes tired and needs rest. And I believe the soul has its own kind of hunger. The soul hungers for God. It hungers for truth. It hungers for meaning. It hungers for beauty. It hungers for love that is deeper than human approval. And perhaps most of all, it hungers to remember who it is. That hunger can be very difficult to recognize because we live in a culture that offers us endless ways to distract ourselves from it. If we’re uncomfortable, we can turn on the television. We can pick up our phones. We can shop. We can eat. We can work. We can scroll through social media. We can keep ourselves busy from the moment we wake up until the moment we go to sleep. And none of those things is necessarily wrong. The problem comes when we begin using outer activity to satisfy an inner need that outer activity can never satisfy. You can entertain the mind and still starve the soul. You can surround yourself with people and still feel profoundly alone. You can accumulate possessions and still feel that something is missing. You can even achieve great success and suddenly discover that the success you worked so hard to attain did not give you the fulfillment you expected. Why? Because there are some things the world simply cannot give us. Jesus expressed this beautifully when he said, “Man shall not live by bread alone.” I’ve always thought that was such a profound statement. Obviously, we need bread. We have physical needs. We have responsibilities. We live in a material world, and we have to function in it. But Jesus was saying that there is another part of us that also has to be fed. Our spiritual nature needs nourishment. And when that part of us is neglected long enough, eventually we begin to feel it. Sometimes it appears as restlessness. Sometimes dissatisfaction. Sometimes a feeling of disconnection. Sometimes we begin asking questions we haven’t asked in years: Why am I here? What is my life really about? Who am I beyond all these roles I play? What happens when this life is over? Is God real? Can I actually know God? Is there something within me that is eternal? Those questions are not signs that something has gone wrong. They may be signs that something is beginning to go right. The soul is waking up. And I think this is an important distinction. We often try to get rid of discomfort as quickly as possible. But sometimes discomfort is carrying a message. Sometimes that inner dissatisfaction is telling us: “You have outgrown the way you have been living.” “There is more for you to discover.” “It is time to go deeper.” There is a divine reality within every one of us and that the soul’s ultimate destiny is reunion with God. If that is true, then it makes perfect sense that something within us would always be longing for that reunion. We may not consciously recognize it. We may call it something else. But beneath many of our outer desires may be a much deeper desire: the desire to come home spiritually. And coming home doesn’t mean leaving the world. It means beginning to live in this world with an awareness of who you really are. It means beginning to develop a conscious relationship with God. It means learning to recognize your higher self. It means becoming more aware of the quality of your thoughts, your emotions, your words and your choices. And eventually, it means asking a very different question about your life. Instead of only asking: “What do I want from life?” we begin asking: “What does my soul want to become?” That’s a very different question. Maybe your soul wants to become more loving. Maybe it wants to learn courage. Maybe forgiveness. Maybe discipline. Maybe compassion. Maybe wisdom. Maybe you are here to overcome something that has limited you for a very long time. Maybe you are here to develop gifts that can bless other people. Maybe you are here to remember your relationship with God at a much deeper level. The outer circumstances will be different for every person. But the spiritual journey has something in common for all of us. We are learning to express more of the divine nature that God placed within us. And that is why the hunger never completely goes away until we begin addressing it at the level where it originates. You cannot feed spiritual hunger with material things. You have to feed the soul. So how do we do that? We begin simply. Prayer. Silence. Spiritual study. Meditation. Gratitude. Service to others. Listening to that quiet voice within. Spending time with people who strengthen the highest part of us rather than constantly pulling us downward. And making room in our lives for God. Not just when we’re in trouble. Not just on Sunday. But as part of our everyday lives. Because the spiritual path isn’t separate from life. It is life lived with greater consciousness. So I want to leave you today with a question. Not a question you have to answer immediately. Just carry it with you for a while. What is my soul hungry for? Not what do I want to buy? Not what do I want to achieve? Not what do I want other people to give me? What is my soul hungry for? Sit with that question. You may be surprised by the answer. Because that feeling that something is missing may not be an emptiness you need to fear. It may be an invitation. An invitation to awaken. An invitation to go deeper. An invitation to remember the divine reality that has been within you all along. Thank you for joining me for this episode of Awakening the Divine Within. This brings us to the end of our first section, The Great Forgetting. And in our next episode, we’re going to begin exploring a beautiful but often misunderstood spiritual concept—the Divine Mother. Who is the Divine Mother? Is the Divine Mother a being? A consciousness? An aspect of God? And why does understanding the feminine aspect of God matter so much to our spiritual development? We’ll begin exploring those questions next time. Until then, remember: That longing for something more may be your soul calling you home. ____________________________________________________________ Get Your Copy Here of My Book - You Were Born to Be a Christ But You Were Taught You Are a Sinner - Awaken to Who You Really Are. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  2. 6d ago

