Talking to God: Why You Must Try It Too

Have you tried talking to God? Photo Credits: Unsplash

One night, I decided to speak to God.

I like to sit upon the balcony under the stars to meditate, reflect, be in silence in the morning and before bedtime. But that evening seemed different. I couldn’t get myself to meditate or reflect. I felt I had a lot going on in me. I wanted to communicate but didn’t feel like it. So I decided to talk to God, and what a beautiful conversation it was!

While I pray and have faith, I am not the kind of person that will attend Sunday mass with discipline. I believe and feel good praying from anywhere. I have had the privilege to break a fast during Ramadan with my brother, His Highness Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Ali Bin Rashed Al Nuaimi of Ajman, Dubai. We went to the mosque together to ask for forgiveness and offer prayer with hundreds of others. I thought I would be uncomfortable doing this and expressed it to him. But all he said was, “You pray to your faith.” And that is what I did.

With His Highness Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Ali Bin Rashed Al Nuaimi of Ajman.

What a feeling it was, praying with a host of people of another faith together. Ever since, I have prayed from temples, monasteries, and even synagogues. And to be honest, the feeling has always been the same – overwhelming and fulfilling.

This brings me back to my conversation with God, under the beautiful night sky studded with stars. I spoke from my heart and felt the conversation take a flow on its own. I did not have a particular agenda but expressed the feelings in my mind and heart without any judgment or expectations. The conversation moved its way back into my childhood, teenage years, the past, travels, work, friends, and people. It was almost like meditating but it wasn’t. It brought deeper peace and strength to my heart.

I practice gratitude usually every day, but this conversation with God brought it out in a powerful strong way. As I spoke, I reflected on how much I had gotten through in life. When you look back you see how life worked for you, while you mindlessly lived a large part of it. Yet I saw how protected I was, through it all. How I was helped out of difficult situations, guided out of relationships that didn’t serve me, or the person I was being in relationships I messed up – in every situation, there was and continues to exist a divine grace through it all.

The forgiveness extended to me, my ability to forgive with grace, moments when the bitterness continued for a long time before that divine grace set in and just lifted it away to bring me the peace and energy to move forward. I reflected on how my life changed the moment I decided to leave my fears and attachments behind, and follow my calling and passion. When I left my comfortable past life, certain friends, relationships behind, and decided to dedicate my life towards using my gift. Where did all that ‘knowing’ and strength come from?

Find the grace to forgive and let go to move forward. Photo Credits: Unsplash.

I was not mature at that time, and maybe I am not too mature now. But I was guided with the hand of faith which to me, is God, the Universe, or anything you want to call it. The more I conversed with God, the more grateful I felt than I ever have before – for the good, the bad, the things that worked out and ones that didn’t, for people who had to be in my life at a particular point and those I lost along the way too.

When these moments happen, the world and our lives may seem cruel. But when we see the larger picture, we learn that it is the work of God, the energies of the Universe protecting and guiding us, if we only slowly learn to drop the resistance.

Many people ask me if I believe in God and why. And they want to get into philosophical discussions and debates that don’t interest me. Because I do and to each their own. I am in awe of this gift of life that we are all given, this amazing human body, mind, spirit, the intelligence that exists in us and around us, and nature – even the deepest sciences and religions don’t understand.

When you look back and see how you have reached where you are, no matter who you are, you see the kind of guidance, protection, forgiveness, understanding that you have been extended.

Yes, I believe in God, I believe in energies, I believe in the Universe, I believe in that magic, I believe in prayer, and I believe that I found something new for me, I enjoy it more than prayer and that is conversing with God. It was liberating and freeing.

I sleep well on most nights, but that night I slept deeply. Look around you, within you, at nature, the different plants, flowers, animals, the ocean, the sky, the unexplainable energies between people, love – many of them have no explanations. For me, it is God.

When I find it difficult to let go or forgive, I remind myself of the many times I have been let go and my sins have been forgiven in my lifetime. And I believe that if it was extended to me, I have no right to hold it back to others. This is the beautiful grace that makes it a little easier for me to forgive and let go. (There are some beautiful learnings from the art of letting go that I shared in a recent masterclass. You can watch it here.)

I shared this with my daughter this morning. She asked me that one beautiful innocent question that usually only kids can ask, “So daddy, did God talk back to you and what did he say?” Yes, he did. Through silence, my thought process, and the way I felt. Yes, he did, in his beautiful way when I felt touched, cared for, looked after, and protected. I did not feel alone but complete.

While prayer is different, I think conversing with God with no fear of judgment, holding back, or trying to be someone else, is just beautiful. And I did ask him to help me understand the things I can’t, for more guidance, strength, courage, love, and protection for me, my loved ones, and even my enemies. I asked him for abundance. I believe that is all I need to get through what life has for me.

I hope many of you continue to have beautiful conversations with God or the Universe.

With gratitude,
Luke Coutinho

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