Your Inner Critic

I was reading back through a little notebook that I keep with me when I’m out and about and found a quote: “That critical voice in your head is not the voice of God.” I believe I jotted that down while listening to Anne Lamott’s book, “Bird by Bird”, but if it wasn’t Anne, I apologize to the person who crafted such wise words.  

A very important thing to remember is that God, the angels, your higher self (or whatever you choose to call energetic beings of the light) - will never berate you, try to make you feel small or unworthy, or fill you with shame.  

There are a couple ways to identify when you are getting a message from “Above”: 1) It will begin with you/your instead of I. (i.e. You’ve got this! You know what to do next. Your smile is particularly radiant today. You should get a drink of water and maybe a nap.), and 2) It will be encouraging, loving, or helpful.  

Angels might prompt you to check your teeth in the mirror when you have some spinach stuck in the crevices, but they won’t be the ones criticizing you afterward. Those diatribes usually start with “I”. I’m such a loser. I know I get stuff stuck in my teeth, especially green leafy vegetables! Who has seen me? I’m so dumb. That critic is your ego - also meant to be “helpful”, but rarely kind. The job of the ego is to point out every possible thing that could go wrong to help keep you safe. This is great, in theory, but in reality, it can put you on a self-destructive path spiraling to self-loathing.  

There’s an angel card in Kyle Gray’s Angel Guide Oracle Deck labeled Clear, Cancel, Release. This card was designed as a reminder to let go of those awful, demeaning things our inner critic pelts us with so we can be open to hearing higher frequency messages – the ones encouraging us and putting us back on our Soul’s path and purpose.  

I’m sure, like me, growing up you heard that “God doesn’t make junk.”, and “We are all made in God’s image.” ...and we are! Juxtapose this next to the lies we feed ourselves each day, telling ourselves that we are worthless, stupid, klutzy, no-good, etc. Now do a thought experiment with me –imagine telling the Divine Creator that they are worthless, stupid, klutzy, no-good, and whatever other awful thing you can think of. Can you do it? Would you dare? Or would you find it highly disrespectful and shun away from the thought of it? 

Each one of us has DIVINITY within us! We are made in God’s image! Every time we criticize ourselves, or believe we are not worthy of love, peace, goodness, happiness, charity, compassion, forgiveness, or joy, we disrespect the Divine within our own soul.  

Our inner critic is NOT the voice of God. It is something that needs to be cleared, canceled, and released. We are meant to be living in the light, using our flame to light flames within others- not cowering in the darkness, afraid of our own goodness. 

If this seems like a tall order, be sure to reach out to your angels. They are here to help and when you recognize the divinity within yourself, they sing songs of joy and triumph.