Discovering Your Life Purpose: A How To Guide

Sally Rice is a professionally certified psychic medium and founder of Agape Costa Rica. In this article Sally shares her Buddha Walk: “I went from living in Los Angeles, working 12-15 hours a day for 26 years as costume designer in the motion picture industry, to abandoning everything and moving to the remote jungle of Costa Rica. In the jungle I awakened to my divine life purpose. It was this Spirit Journey that taught me the (other) golden rule. Everything happens for a reason.”

What causes spiritual awakening? How do we, as sentient beings, discover our true life purpose?

When the vision of our future is clouded and distorted by fear, worry and doubt, where do we turn? These questions are central to anyone in spiritual transition. The experience often feels like a cosmic crisis, and typically the result is a complete makeover of your life path as you discover a new way of Living, and a new way of Being. These themes were central in my world when I was moved by Spirit to abandon the life I was leading in Los Angeles, California, working in a rat race towards a future I no longer supported. Almost overnight, in a classic cosmic earthquake, I abandoned my life, and career in Southern California, moved to the jungle of Central America, and founded Agape Costa Rica.

This was back in 2011, just before the 2012 Mayan Calendar event that launched us into a new era on Gaia.

It’s an overused cliche: Everything Happens for a Reason. Yes, indeed, Cause and Effect, Soul Contracts, Karma, and Divine Life Purpose are all real. And this inherently implies there is order to the chaos called Life. More importantly, these systems of cosmic reason are run by a sophisticated, highly intelligent force that is indeed omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. Regardless of all the man made religions that regularly portray the Source as an anthropomorphic male deity with an anger management problem, this Divine Spirit Energy is perfect in nature, and this Force governs everything. Therefore, you can say with confidence: There is a Reason for Everything.

I didn’t feel that way back in 2011. I was overwhelmed, and in a state of shock because I was literally watching my entire world – the one I’d created – collapse with a vengeance. A series of events which included the suspicious death of my sister, the real estate crash, and other untimely disruptions forced me to change my life path towards an unknown future. Trusting Spirit would support me, I extended my arms wide open in humility and confusion, to literally free fall off the proverbial cliff hoping that I would land safely in a soothing pool of warm healing water. I had no idea where I was going, nor what I was going to do when I got there. This was an act of blind faith my friend. Blind Faith.

The Discovery of the Agape Spiritual Center, and how Agape Costa Rica was Born

To fully understand how my Life Purpose was officially revealed to me by Spirit, I need to go back to 2008, where the first seed of awakening was planted. Living in Los Angeles, I was a neighbor to the Agape Spiritual Center, then centered in Culver City. Under the spiritual leadership of Reverend Michael Beckwith, I first attended a service around Thanksgiving, and in that moment an integral part of my spirit shifted, and I was never the same.

Listening to Rev. Michael deliver his message, while his lovely wife Rickey Byers Beckwith, director of the Agape Spiritual Choir, sang to us with her velvety tones, I fell in love. I fell in peace. I fell into Spirit. It was transformational. The funny part was that it all felt so familiar, and a part of me felt like Rev. Michael had peeked into my heart and soul, and everything he was saying was directed specifically to me, in this journey of awakening.

While I was born a psychic medium, my spiritual practice and comprehension of the Great Mystery was fragmented in my youth. While I believed in God, the Spirit, the Force (whatever logo you choose), I was not centered in my foundation of truth, and I was, let’s face it, not fully awake. Ego was still the dominant driver of my earth vehicle. But slowly, after time, the messages from the Agape Spiritual Center washed away the parts of me that didn’t serve anymore, and through the ‘New Thought, Ancient Wisdom’ teachings provided by Michael Beckwith, I was transformed.

I began watching the live-streaming option from the Agape Spiritual Center website, and I couldn’t get enough. I was compelled to re-examine all the choices in my life regarding lifestyle, relationships, spiritual standards and basic boundaries. Suddenly, almost overnight, my whole world changed because I allowed it to, I let a new life energy force flow in. Instantly, there was a transformation in my value system.