    What Humanity Forgot About Its Divine Nature

    Hello everyone, and welcome back to Awakening the Divine Within. Today we’re going to explore an idea that really lies at the heart of this entire series. Our first episode was about the emptiness so many people feel inside. In our second episode, we looked at the spiritual crisis behind many of the problems we see in the world. But that raises another question. How did we get here? How did humanity become so disconnected from its spiritual source? I believe part of the answer is surprisingly simple: We forgot who we are. And that is why I call this first section of our series The Great Forgetting. Humanity has forgotten its divine nature. Now, when I say that we have a divine nature, I’m not saying that everything we do is divine. Obviously, it isn’t. We make mistakes. We become angry. We hurt one another. We make selfish choices. Sometimes we know better and do the wrong thing anyway. But our mistakes are not the whole story of who we are. Behind the personality, behind the fears, behind the mistakes and all the experiences that have shaped us, there is something greater. There is a divine spark within us. There is a part of us that came from God and remembers God, even when our outer mind has forgotten. This perspective completely changes the way we look at ourselves. Most of us have been taught to identify ourselves almost entirely by our human experience. We say: This is my personality. This is my family. This is what happened to me. These are my strengths. These are my weaknesses. These are my successes. These are my failures. And eventually we construct an identity out of all of these things. But what if none of those things represents the deepest truth of who you are? What if you existed spiritually before all of those experiences shaped your outer personality? What if there is an original divine pattern for you? Well, there is. And this is where the life and teachings of Jesus become so important. I believe one of the great misunderstandings about Jesus is that we have made him so different from ourselves that we sometimes miss the very thing he came to demonstrate. Jesus showed us what happens when a human being becomes completely aligned with the divine. He embodied the Christ. And when I use the word Christ, I’m not using it simply as another name for Jesus. Christ is a universal spiritual reality. It is the divine consciousness that connects the human soul with God. This Christ Self is our true identity that is meant to exist in the world, just as it did with Jesus. Jesus embodied that Christ consciousness so completely that we call him Jesus Christ. But he also called us to follow him. Think about that. To follow someone means that there is a path we can walk. Jesus said, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also.” That is an extraordinary statement. He was pointing toward something within us that we have largely forgotten, ignored or even, in some cases, denied. Your Christ Self is sometimes referred to as the Higher Mental Body. You might think of your Christ Self as the higher spiritual part of you that already knows who you are in God. It knows your divine potential. It knows what you are capable of becoming. And it continually calls you upward. We may not always hear that voice clearly because there are so many other voices competing for our attention. Fear has a voice. Anger has a voice. Our past has a voice. Other people’s opinions have voices. The culture around us certainly has a voice. And sometimes all of those voices become so loud that we can no longer hear the quiet direction of our own higher self. But it is still there. This is why spiritual awakening is really a process of remembering. It is remembering: I am more than my past. I am more than my mistakes. I am more than my fears. I am more than what other people have told me I am. There is something divine within me that I am here to discover and express. And I think this is especially important because religion has sometimes emphasized human imperfection so strongly that people have developed an identity based almost entirely upon being sinners. Certainly, we make mistakes. We misuse God’s energy. We create karma. We need forgiveness and transformation. But Jesus did not come simply to tell us how terrible we are. He came to show us the way back. Remember what he said to the woman who had been accused? “Go, and sin no more.” In other words: Change. Rise. Become something greater. He did not define her forever by what she had done. And neither should we define ourselves forever by what we have done. There is a profound difference between recognizing our mistakes and making those mistakes our identity. The spiritual path asks us to take responsibility for what needs to change while remembering the divine potential that makes transformation possible. And that changes everything. Instead of saying, “This is just the way I am,” we begin asking: “What am I capable of becoming?” Instead of saying, “I could never change,” we begin asking: “What does my higher self want me to learn from this?” Instead of seeing ourselves only as flawed human beings trying somehow to reach a distant God, we begin to recognize that God has already placed something of himself within us. And our spiritual journey is about bringing that divine reality into expression. More love. More wisdom. More courage. More compassion. More self-mastery. More truth. More of the Christ. Not someday in some distant heaven. Here. In our relationships. In our choices. In our words. In the way we treat people. In the way we respond when life becomes difficult. That is where Christhood begins to become real. And perhaps that is the greatest thing humanity has forgotten. We have forgotten what we were created to become. So I would like to leave you today with a very simple question: Who would you be if you stopped defining yourself by your limitations and began defining yourself by your divine potential? Think about that. Because somewhere beneath everything life has placed upon you is the person God intended you to become. And the spiritual path is the journey of discovering that person and bringing that divine identity into manifestation. Thank you for joining me for this episode of Awakening the Divine Within. Until next time, remember: You are more than your history. You are more than your mistakes. You are more than your human limitations. There is a divine light within you. And perhaps it is time to remember who you really are. __________________________________________ Click Here for Free Bonuses! You Were Born to Be a Christ But You Were Taught You Are a Sinner - Awaken to Who You Really Are! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  3. 6d ago

