Staged Testing: The Perfect Delivery System

It is at different stages along our spiritual path, which is also something that is commonly referred to in the writings published here as our self developmental journey, that we sometimes find ourselves getting frustrated. This is a perfectly natural part of the process, and is something which cannot really be avoided. Think of it in the following manner, if you were not being ‘tested’ or challenged, you would most likely not be growing and experiencing shifts in your perception. Having said that, it is in these moments of frustration that we sometimes wonder why we can’t just finish ‘it’, that is to say the whole process we are engaged with, all in one swift go.

We can think back to the times when we were children and had to remove a plaster from a sore we had placed it over while it healed in order to draw a parallel. Briefly thinking back to these moments in our lives, placing the plaster over the wound did serve a purpose, as it gave it time to heal without being exposed to the environment and therefore reduced the risk of it becoming infected. Eventually though the moment arrived for us to remove the plaster, at which point we would have had two clear options to choose from. Either we could remove the plaster quickly in one clean motion, or we could remove the plaster in stages, which would take longer and be less painful but arrive at the same final result.

We can clearly see by this short description that there were advantages and disadvantages to each of these different approaches in arriving at what was essentially the same final outcome. In the case where we ripped the plaster off immediately, the total amount of pain we felt was greater but over a shorter period of time. Positively, even though this pain was likely greater, it was over almost immediately and did not linger. In the case where we removed the plaster in stages, the ‘total’ amount of pain felt would have been less because we could try to be more careful about how we did it, however this lower ‘quantity’ of pain would have then been distributed over a longer period of time. Depending on a number of different variables, each individual would choose one of the two different approaches depending on the specific circumstances surrounding the event.

Using this example as an aid to help us understand the topic of discussion in this article, we can come to view the process of our personal development and the variety of different ‘tests’ and challenges that we are faced with as a result of us engaging with this process in a similar manner to the process of us healing a wound and eventually taking the plaster off. For many of us though, we often get frustrated with the process because the variety of lessons and tests we pass through seem to be extended over an unnecessarily long period of time. It is at these moments that we reach some peak level of frustration which becomes directed towards this process, that results in us wanting to ‘be done’ with the process, ripping it off in one go like the plaster if we could. 

For some reason though, no matter how hard we want to do this or even try to achieve this, somehow trying to accelerate the process by rushing and forcing it just doesn’t not seem to be possible. The only way we can truly accelerate the process is by engaging with it in an increasingly conscious manner, but completely bypassing it by rushing it or ‘completing it instantly’ is just not possible. There are a number of reasons for this, the comprehension of which helps us to understand the very nature of the process better, which is why looking at them becomes particularly relevant to our own self development. It is as if Life is insistent on delivering these lessons to us in stages in order for us to even be engaged with the process. These stages may be so incrementally small that it even appears as if, instead of us making progress with the process, we are simply repeating the same lessons over and over again, which is partly why we become frustrated. 

In this article we will look at the staged nature of the process in more detail in order to understand why this may be the case and also understand its purpose and function. It is understanding the nature of this process that helps us also come to understand the reason why it interacts with us in the way that it does. Looking at this aspect of the process helps us to shift our conscious perception’s even further. Therefore, becoming aware of what is being discussed in this article will help to, at least to a certain degree, dissipate any frustration we may feel arising within us during these protracted stages which is, in many cases, one of the limiting factors hindering us from completing that particular ‘lesson’ or ‘test’. This is because the rising frustration within the individual results in a desire arising within them to speed things up and finish, which in turn results in the conscious perception of the individual becoming blocked to a certain degree. They then struggle to make the most appropriate decisions and actions, which in turn results in them experiencing a severe slow down with their progress.

In order to look at this topic, we will also have to look at the concept of cycles; coming to perceive what some of the fundamental characteristics of any cycle are. We will then briefly look at a certain sense of anticipation that becomes apparent to us when these cycles are coming to an end and offer some fairly simple explanations as to why this phenomenon exists. We will look in some detail at the very important notion that every ending of a cycle concurrently marks the beginning of a new cycle. We also then look at the concept of a ‘test’ and come to view this phenomenon within the context of the consciousness framework that we are developing in these articles. Finally, we will look at a number of different practical examples of these ‘staged’ tests, imagining also what they would like if they did not have any stages to them, so that the purpose and function of the stages can become more apparent to us.

Cycles & Anticipation 

The concept of cycles has already been looked at and discussed in greater dept in some other articles published here, including being looked at in its entirety within the Unified Consciousness Framework. Therefore less time will be spent outlining the key principles that lie at the foundation of this concept, because they can already be found elsewhere. Instead, more time will be spent looking at the aspects of this concept which are particularly relevant to our discussion here about staged testing. It is hoped that by doing this, we can arrive at an understanding of cycles generally, which relates directly to our discussion in a more concise format, even though there may be some minor gaps left in that understanding.