Inner Prizes Blog

Connecting Our Inner Worlds to Experience A Greater Outer World....

waking up

I Don’t Have Any Gifts

When people are new on their path to awakening, I hear many of them say, “I don’t have any gifts” or “I can’t do what you can.” Or some other variation of those statements.

We ALL have gifts. And that means you.  Every single one of us on this planet. We are born with an innate sense of intuition because that is our connection to our Higher Self and to the Divine. It’s how we communicate with the Divine and know things. If you think you don’t have it, let me reassure you that you do. It’s just a matter of knowing how you receive your information, then recognizing it, then trusting it, then using it.

It may seem like some of us are more intuitive or gifted than others, especially millenials and younger. Many of you born after about 1980 came here more plugged in, have a stronger sense of intuition, gifts may have come in at a younger age. That’s intentional. As the planet is ascending, those of us born pre-1980 were building and holding the energy for the higher vibrational souls to come in. That doesn’t mean those of you born before 1980 are less gifted or less intuitive or that those born after are more gifted. It means those born after 1980 have been born into a higher energy planet thanks to those of us who laid the foundation. As such, the increased energy supports them for their gifts to come in earlier. It’s part of the plan for humanity to wake up.

In addition to intuition, which we all have, other gifts such as sensing and feeling energy, seeing purple angels or any number of other “cool” things, talking to the deceased, seeing auras, channeling beings etc, are specific to the individual. Talking to the deceased is called mediumship. Many people can do it. What differs is how they do it, that makes them unique. Channeling beings is the same thing – many people can do it, but which being they channel and how they do it makes them unique.

To confirm for yourself that you have other gifts, it’s just a matter of knowing which gift you have and how to use it. How you identify your gift is a longer explanation, but basically be aware. Start noticing what you think you may be able to do. Take classes that interest you. Watch youtube videos. There are no coincidences so good chance what you are interested in is indicative of a gift you may have. Follow that inclination.

Most importantly though, please refrain from saying you don’t have any gifts, you want more gifts, you can’t do what someone else does etc. The reason I implore you to stop saying these things goes back to law of attraction. We manifest with our thoughts. What you think and say can manifest because thought directs energy and energy follows thought. So be very careful what you say and think.

The more you say you don’t have gifts, guess what’s going to happen? The longer it will take for them to come in. The more you notice you don’t have what she has, guess what will happen? The longer it will take for you to discover what gifts you do have.

Remember my story on willingness? I was willing to be open to receive my gifts, but I was noticing I didn’t have any (rather, I thought I didn’t have any, we all have them) and I was comparing myself to others whose gifts were apparent. Therefore, I blocked the opening of my gifts then. In that blog post I said it wasn’t my time. That’s true. It wasn’t my time to receive them because I was blocking them. And because I was blocking them, it wasn’t my time to receive them. Was it part of my bigger plan, written in my records, that my gifts wouldn’t be noticeable to me until whatever year it was vs 1990-something when I was blocking them?  Probably, just so I could learn that lesson and one day figure it out and share it with you. 😊

The moral of that story is even if you are blocking your gifts from coming in right now by noticing and talking about the fact that they aren’t here may be part of your journey. That’s probably not the answer you want to hear, just like I didn’t want to hear it all those years ago. Like one of my favorite sayings, “It is what it is.” It will happen when it’s time. You control the timing. When you stop noticing they aren’t here, stop thinking about it, stop talking about it, stop talking about thinking about it, they will come in. And then it IS time.

Trust that your time is coming. You were born with your gifts, they just aren’t noticeable to you – yet.

If you are not sure what your gifts are, feel free to contact me so we can have a discussion about it.

Namaste, Catherine Cates

What Waking Up is Not

There are a lot of misperceptions about waking up and many different definitions of ascension. One thing I think many of us can agree on is what waking up is not. I bring this up because I had these questions when I started on my path to awakening. If I’m questioning these things, I’m betting others are too. Let me share with you what I know and learned.