    Why People Search Everywhere Except Within

    Hello everyone, and welcome back to Awakening the Divine Within. In our last episode, we talked about The Great Forgetting—how humanity has forgotten its divine nature. Today I want to look at one of the consequences of that forgetting. When we lose awareness of the divine presence within ourselves, we begin searching everywhere else for what we think will make us whole. And that brings us to today’s topic: Why People Search Everywhere Except Within. Think about how much of our lives are spent searching. We search for happiness. We search for love. We search for success. We search for security. We search for recognition. We search for someone who will finally understand us. And increasingly, we search for answers. We search the Internet. We search social media. We listen to podcasts. We watch videos. We read books. And there is certainly nothing wrong with learning from other people. In fact, good teaching can change our lives. But there comes a point on the spiritual path when we have to stop asking everyone else who we are and begin discovering the answer within ourselves. Because there is one place modern society rarely teaches us to look: within. From the time we’re very young, we’re trained to pay attention to the outer world. How am I doing? What do other people think of me? Am I successful? Am I attractive? Do I have enough money? Do people approve of me? Am I keeping up with everyone else? And today social media has magnified this tremendously. We can compare our lives with hundreds or even thousands of other people every day. And the problem is that we are often comparing our private struggles with someone else’s public image. Then we wonder why we don’t feel good enough. But there is an even deeper spiritual problem. When our attention is constantly directed outward, we lose contact with the quiet voice within. God is not merely a distant being somewhere outside of you. There is a divine presence within you. Jesus said it very simply: “The kingdom of God is within you.” Think about what that means. The kingdom is not merely something we hope to enter after we die. Jesus was pointing to a spiritual reality that can be discovered within consciousness. And yet how often do we actually go there? Many people are uncomfortable with silence. The moment things become quiet, we reach for the phone. We turn on the television. We play music. We check messages. We find something to do. We fill every empty space with noise. And sometimes I wonder whether we are afraid of what we might discover if everything became quiet. Because in silence, we begin meeting ourselves. We encounter thoughts we’ve been avoiding. Feelings we’ve pushed aside. Questions we’ve been too busy to ask. And sometimes, underneath all of that, we begin to sense something else. A presence. An inner knowing. A quiet sense that there is something greater within us. The spiritual path requires us to develop a relationship with that inner reality. Prayer is part of that. Meditation is part of that. Contemplation is part of that. But even simply becoming quiet for a few minutes can begin changing our relationship with ourselves. And I want to make an important distinction here. Going within does not mean that every thought or feeling that comes into our mind is automatically divine guidance. We all have fears. We all have desires. We all have emotional reactions. That is why spiritual discernment is so important. We learn gradually to recognize the difference between the voice of fear and the voice of wisdom. Fear usually feels urgent. The ego often demands. Anger reacts. But the higher self has a different quality. It may correct us, sometimes very firmly, but there is clarity in it. There is wisdom. There is a sense of inner knowing. And learning to recognize that guidance takes practice. I sometimes think of it like tuning a radio. If there is too much static, you can’t hear the station clearly. And many of us have tremendous static in our consciousness. Worry. Busyness. Resentment. Fear. Constant information. Other people’s opinions. All of that creates noise. Spiritual practice helps us reduce the noise so that we can hear something higher. This is why prayer, quiet meditation, decrees and understanding the power of the spoken word is so important. We call it the science of the spoken word and it has been practiced for centuries in various traditions by those on the spiritual path. And there is much modern scientific experiments that demonstrate this. These practices help us turn our attention away from the constant pull of the outer world and reconnect with the divine. But here’s something else I think is important. Going within does not mean withdrawing from life. It doesn’t mean ignoring responsibilities. It doesn’t mean becoming passive. In fact, the opposite should happen. When we become more connected with our higher self, we should become more effective in the world. More loving. More discerning. More purposeful. More courageous. More capable of making wise decisions. The purpose of going within is not to escape life. It is to discover how to live life from a higher level of consciousness. And I think that is something our world desperately needs. People who are not simply reacting to everything around them. People who have an inner center. People who can become quiet enough to ask: “What is the right thing to do?” “What is the loving thing to do?” “What is the wise thing to do?” “What is my higher self trying to teach me?” Imagine how different our relationships would be if we did that before reacting. Imagine how different our families would be. Our workplaces. Our communities. And even our world. So I want to give you a very simple practice today. Find five minutes. That’s all. Five minutes without your phone. Without television. Without music. Without doing anything else. Sit quietly. Take a few slow, deep breaths. And then simply say inwardly: “God, help me become aware of your presence within me.” And then be quiet. Don’t demand an answer. Don’t try to manufacture an experience. Just be, just listen. You may feel something. You may feel nothing. That’s okay. The important thing is that you are beginning to create space for a relationship that modern life rarely encourages us to develop: a relationship with the divine presence within. Because ultimately, the spiritual journey is not about endlessly searching outside ourselves for someone who can tell us who we are. Good teachers can point the way. Jesus can show us the path. The ascended masters can teach us. But eventually, we have to walk that path ourselves. And that path leads inward before it leads upward. So I’ll leave you with this question: How much of your life have you spent searching outside yourself for something your soul has been quietly waiting for you to discover within? Thank you for joining me for this episode of Awakening the Divine Within. Until next time, remember: You don’t have to leave your life to find God. You just have to learn to recognize the divine presence that has been with you all along. ___________________________________________________ Click here to learn more about the science of the spoken word and the power your words have. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  4. Sep 25

