10 Ways to Trust The Universe

You know those moments when you tell yourself, “I just gotta trust the universe.” Whether it's because things in your life feel chaotic or just plain overwhelming, sometimes you just know you need to surrender and learn to trust that things will work out.

Trust really is a practice, an art—especially in those moments when it feels like you’re working hard and things just aren’t happening. In the wellness world, we put so much emphasis on the importance of letting go, relinquishing the need to control and learning to trust that things will simply be taken care of. A job will appear, along with a dream partner and loads of money.

Sound familiar?

Well, trusting the universe requires patience. But are you trying to cultivate patience, and still finding that you're not realising any results? If so, here are 10 essential things you need to know when you are trying to trust the universe:

1. Embrace Helplessness

Sometimes when you’re at your most desperate, you shine the brightest because in these moments you’ve arrived at a point of surrender. This occurs when you realise that whatever you’re up against is out of your control.

When you embrace this truth from an empowered viewpoint, not as a victim, you can draw strength from simply by letting go of the struggle, ceasing to resist, and embrace your inability to control the situation.

2. Tune Into Love

Love is the force that moves the entire universe. Love is grace. Love is helping. Love is caring and sharing. Love is disciplining when destructive behaviour arises. Love is tolerance and understanding. It is so much more than an emotion; and it is always available to you, if you tap into it.

By prioritising love in your life, you will attract more of it for yourself from the universe. Practice this, and watch your life fall in line, without any control or input from you—only loving intentions.

3. Release What You Cannot Hold

Most of us live in a state of reaction. Your sense of control relates to how much of a “handle on things” you think you have. You probably already know what a self-deceiving concept this is. What is control? Is it really just how well or fast one is able to react to what we can’t control?

Enlightenment follows once you release this sense of control, according to some ancient wisdom traditions. You truly don’t know what will happen in the next five minutes of your life.

As part of your growth process, try to learn to relax and let go of your control. While you may be in control of yourself on some levels, your life is not meant to be micro-managed. Allow yourself to experience with wonderment. Let yourself be bewildered by the unknown. You may find that the unknown is more favourable than your tight hold on life. You already know what you know, why not experience something new and potentially beneficial?

4. Observe Nature

Jesus once quoted, “Consider how the lilies of the field grow: They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his glory was adorned like one of these.” (Matthew 6:28-29). One can use this wisdom as yet another lesson to learn from nature.

Look at how bountiful and giving nature really is. Observe the beauty and synchronicity of it all. As much as you may feel like a stranger here, you and your life are no accident. This entire universe has conspired to give you experience. This force is in and around you always because you are part of this universe, too. Try to see yourself as part of the works instead of as an outside observer.

5. Show Gratitude

When you express gratitude, the world will naturally soften and brighten for you. There is something powerful about being authentically thankful to the universe. When this is turned inward it can be transcendent. Be thankful for the small graces that pop up in your life. These are signs that you are supported. The more gratitude you show, the more your life will open up to this kind of relationship with the universe, and trust will develop.

6. Increase Self-Awareness

Awareness of your thoughts is important to all self-evolving practices. The more you listen to your own mind, the more you will realise the role it plays in your life. Many of the trappings of our life start there. As you learn to trust and cooperate with the universe, you must move beyond these inner limitations.

Meditation is particularly helpful to increase your self-awareness. As your meditation practice grows, you may notice the adversarial nature of thoughts. By working on yourself to clear these negative thoughts, you naturally will begin to trust more. This comes from the realisation that many areas of your life are organised and enjoyed through a force bigger than you.

Witness the confusion and randomness of your mind and be thankful for the grace and synchronicity that you experience. Let go of the details, focus on self-evolving, and the universe will take care of the rest.

7. Listen to Your Intuition

Your intuition is an inner guidance system for your life. Since it comes from a higher, more subtle part of your consciousness, it is often ignored, unheard, or misinterpreted. This part of your being is found in the silence of meditation and deep sleep. While awake, you may hear it in the quiet spaces of your mind, or during brief moments of awareness.

The importance of intuition cannot be overstated. This guidance comes from within the soul and is directly linked to the rest of the universe. Listen to it. Just as your mind is adept at manoeuvring through your tasks, so is the soul at navigating the higher, more significant planes of life. This is the conversation within that leads to living a life of universal trust and love.

8. Acknowledge Life’s Grace

Every person has known suffering of some kind. Sometimes you may tend to focus more on the negatives than the grace that life bestows on you. Try to understand that attention to the negative is what drives your inner control freak. If you’re seeking to build a relationship of trust with the universe, try to spend time focusing on how good it is to you.

This practice is more than gratitude; it is a redirecting of perception. No matter what annoyances or even serious issues you may face, there is always an element of grace involved. Everything from the air that fills your lungs to your family, work, and friends are meant as a blessing from the universe. All aspects of your life experience can be fulfilling and blessed, if you choose to see them as such.

Take some time to notice how beautiful the sunlight is coming into your living space. Appreciate that random warm smile from a stranger as you wait in line. Take time to fully appreciate the delicious meal you have, chewing fully and tasting with awareness. These small and often unnoticed occurrences are the universe showing you kindness and love.

Pay attention to how even the tiniest things may go your way or fall in place just for you. In order to let go of your preoccupation with control, allow yourself to feel the safety of the universe’s intentions toward you. Though there can be unkind elements to life, in general, it is extremely benign to you. Tune yourself to this awareness and have more of it show up in your life.

9. Seek Oneness

Look to the unifying principles of your life for the truth of who you really are. Build awareness of yourself as a being having an experience. Your outer life with its actors, dramas, and props is just as much you as your innermost thoughts. You are the all-encompassing experience.

Take a real interest in who you are, what you do, how you live, your health, family, and work. This is not meant for the sake of manipulating, analysing, or taking charge of these parts of your life. The intention here is passive enjoyment and study.

Your fear and control seeking arise from concern about the unknown. Engage the world more so that you are more comfortable. This can be said for your personal life experience as well as the larger global picture. Try looking at life as well as yourself from different perspectives and embrace it all. This powerful act can bring harmony and trust into your awareness, and will release your desire to control everything.

10. Harness the healing presence of Preyer

There is no better way to trust in the Universe than the healing benefits of Gods power. Having faith in God, the Universe, has the strongest healing presence of prayer life has to offer when practiced and harnessed on a deep and profound level. Healing presence - prayer can bring a sense of a spiritual or loving presence and alignment with God or an immersion into a universal unconsciousness. Positive feelings - prayer can elicit feelings of gratitude, compassion, forgiveness, and hope, all of which are associated with healing and wellness. Mind-body-spirit connection - when prayer uplifts or calms, it inhibits the release of cortisol and other hormones, thus reducing the negative impact of stress on the immune system and promoting healing.The relaxation response - prayer elicits the relaxation response, which lowers blood pressure and other factors heightened by stress. Secondary control - prayer releases control to something greater than oneself, which can reduce the stress of needing to be in charge. The placebo response - prayer can enhance a person's hopes and expectations, and that in turn can positively impact health.