Being awake or conscious does not mean you have a lot of knowledge about the universe, manifesting, psychic phenomena etc. It can mean you have that knowledge, but it does not have to mean that. Just because a person knows a lot about spiritual topics does not mean they are awake. The reason I tell you this is so you are not misled by someone who knows a lot of stuff. That’s great they know a lot of stuff and can probably educate you on a wide variety of topics. But it doesn’t necessarily mean they are awake. If you want to learn to be awake, learn it from someone who is more advanced on the path to awakening than you, not necessarily someone who has more knowledge than you. There’s a difference. People can wow you with fluff, but it may be just that – fluff.

Just because a person is a really good psychic or an awesome healer or a really cool whatever doesn’t mean they are awake. A lot of people get stuck on this. It can definitely mean that, but it doesn’t have to. There are plenty of good healers, psychics, hypnotists, mediums etc out there who are not awake. That doesn’t mean they aren’t good at what they do. It just means they may not be fully conscious. If they are bragging about how good they are, then there’s your first clue they aren’t fully awake. Awake people don’t brag because they have no need to. And conversely, just because someone is awake does not mean they are drawn to be a psychic, healer, medium, channeler etc. They might be doing some other profession entirely.

If someone is negative, a gossiper, complains, brags, shames, judges, compares etc, even just a little, that’s a no-brainer they are not awake. Awake people no longer engage in those behaviors. That is not a judgment, just a fact. You can sniff that one out pretty quickly. The definition of being awake is the opposite of those things.

Taking yoga, tai chi, chi gong or other meditative types of exercise does not mean someone is awake or even on their path. It just might mean they like that type of exercise, period. When people start to wake up they tend to gravitate towards those practices because they usually promote stillness, quieting the mind and breathing, but it does not mean everyone in the class is waking up. Sometimes these exercises can become trendy and then everyone and their brother along with their whiny kids are in those classes. Use discernment to know who might be on their path and who isn’t, including the teacher. Certain teachers may annoy you because they clearly are not very awake. If that’s the case, move on, find another class.

Therapists, coaches, counselors, mentors etc also may not be on their journey of awakening. Because of the nature of their business they are typically more aware than most people but they may not know what consciousness or ascension means in spiritual terms. They may be really good at what they do, but they may not know much about what we’re talking about here. That doesn’t mean you can’t work with them, unless you want someone who has knowledge on awakening.

Some people can become spiritual junkies. They are learning and learning and learning but never apply any of it. I’ve seen it happen and you may have too. No judgment, just an observation. Just be aware if you don’t want to get caught in that loop. Real knowledge is in applying it.

Other people like to talk about all the cool stuff they get in visions or hear statues talking to them or whatever. Don’t be dazzled by it and think they are “all that” and you are not. It depends on the context they are sharing with you, of course, but some people tell you so they can feel better about themselves, how special they are, how awesome their gifts are.  Just know you will get some cool gifts too if you haven’t already, but your gifts will be different because everyone’s are unique to them.

Positive people. We all like to be around them. Just because someone appears to be (notice I used the word “appears”) positive, upbeat, sunny, smiley, you name it, doesn’t mean they are awake either. The reason I say appears to be is because some people put on a really good front but when they are alone or at home they are not the same upbeat person. Or they could be putting on a really good mask but in fact are in a lot of pain or denial. Or they truly are positive, but that doesn’t equate to awake. It’s a really good start because they have probably let go of a lot of the “negative” behaviors many of us take years to release. But it doesn’t necessarily mean awake. Again, use discernment because you’d have to know the person deeper to see for sure. If nothing else, they’re probably fun to be around.

I hope this clears up what may have been confusing you. Part of waking up is using your own intuition, your own knowing. The better you get at that, the more you’ll see these things for what they are. Everyone is on a journey. Those that exhibit the behaviors above are not bad people. They’re learning too. I wish you all the best on your journey.