    The Spiritual Crisis Behind Modern Society

    Hello everyone, and welcome back to Awakening the Divine Within. In this series we’re exploring the deeper spiritual realities behind many of the struggles people are facing today—both personally and collectively. In our last episode, we talked about why so many people feel empty inside and how that emptiness may actually be the soul longing to reconnect with its spiritual source. Today, I want to take that conversation a step further by looking at the bigger picture. This episode is called: “The Spiritual Crisis Behind Modern Society.” Because if we’re honest, it feels like something is deeply off in the world right now. People are more connected technologically than ever before, yet loneliness is increasing. We have more information than any generation in history, yet confusion seems everywhere. We see rising anxiety, emotional instability, anger, division, corruption, violence, addiction, and a growing sense of hopelessness in many people. And a lot of people look at all of this and ask—and maybe you too,“What is happening to humanity?” Now, most explanations focus only on external causes:politics,economics,technology,social systems,education,or cultural change. And while all of those things matter, I believe the deeper issue is spiritual. Outer conditions are often reflections of inner consciousness. In other words, when humanity becomes spiritually disconnected, that disconnection eventually begins showing up everywhere in society. It appears in:how people treat one another,how leaders govern,how truth is distorted,how fear spreads,how greed grows,and how people lose touch with compassion, wisdom, and inner balance. A society can advance technologically while declining spiritually. And I think that’s exactly what we’re witnessing in many ways today. We’ve developed incredible external power…but we have not developed equal spiritual maturity. Humanity has learned how to manipulate matter and technology, but many people still struggle to master:their emotions,their thoughts,their impulses,their anger,their fears,and their ego. And when inner consciousness is unstable, outer systems eventually become unstable too. To me, it appears humanity has gradually lost awareness of its sacred nature. People have forgotten that life itself is spiritual. Not just religion. Not just prayer. Not just churches or temples. Life itself. How we think.How we speak.How we treat people.How we use energy.How we handle power.How we respond to conflict.How we raise children.How we care for our bodies and minds. All of it is spiritual. But modern culture often separates spirituality from daily living. People may think of spirituality as something abstract or optional rather than something deeply connected to consciousness itself. And when people lose that inner connection, they begin looking outside themselves for stability and meaning. That’s one reason we see such emotional polarization today. People become reactive very easily.Fear spreads quickly.Anger escalates rapidly.And many people feel emotionally exhausted. Why? Because inner peace cannot exist for long without spiritual grounding. Now, this doesn’t mean we should judge humanity harshly. In many ways, people are struggling because they were never taught how to develop inner mastery. They were taught how to compete.How to consume.How to chase external success. But they were rarely taught:how to quiet the mind,how to manage emotions,how to strengthen compassion,how to develop wisdom,or how to connect with the divine presence within themselves. And without that inner foundation, people become vulnerable to