Tips for a successful mediumship reading

I was in Lily Dale, NY, recently — home to a Spiritualist community of mediums — to take care of some mediumship business, catch up with old friends and relax.

If you don’t know about Lily Dale, basically, during the season from Memorial Day to Labor Day, the town opens up to anyone seeking connection with Spirit and friends and loved ones on the other side of life. You pay an entrance fee at the gate and can then wander around the town, sign up for readings with a medium (for an additional fee) and attend free message and healing services.

Two of these daily services are held at Inspiration Stump in the middle of an old growth forest. Mediums used to actually climb up on the stump to give readings, to be above the gathered crowd so their voice would carry. These days, the stump is encased in cement, which is now cracking, so it’s fenced off and us mediums just stand in front of it with a hand held mic.

I pulled into Lily Dale on a Sunday afternoon, checked into my room at Jan and Jay’s Lakeside Guest House and headed over to the stump to serve Spirit. Standing in front of the crowd of folks eager to receive messages, I was overwhelmed with their need and desire to be chosen to hear from loved ones. I could only give Spirit greetings to three people out of dozens — how does a medium choose where to go?

Sometimes we go with whoever is loudest in Spirit. Whoever is jumping around behind their loved one, essentially shouting, “Over here! Over here!” like an overeager student in school who knows the answer.

In any case, I go where I’m lead. I figure that I’m drawn to the people I’m supposed to give messages to and can only ask for the highest good and do my best. What really helps in message work is if the people I’m reading also do the same.

So here are some tips for receiving a good message, whether in person, over the phone or in a crowd:

1. Be in a good mood (or the best mood you can be at the time). Good energy attracts more good energy.

2. Don’t drink alcohol or take mind-altering drugs.

3. Be positive. Approach the reading with optimism and belief. I can read for complete skeptics, but I prefer not to.

4. Be relaxed. It will help the connection with Spirit and help you understand who is coming through. Sometimes people will have a blank stare as I describe a loved one and it’s not until the person next to them elbows them and says, “That’s Uncle Murray!” do they make the connection. We call it psychic amnesia.

5. Have appropriate expectations. Don’t make deals with your loved ones in Spirit that if they say a certain thing you’ll know it’s really them. You’ll miss out on all the other evidential information that shows it’s them. As a medium, my job is to connect with the folks in Spirit who want to communicate with you. I don’t control what they say or, sometimes, who even shows up.

6. Take notes. It’s hard to remember everything when you’re getting a reading. Some things won’t make sense at the time but will later on.

7. Enjoy your reading. A good reading should feel like a conversation with loved ones that you don’t want to end. Participate in your reading. Ask questions. You should feel comfortable during the reading and, most of all, feel the abundant love from Spirit that is here for you.