If you want to work on your journey or just need help on your path, that’s what I do. I help people wake up to lead a more fulfilling life as well as do psychic readings. Click here for information on my coaching programs.

In Light,

Catherine Cates

It’s Not About Your Gifts – or is It?

A lot of people come to me because their gifts are coming in and they don’t know what to do with them or why they’re coming in. Oftentimes our gifts or spiritual abilities come in as we awaken because we are more open to receiving them. But that isn’t always true. There are plenty of people who are not awake who have gifts. Why theirs came in and others take so long to get them, I can’t say as it’s unique to each individual.

If yours aren’t coming in yet or are just now coming in it may be because you weren’t ready to receive them earlier. Maybe you had doubts around them. Maybe it scared you. Maybe you were afraid of being judged. Only you can know that answer.

Many of us (especially those of us who are older than millennials) had gifts when we were children but we shut them down. More than likely it was fear, but not knowing the circumstances for each person, I can’t say for sure. When I was a child, I think I saw things, spirits, energy, but it’s such a vague memory I can’t be quite sure, yet on some level I know it was true. In any case, I believe I shut it down out of fear. Many other people have told me that story so it’s a common theme. As you grow into adulthood and get on your path to awakening you are more receptive to your abilities again so they will return. Mine did.

There’s a lot of misperceptions around waking up. One is that if you have more gifts, or any at all, then you are more awake than someone else. That is not necessarily true. It can be true, but it can also not be true. I’ve seen it many times. All it really means is you have abilities and maybe more abilities than someone else. That doesn’t make you better. I’ve seen a lot of people get into their ego about having their gifts. I’ve seen them talk about their gifts to others who don’t have gifts (or think they don’t) to impress these wide-eyed people. That’s called being in your ego. The ego is something we let go of as we awaken.

There are people I know that are more awake than the average person on their path and even they aren’t loaded with gifts. There are plenty they don’t have. They have their share. They have enough. They have what they need. They are content with what they have.

Why do we get gifts or abilities as we wake up?

As I said earlier there are plenty of people who have gifts who are not awake. Why, I can’t say because I don’t know their situation. For most of us who are on a path to awakening our gifts come in because now we are open to receiving them whereas before we might have blocked them for various (usually subconscious) reasons.

Part of waking up or ascending is getting re-connected to the Divine. I say re-connected to because when we are born the veil comes down and we lose our memories of who we really are and our Divine connection. (Yes, today some children are being born with those memories, but most of us who are adults now did not.)  In the process of waking up we remember we are connected to the Divine. Part of being connected to the Divine is having spiritual gifts because the Divine is a combination of all of the gifts.

How does the Divine communicate with us? Through our intuition or knowing. Therefore, our intuition strengthens as we wake up. That’s why many people all of the sudden become psychic. Or realize they have psychic abilities. Intuition is everyone’s main gift. We all have intuition, just some of us aren’t aware of it. Intuition is how we communicate with the Divine and our Higher or True Self, which is the super-conscious part of ourselves.

We may have other abilities such as being able to communicate with those that have crossed over (mediumship), working with deceased who are trapped and can’t cross over, psychometry, channeling, energy worker (which has many forms) etc.  All of these gifts are forms of communicating with the Divine in some way. The Divine is in all of us. We are all Divine. As we wake up, we remember that.

Celebrate your gifts, be thankful for them, use them to benefit yourself and others. Try not to let them scare you if they do because there’s nothing to be scared of. It is just your connection to the Divine strengthening. It’s a beautiful thing.

It’s not about your gifts per se, it’s about celebrating you and your connection to the Divine.

If your gifts are coming in or you are scared of your gifts and you’d like to discuss them, feel free to reach out to me. Understanding, learning how to use your gifts and become comfortable with them is something I help people with. I have seen so many people blossom when they accept and use their gifts.