Though we do not always recognize His Voice, we are always hearing God's Voice in one form or another in our life. Part of what keeps us from recognizing the Voice of God as often as we could is that we are frequently locked on or attached to certain ways of seeing things that are unhealthy. We're not able to go into our Right-Mind where the Holy Spirit is and see things clearly. We might be attached to a certain belief or perspective, or we may be unwilling to let go of a particular judgment or feeling. When we are attached to these unhealthy thoughts within our mind, we keep ourselves from flowing freely into our Right-Mind where we can access the Voice of God.

There are many ways to loosen up our unhealthy thinking. One great way to free our attachments and help us connect with God is taking a vacation. Vacations are so powerful because they get us out of our normal routine. They take us away from the things we're attached to in our daily life. Doing anything out of the ordinary, whether it's driving a different way to work, listening to a different radio station, swimming in a cold pool, or going out on a rainy day to take a walk, can accomplish the same result. The trick is getting out of our normal routine. When we do this, regardless of what it looks like, it opens the mind to possibility. It opens the mind to seeing things the way God does.

When we break these patterns, we open ourselves up to hearing the Holy Spirit in our life. When we break out of our routine, we free ourselves from the habitual way we think about things and open up to seeing things with the vision of Christ.

Now, I'm not talking about your daily prayer routine, which is specifically intended to connect you with God. I'm talking about the routine of life that keeps us thinking the way we do, that keeps our energy bottled up into only one way of seeing our brothers and sisters.

When we break up the routines in our life that keep us separate from God, whether it's taking a walk at lunchtime when we usually never do, going to lunch with someone new, taking an unexpected day off work, or going somewhere we've never been, we open our minds to the possibilities that God would give us. We free ourselves from whatever we're attached to, comfortable with, or used to, and we give ourselves the possibility of hearing and following the Voice of God in our life.

Over the next few days, observe the patterns or routines that are constricting or unconscious in your life. These may be the routines that keep you from hearing God's Voice in your life. What routines keep you from seeing things in new light?

As you notice these innocent and often times unconscious patterns and routines, do something intentionally to break them and then notice what happens within your heart and mind when you do. Does it give you time to reflect? Does it give you a new experience in your life? Does it give you time to breathe and slow down? What do you feel as a result? How has your relationship with God changed?

Breaking up your routine does not need to be a major ordeal. It could be as simple as using a different bathroom than the one you normally use, or walking the other way around the block. It's the intention you put behind these small gestures that opens your mind and helps you to connect with God more frequently in your life. Using these tiny opportunities each day to join with God and thus see things differently through His Loving Vision holds the possibility for creating miracles in our lives.

Enjoy the possibilities.