Now there's a provocative question, and one which has been argued for millennia. Can you have spirituality without religion, or vice versa?

My own feeling is that religion acts for some people as a framework for their spirituality, ​a pattern or structure. One is not dependent on the other - one can be spiritual without needing or wanting the framework. And one is not wrong and the other right.

I know deeply spiritual people who choose a very structured spirituality, with strictly observed rituals and often, dogma. And I know deeply religious people who do not require much of the structure, but enjoy the rituals associated with their chosen religion.

I often wonder about those who strictly follow a particular religion because it's "what they do." I used to work with a woman whose church was undergoing major upheaval in their doctrine. One day she told me that "now we believe this instead of that." I never understood that - she was told what to believe by an outside authority, rather than by her own relationship with the God of her choice.

In my own spiritual life, I am deeply spiritual, with a very deep relationship with my God and Spirit, with no interest in ritual or structure. I follow my own path, appreciating and understanding aspects of several faiths. I remember that same woman once questioning me about that, saying, "You can't just pick and choose what to believe." I beg to differ!

Whatever beliefs or tenets you follow, or you don't follow, I encourage you to think and explore for yourself, for what feels right to you. The God-In-You knows what is best for you.

You probably know by now that I reinvented myself when a layoff in 2009 "forced" me to change my goals. You know when your GPS says "rerouting"? Well, that was me. And in the process of the journey I've met so many wonderful heart-based entrepreneurs who had the same issue.

Think about it - when you start out on a journey, you can set your GPS to your destination, but you won't get anywhere until the device determines your present location.  And if you miss or ignore the instructions it gives you, you may end up in Poughkeepsie when you were aiming for Cleveland!

So I find it important to know my setpoints - where I am now and where I want to go. Once my spiritual GPS is set, I pay close attention while "driving" (living my life) so that I don't miss any of the "turn here" moments that Spirit provides me. That's when I've had the most success in my life and business. Co-creating with Spirit, with my goals and desires as the framework.

How do you negotiate life's turns? Are you good at following direction or do you sometimes decide to go another way? Comment below!

The name of the “supreme being” has been debated, fought over, written about and whispered for millennia. Having a Judeo-Christian foundation, I have chosen to use “God” as the term for the Creator. In the context of my life, the label does not matter – the concept is the important part.  Whether you use the term universal consciousness, Allah, Almighty, Higher Power, Goddess or any other name you choose, the foundation of enlightened teaching is that a universal energy, a real force, exists.  It is the energy with which you co-create, with which you co-exist, and within which you co-exist.  This God-energy is not Michelangelo’s old man in heaven, nor a vengeful judging dictator who will smite you down, nor a benevolent grandfather, but instead an all-pervasive energy of love.  And when we learn how to tap in and live in that love-force, our lives will change forever.  I know – mine did!