fear, manipulation, confusion, and emotional instability. C onsciousness matters far more than most people realize. Every thought matters.Every emotion matters.Every word matters.Every choice matters. Because collectively, human consciousness helps shape the world we live in. That means society changes when consciousness changes. And I know that can sound overwhelming at first because we look at the problems in the world and think:“How could one person possibly make a difference?” But spiritual transformation has always begun one person at a time. One awakened person influences others.One compassionate person changes environments.One person choosing wisdom over hatred shifts energy.One person living consciously becomes a stabilizing force in the world. And honestly, I think that’s part of why you’re listening to this series right now. Something within you may already sense that external solutions alone are not enough. Humanity needs spiritual awakening.Not necessarily more dogma.Not more fear-based religion.Not more division. But greater consciousness.Greater wisdom.Greater compassion.Greater awareness of the sacredness of life. The good news is that periods of great confusion can also become periods of awakening. Sometimes humanity only begins seriously searching for truth when old systems begin failing. Sometimes people only begin asking deeper questions when external life no longer satisfies them. And perhaps that’s part of what is happening right now. People are searching again. Searching for meaning.Searching for truth.Searching for something real. And I believe that search can lead humanity toward a higher consciousness—if we are willing to awaken spiritually instead of simply reacting emotionally. So today, I want to leave you with this thought: The world heals as consciousness heals. And healing begins within individuals. Within hearts.Within minds.Within souls. The more peace we cultivate within ourselves, the more peace we bring into the world. The more wisdom we embody, the more stability we bring into the world. The more love we express, the more healing becomes possible. And that doesn’t make you powerless. It makes you part of the solution. Before we close, I’d like to leave you with a simple reflection for today. Ask yourself: “What kind of energy am I contributing to the world around me?” Fear?Anger?Division? Or peace?Compassion?Wisdom?Hope? Because the world is shaped, little by little, by the consciousness each of us brings into it. Thank you so much for joining me for Episode 2 of Awakening the Divine Within. And until next time, remember: Real transformation begins within. _______________________________________________________________________ The Awakening Now This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  5. Aug 28

    Send Negative Energy Back to the Sender!

    Learn how to protect yourself from negative energies and spiritual tools you can use to seal your aura and transmute negative energies coming your way from unseen "powers and principalities" or from others you know or don't know.  Learn how to use this mantra: Reverse the tide! (3x)     Roll them back! (3x)   Reverse the tide! (3x)  Take thy command,   Roll them back! (3x)   Set all free! (3x)   Reverse the tide! (3x) Listen and subscribe on Apple Podcasts.  Go to https://www.nancyshowalter.com/for a FREE Copy of My Book, It's OK to Be Rich:  The Entrepreneur's Guide to Increased Wealth and Personal Mastery and FREE Mini-Course, "How to Speak Your Success:  The Shocking Truth of How Your Words Impact Achieving Your Goals." This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

    Send Negative Energy Back to the Sender!

