Spirituality

The Be Connected Ecosystem of Support includes ten different Areas of Focus for service members, veterans and their families. The ten areas of focus include Basic Needs, Employment, Family & Social Supports, Finances & Benefits, Higher Education, Housing & Homelessness, Legal, Mental Health & Substance Abuse, Physical Health and Spirituality.

Promoting the sense of connectedness, faith and thoughts that provide reassurance, hope and a system of beliefs and values.

Sometimes life, a tragedy, or adversity can wear down your hope and test faith, leaving you feeling vulnerable. As a result, struggling with one’s faith can be normal; it’s part of growing. It’s also normal to have questions about faith and God. However, as long as there’s a seed of belief in you, you can reconnect to your spirituality and renew your mind. 

 

Spirituality is a broad concept with room for many perspectives. There are plenty of spirituality examples where people experience and express their spirituality for different reasons and ways. Some common ways to increase spiritual connection are as follows:

  • Prayer can be a first step toward developing your spirituality and practicing your faith. However, becoming more spiritual means accepting waiting, finding ways to listen patiently and accepting that sometimes the answer to prayers is not immediate.
  • We can practice our spirituality by the discipline of showing up. Presence is how we indicate our priority to give our attention to something or someone. For most religions, the dominant practice of spirituality typically means attending a weekly service in a place of worship. For others, it may also mean dedicating time to learn more about their faith or religion by reading scripture or attending classes and workshops.
  • Be generous with your time and talents. First, take stock of the things you’re good at doing and the things that bring you joy. Then, find reasons to do them more, not only for your well-being but because they might be soothing or helpful to others. 
  • Find ways to serve others. Volunteering can directly connect you with someone in need to offer yourself in service to others. For example, you can talk to your local church or research the needs of your particular community.

Spirituality FAQs

  • Explore who you are and what satisfies you.
  • Be positive and mindful.
  • Talk to others with the same identity or in the situation as you. Support from others is key in well-being, and you feel less alone.
  • Activities like yoga and meditation are beneficial in releasing any stress caused by spirituality and help clear the mind in terms of accepting or knowing what you want.
  • Do research. Is this something you want? Something you truly believe in? Something you can embrace? If not, then maybe it’s not right for you.
Be on the lookout for those who try to turn your faith against you. Law enforcement officials call them affinity frauds as they target victims through a common bond, most often religion. The best defense is knowledge. Check out everything, no matter how trustworthy the person brings the investment opportunity, deal, charity donation request, etc. Never make an investment based solely on the recommendation of a member of an organization or religious group to which you belong. Some other tips include:
  • Do not fall for investments that promise guaranteed profits and returns. If an investment seems too good to be true, then it probably is.
  • Be cautious of any investment that is said to have no risks; very few investments are risk-free. The greater the potential return from an investment, the greater the risk of losing the original capital.
  • Be skeptical of any investment opportunity that is not in writing.
  • Don’t be pressured or rushed into buying an investment before you have a chance to think about or investigate the opportunity, especially those that are pitched as “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunities.
Reassure them that there’s no limit to their spiritual well-being. It’s ok to struggle, ask questions, study more, seek advice and counsel from spiritual leaders and advisers. Let them know everything will happen in time, and the best thing you can do is listen, be their support when needed, and offer resources and connection points.
Therapy attempts to reframe both the way we think about and understand our behavioral patterns. It can teach a person to transform critical or catastrophic thinking patterns into rational ways of thinking. Therapy can also teach grounding skills, coping skills and help develop a crisis plan. Engage in self-care. Mental, physical, and spiritual self-care is a critical component if you want to manage your anxiety without medication. Mental self-care can include breathing exercises or journaling. Physical self-care involves any exercise. Spiritual self-care includes time on prayer, worship attendance, or the study of scripture. Massage can be a great way to help reduce tension and anxiety though it will not solve the underlying problem(s) causing the anxiety. Usually, people complain of tight muscles and tension dealing with anxiety. A massage can be a great way to get physical relief, even though temporary. Exercise can help modulate stress responses. It’s no secret that the mind and body are connected, so as we bring our bodies back into shape, it can also profoundly affect our thinking and emotions.
With something as personal as spirituality, you want it to be meaningful to you. While respecting other people’s beliefs and practices is important, don’t feel like you’ve got to follow them yourself if they’re not right for you. Here are some ways to express spirituality:
  • Think about how you see yourself concerning your friends, your family and your world.
  • Identify what’s important to you. Think about the sorts of changes you’d like to see in yourself.
  • Try to describe your ‘authentic’ or ‘true’ self. Then, think about the values you want to live by each day.
  • Take time each day to connect with your natural environment: walk your dog in a place that you find beautiful; listen to nature sounds, hike, or go for a bike ride.
  • Meditate or do yoga, at home or in a class, to focus on the connection between your body, mind and soul.
  • Read books about alternative ways of finding spirituality in your life.

Many resources in the state of Arizona offer help, including community, government and military benefits. However, these systems can be complex and overwhelming to work through, especially when seeking a resolution to an immediate need.  Be Connected uses a resource matching tool to help find the right information and resources that best fit your situation. Please call 866-429-8387 for additional assistance.

 

Click to view our PDF for more information on how you can help provide Basic Needs to Arizona’s service members, veterans and their families!

Click here to view the other 10 Areas of Focus Be Connected can help with!

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Be Connected and ConnectVeterans.org are provided in partnership by:

Special thanks to the Governor’s Office of Youth, Faith and Family for their partnership and support.

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