What Is A Messenger Or Channel, Anyway?

Spiritual channeling is a practice where an individual acts as a conduit—a "channel"—for higher consciousness wisdom and healing energy that comes from Spirit or Source. The channel, messenger, or vessel allows the energy from Spirit or Source to flow through them, which can then be expressed most commonly through speech, writing, or energy work. The purpose of channeling is typically to receive guidance, healing, wisdom, or insights that can benefit individuals or humanity, offering perspectives beyond ordinary human perception and capability.

There are many assumptions made about channeling, yet we all act as channels to some capacity in our everyday lives. A channel possesses the ability to use their "sixth sense" to hear, see, feel, or know "beings" or energy, whether they are in our present reality or "across the veil" in another dimension. A medium, for instance, who can access a deceased loved one, is a channel. They are simply channeling the realm of deceased loved ones, reaching beyond our physical plane of existence. When someone identifies as a "channel" rather than a medium, it typically implies they are channeling different realms than deceased loved ones—such as angels, spirit guides, ascended masters, or even beings from other planets.

Every time you hear your own inner thoughts, you too are channeling. Sometimes, you channel lower consciousness thoughts stemming from your wounded inner child, like, "No one likes me, I am so stupid!" Other times, you channel higher consciousness thoughts, such as, "Though I need this job, I know from this interview that it's not the right fit for me." We are guided by our inner thoughts constantly. Some people call these thoughts intuition, guidance, or messages from "God." Whatever your label, you are channeling these different aspects of your being every moment of your life. We just haven't thought to dissect who we are hearing in our own head when those thoughts appear; we simply accept them as part of ourselves and move on.

The only difference for a professional medium or channel is their ability to also hear, see, feel, or know other beings in our Universe—such as deceased people, angels, and guides around us. Instead of only perceiving the internal aspects of their own being, they can also perceive external beings that are part of our world and universe.

Consider this: How many times have you walked into a room and, without anyone saying a word, felt the energy? Perhaps it felt angry, toxic, or "heavy." How did you do that? Your intuition helped you to "channel" the feelings and energy in the room.

And how many stories have you heard from people you trust about receiving strong guidance in their head—guidance that felt like it came from a guardian angel in times of trouble? Or feeling someone "shaking them awake" as they fell asleep at the wheel, yet no one else was in the car? (This second example actually happened to Maureen when she was 17!)

We have guides and angels all around us, all the time. We are not on this journey alone. Since this "game of life" operates on free will, external guidance often requires us to ask for it, unless we are in real danger where a guide or angel might be permitted to intervene. Religious individuals might pray to "God" for guidance. Atheists might go within to their "higher intuition." Neither approach is wrong. As long as you are connecting to a consciousness that is higher than yourself, and the guidance you receive is logical, grounded, and proves to be legitimate, does it truly matter how you label it or where it comes from?

If following either external or internal guidance improves your life and leads to a better understanding of who you are and why you are here, that guidance is undeniably worth heeding, isn't it?