Receiving Angelic Guidance

"I keep trying so hard to hear my angels' voices, but I don't hear anything!" a woman named Pat said to me recently. I could see by her expression that she truly desired to connect with her angels.

We all have guardian angels next to us. We have a guardian angel on our left shoulder and another one on our right shoulder. Those who have asked for more angels, and people who have had near-death experiences, often have flocks of angels encircling them.

Whether you have two or two-hundred angels around you, your winged guardians have healing and uplifting messages to give to you. Just like people, each angel has a different personality. Some are extroverted, others are quiet, some are pushy like a strong-willed coach, and still other angels are fun-loving and down-right silly. You have exactly the right angels next to you, to help you fulfill your Divine life mission.

In my books and in the workshops I give each weekend across the country, I help people like Pat to hear the voices of their angels. I explained to Pat, "The angels are continuously talking to you. Yet, the number one reason why people don't hear their angels is because they are trying too hard. When we strain to hear, we essentially plug our spiritual ears."

So I asked Pat to take several deep breaths, so that she would relax. I suggested that she close her eyes to block out any visual distractions. I coaxed Pat to continue breathing and to mentally call upon additional angels to surround her. At first, Pat's energy reminded me of a child who couldn't wait to open a gift. But with the help of her rhythmic breathing and the angels which surrounded her, I watched Pat's shoulders drop to a relaxed posture.

"Now that you are relaxed," I counseled Pat, "let's begin with a fairly simple method of breaking through the veil, so that you can hear your angels. I'd like to ask you to take another deep breath and ask this question: "Please tell me the name of the guardian angel on my left shoulder, now."
I asked Pat to keep breathing and to repeat this question in her mind until she heard a response. "You might hear an inner or outer voice," I told her, "or you might receive your angel's name as a vision, a feeling, or a knowingness." I counseled Pat to allow the angel messages to come to her. "Don't chase the message; just be like a radar dish that peacefully receives information."
"I heard the name, Raphael!" Pat exclaimed with a wide smile. Her eyes were bright and excited. Then her face fell and grew dark. "What if that name was my imagination?" she asked.
I explained that our lower-self ego always tries to tell us that Divine messages are imagined. "Your ego doesn't want you to connect with your angels, because the ego is completely fear- based. It knows that if you listen to angels, you'll lose your fears, and the ego will lose its very life!"

We then discussed that Raphael is an archangel who stays near people who have a Divine life purpose involving healing. Pat smiled and said, "I've always felt that I was supposed to be a spiritual healer of some sort!" I explained that the Archangel Raphael helps healers in all ways, and that he guides us toward the exact path of healing that is right for us. He also helps us to find the right teachers, finance our education, and have wonderful clients.

I then asked Pat to close her eyes, take deep breaths and ask to hear the name of the guardian angel on her right shoulder. Pat was more relaxed this time, following her initial success. I watched her face grimace, and then she opened her eyes and said, "I heard the name, Joyful!' That doesn't sound like a real name."

"Angel names come in many varieties," I explained. "Very often, they sound like people's names, such as John, Michael, or Charlotte. Other times, they sound like biblical names. Some angel names sound like foreign words, that make no sense initially. And angels are also named after adjectives, such as Joyful, Serenity, or Blissful."

As I told Pat, sometimes it is helpful to ask the angels to give us a sign to validate that we've correctly heard their name. One woman, for example, heard the name Jordan when she asked for her angel's name. Her immediate reaction was, "Oh, I just made that name up!" So, at my urging, the woman asked the angels to give her a sign to validate the name. One hour later, as she pulled out of a gas station, a car cut her off in traffic. She blinked disbelievingly at the personalized license plate in front of her that clearly read, "Jordan."

Once we receive the names of our angels, we can keep going and receive even more detailed messages. The keys to clear angelic communication are:

1. Stay relaxed by closing your eyes and breathing deeply.

2. Ask a specific question.

3. Allow the answer to come to you; don't chase it, strain, or try to force it.

4. If you can't hear or understand the angels' answer, ask them for clarification. Say, "A little louder, please," or "Could you please explain that to me a little clearer?"

5. Be open to hearing an answer that may be different than what you expect or want to hear.

6. Notice any vision, sound, feeling, or knowingness that comes to you, the angels speak to us through these four ways.

7. If you doubt the validity of the answer you receive, ask the angels to give you a sign confirming it. Stay open to noticing these signs!

8. Always thank your angels for their help. Your happiness and gratitude is very important to the angels.