  6. Jun 19

    You Were Born to Be a Christ, But You Were Taught You are a Sinner

    My book was featured in Coffee & Chapters Book Enthusiasts’ Event. Perfect for Book Study Groups or Book of the Month Clubs. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  7. May 19

    Why So Many People Feel Empty Inside

    This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

  8. Feb 10

    I AM the Love I AM Looking For

    Hello and welcome to today’s episode, an important episode. Because, one of the biggest lies we’re taught, and it shows up everywhere, in relationships, in spirituality, even in how we talk about God and that is that love is something we’re supposed to get from outside ourselves. We’re told to go find it. Earn it. Deserve it. Chase it. Fix ourselves enough so someone else will finally give it to us. And after years of contemplating this situation and watching people struggle, I’ve come to a really simple, but sometimes, uncomfortable realization: “I am the love I am looking for.” That sounds almost too simple, doesn’t it? But if you sit with it honestly, it explains a lot. Most of the time when we feel lonely, rejected, unseen, or needy, we assume it’s because someone else isn’t showing up for us the way we want them to. But what if the real issue isn’t that love is missing — it’s that we’re outsourcing it? For me, when I finally stopped waiting for love and acceptance to come from outside me and started practicing being loving toward myself, something remarkable happened. I found that I needed less from other people. And you will find the same. There won’t be the need to grasp for approval. You’ll no longer read into spoken words, or tone or silence. And you will quit trying to pull love out of people who don’t have it to give. And ironically, you’ll find relationships will get healthier and you are much happier. Because here’s the thing that I’ve discovered. People can feel neediness. They may not be able to explain it, but they feel it. And when we’re empty inside, we subtly ask others to fill us — with attention, reassurance, validation, affection. That’s a heavy ask, even when it’s unspoken. So instead of asking, “Why isn’t anyone loving me?” Start asking a better question: “Have I actually filled my own cup first?” “Do I love me?” But if you do feel needy at times, don’t shame myself for it. See it as information. It’s a signal that you’ve been giving out more than you’ve been giving to yourself. So pause. Pull back. Get quiet and do whatever you need to do to refill your own love tank. Sometimes that looks like talking to yourself more kindly instead of mentally beating yourself up, which many of us love to do. Sometimes it means resting instead of pushing. Sometimes it means saying no without explaining. And sometimes it means stopping the inner narrative that says you’re only valuable if you’re useful, needed, or wanted. Learn to treat love like something you maintain, not something you chase. If resentment starts creeping in — toward a partner, or a friend, or even toward life — that’s a huge red flag. Because resentment usually isn’t about the other person. It’s about the fact that you gave from an empty place and expected someone else to make up the difference. And that never works. So make sure your cupboards are full before you show up in the world. Don’t go into conversations emotionally starving. Don’t give love hoping it will be returned. Give because you already have it. And here’s the paradox: when you’re full, you actually receive better love. Not needy love. Not transactional love. But real love. Clean love. Love that isn’t tangled up in expectations. Now, hear me on this. This does not mean you don’t need people. It doesn’t mean you isolate yourself or pretend you’re invincible. Rather, it means you take responsibility for your inner state before asking others to meet you there. And that includes understanding how you experience love. Your love language matters — not so you can demand it from others, but so you can give it to yourself first. If you crave words, speak them to yourself. If you need care, practice it. If you need space, take it. If you need reassurance, learn how to ground yourself instead of outsourcing your worth. Because when you become the love you’re looking for, relationships stop being a search and start being a sharing. You stop chasing. You stop proving. You stop shrinking or performing. And from that place, love finally shows up — not because you needed it, but because you had it and were ready to give it freely. So maybe the real spiritual question isn’t asking, “Who will love me?” Maybe it’s asking, “How can I love myself more fully — today, honestly, without pretending?” Remember, the second greatest commandment that Jesus taught, “Love thy neighbor as thyself,” implies you must first love yourself. Try adding this affirmation to your meditations or prayer times. Repeat and feel it often: “I AM the love I AM looking for.” The truth is simple, and it’s powerful: You are not lacking love.You are learning how to become it. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit nancyshowalter.substack.com/subscribe

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Hi, I'm Nancy Showalter. And this podcast is for you if you instinctively know that there is more to life than what you have been taught and you're not afraid to explore beyond conventional belief systems. Remember how everyone thought the world was flat and if you challenged that you were crazy? Or how people said if we were meant to fly God would give us wings? What about, "civilization is only four thousand years old," but science tells us differently? Very few of us are living to our fullest potential. I believe that is because most of us do not access the divinity within--the part that is one with our Creator. And how do we do that? That, and more, is what this podcast is all about. nancyshowalter.substack.com

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