I remember one of my very last film industry jobs, when “the awakening” was in full swing. It was potentially not pretty, but fortunately I’m a relatively decent person so I held in the reins on an action I would have certainly regretted had I followed through with the thought. It went down like this:

I was hired as costume designer for a Wells Fargo Bank campaign. This meant I was fully responsible for the wardrobe of all the actors portraying bank tellers and customers – everyone in the commercials. This was the time when all the banks got in trouble for doing what they do. The great crash of 2009 had happened and I felt in conflict supporting an institution I no longer believed in.

That’s when it hit me. My moral compass had shifted. In that exact moment, while filming a bank commercial, I realized I was contributing to a corporation whose values I didn’t support. I thought of the fast food commercials I’d done over the years: McDonalds, Burger King, Jack in the Box, thousands of them. The idea that I was actually helping these types of corporations disturbed my conscience, profoundly. I could no longer justify my participation in this career, despite the great money it delivered. The shift had happened.

In flash second, I decided to bail on my career. I literally Woke Up! The old paradigm, my entire belief system, crumbled, like a sledge hammer hitting a glass wall. I had no recourse but to abandon everything I was doing. The idea of spending 5 hours in rush hour traffic daily to travel to and from locations now seemed absurd. In fact, most things I was doing – including spending stupid money on designer shoes and a host of other behaviors – seemed absurd. I woke up. And you want to know something crazy about waking up? Once you wake up, you can never fall back asleep; It’s permanent.

Making the Move, and discovering Agape Costa Rica

A few days later I was hanging out with my daughter Sarah in her apartment in Long Beach, California. It was a gorgeous day and we’d just come from the beach. Sarah was an MTV reality star who had recently filmed a season of The Challenge in Central America. “You know mom, you should really check out Costa Rica. I think you’d love it. I bet you love it so much you’ll want to retire there.”

I didn’t tell my daughter about the Wake Up Call. I didn’t tell anyone. Everyone would think I was nuts. Who would leave that career? Who would leave that paycheck, that lifestyle, the perks of working in the movie industry? Nobody would do that, except me. I had no idea what I was going to do, or how I would pay my bills. But in that moment, coming in from the beach, and thanks to Sarah’s suggestion, I bought a ticket to Costa Rica.

With nothing more than a small backpack with 4 changes of clothing, I flew to the jungle and without much effort, a new life emerged. It was glorious in every way. Miracles happened. Serendipity happened and a new future burst open like a bouquet of flowers opening on a spring day. I don’t need to go into all the details here, but know that within one week of landing in the Blue Zone, I fell in love with the country, the people, and the energy of the jungle.

I will only share the first miracle because it was so profound and real. I had only been in the country for a week. I was walking down a dirt road, just outside of Montezuma, the southern tip of the Nicoya Peninsula. Minding my own business but fantasizing about the future, I heard a voice, like a Spirit guide. He said a clear as can be: “You are not leaving here. You have to stay here. You have work here. Stay.”

And so it was. I stayed. I never returned to the USA, except to sell all my belongings, a year later. It was miraculous how everything fell into place. Within a few months all three of my children came to visit and one of my sons actually moved to Costa Rica too. Together we founded Rock Climbing Costa Rica, and we began leading climbing tours. It was easy as pie to start over again, to reinvent my life and my career.

After two years my son returned to the US to finish his degree in engineering, and I fell into my true life path, providing psychic readings and spiritual healings – something I’d done behind closed doors my entire life, but never considered doing professionally. It was a birthday gift, something I’d taken for granted for so many years but never pursued. Suddenly, there wasn’t anything I could do to stop this career from growing by leaps and bounds.

Given the strong spiritual foundation I’d received from Rev. Michael at the Agape Spiritual Center, I chose to name my business Agape Costa Rica. Agape, a Greek word meaning unconditional love, it was an obvious choice. I did feel unconditional love for Costa Rica, my new home in the Blue Zone.

It’s now been seven years since I heard the voice calling me to my true divine Life Purpose, awakening me to the understanding that the reason we are here is to share our true gifts and talents with the world. You have your gifts! Each one of us is bestowed with special gifts and talents, and Spirit gave them not to selfishly hold secret, but to share. Just share what you know. That’s all there is to it. Just share.

Agape Costa Rica motto: Follow Your Heart and Your Dreams Will Come True