You may have friends who have experienced successful change under the guidance of a Life Coach. People hire a life coach to help them accelerate their ability to move through life’s challenges, such as losing weight, changing careers, planning their retirement , moving through a divorce or breakup, or simply finding greater fulfillment and satisfaction.
A new addition to the booming field of Life Coaching is Jewish Spiritual Life Coaching (JSLF). It takes Life Coaching to the next level by helping you connect to your Jewish spirituality. It facilitates access to your inner wisdom and then provides guidance to apply that inner knowing to your life challenges. This method integrates Jewish values and proven spiritual life coaching techniques to access help clarify issues, access intuition, and overcome blocks which keep you from achieving your goals.
Judaism gives us many ways to connect spiritually. We often associate ‘spirituality’ with meditation, metaphysics or yoga. It’s a relatively new conversation for post-Holocaust Jews to talk about a personal connection to spirit (God) as part of their Jewish experience .
However, there are deep roots in our texts and esoteric tradition that open the gateway for a Jewish transformative individual experiences. By drawing from the stories of our archetypical forefathers and mothers we have examples of a direct connection with spirit, guidance, and the healing power of a force greater than us. We can be transformed by this connection just as Jacob becomes Israel (God Wrestler) in his encounter with a messenger from God. After he wrestles all night with this “man/angelâ€, he then receives a new name and is able to reunite with the twin brother Esau, (his shadow self), whom he had betrayed many years before. Our great teacher Moses has an encounter with a bush that “burns but is not consumed,†and his life is transformed, as he answers the call to leadership.
Our tradition provides a blueprint for moving our “broken†selves toward a place of wholeness and unity. Both Jewish tradition and life coaching use the process of inquiry to help us find answers from within. Life coaching, and Jewish values and practice are a natural combination.
Jewish practice is designed to be a practical and embodied spirituality. It’s a road map for living a life empowered by spirit. Our Jewish tradition teaches us to improve ourselves and the world and not to accept an unsatisfactory status quo. By incorporating the ‘technologies’ of Jewish practice with the power of spiritual life coaching , one accelerates the positive changes you are looking for in your everyday life.
We often find ourselves in Jacob’s dilemma of wrestling with our true nature and having difficulty finding ways to manifest what we want. Or we wander like Moses until we connect to our soul’s purpose. Many of us struggle with the gap between our everyday life and the vision we have of how we would like our life to be. One powerful way people are supporting themselves in living their heart’s desire is by working with a spiritual life coach.
Here’s a testimonial of a cIient, Sara H, and how she used Jewish Spiritual Life Coaching techniques to reduce her stress and increase her sense of fulfillment.
“I was just going through the motions of my very busy life. I felt empty and unmotivated. I wanted to feel more joy and less oy as well as getting through the day without feeling exhausted.
My coach used a series of powerful spiritual coaching processes with me to focus on what areas of my life needed improvement. We also identified the ways I felt connected and supported by spirit. After we identified what would bring more joy into my life, I set goals of: making time for Shabbat, meditation, exercise and more relaxing activities for me and my spouse. I agreed to create a schedule for myself that was realistic and attainableâ€
After just 4 sessions I experienced
- Better sleep
- Less stress at work and progress on completing my dissertation
- Working through blocks about taking time for myself
- More productive and energetic at work
- Less stress in my relationships, more time for friends
- Taking time to enjoy Shabbat, Jewish chanting and meditation
Some of the most fruitful exploration came about as she moved through the ways she blocked herself from achieving her goals. Through the spiritual coaching process she was able to attain her goals and feel more satisfaction and success in her life.
The goal of Jewish Spiritual Life Coaching is to help people connect deeply to their spiritual self to fully actualize their personal and professional goals. It’s principles can be applied them to working with individuals, groups or organizations. . The Jewish spiritual coach can lead you or your organization through this powerful process of integrating your Jewish values to create a more satisfying and fulfilling future.
The power of working with a Jewish spiritual coach is having someone walk with you on your path in a way that allows you to create a more satisfying and fulfilling future integrating your Jewish values.
Spiritual Mastery Questionnaire
1 – I don’t agree ; 10 -I strongly agree with this statement  ___I feel Connected to God on a daily basis. ___I have a Jewish practice that nurtures my soul ___I have a non- Jewish spiritual practice that nurtures my soul ___In times of change, crisis or loss I tap into my Jewish spirituality ___My relationships are peaceful and harmonious ___ I am tapping into my true goals and achieving them ___I am a caring and compassionate person ___I can trust my intuition in everyday life ___I am able to forgive myself and others ___I am part of a satisfying Jewish spiritual community ____My work is satisfying and fulfilling ____ I am able to stay in a peaceful place when life gets tough
Score 1-50 Your Jewish spiritual needs aren’t being met 51-100 You are doing a good job of meeting your Jewish spiritual needs but could improve 101+ You are connected and having a fulfilled Jewish Spiritual connection
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Rhonda Mason LCSW, ACC is a licensed clinical social worker, a psychotherapist in private practice and a Certified Spiritual Life Coach in San Diego, CA. She teaches a 17 week web based course in Jewish Spiritual Life Coaching www.chaijewishspirituallifecoaching.com Email [email protected]. Phone: 619-251-4618