#178 Gwenda Smith: Mediumship and Spiritual Connections
Johnny Burke: Welcome to Closer to Venus. I’m Johnny Burke, and today’s guest is Gwenda Smith. She is a healer, a medium, and a channel, and she’s internationally recognized and registered in spiritual mentorship. Her work involves guiding others on how to be in divine union so they can know life’s purpose as well as what happens when they die. Gwenda, welcome to the program.
Gwenda Smith: Hi, Johnny. Thank you very much. It’s great to be here.
Johnny Burke: What does it mean to be registered in spiritual mentorship?
[Gwenda Smith: Well, these days a lot of people want that, famous piece of paper. And also when you achieve a certain level of something, you have a certificate. In this case, for the kind of work that I do and to have it really recognized in a more formal way I became a registered and recognized practitioner through the International Institute of Complementary Therapies, they gave me the title of spiritual mentorship. It’s for that recognition, so it’s not something that you’ve plucked out of the air or just decided that this is what I do.
Johnny Burke: Like you just decided that last week. I get it. And so you have been a seer since you’ve been four years old.
Gwenda Smith: Hmm. That’s my earliest memory.
Johnny Burke: What was that like? what kind of things did you see to begin with?
Gwenda Smith: What was it like then? My gosh, the only word that comes to mind is scary. As a 4-year-old, I had the classic sense of there being a monster under the bed. I was certain there was something under my bed that was frightening. I could remember running across my room and leaping. I got to a certain area of the room and leaped to my bed, and blankets just straight up over my head.
And I used to tell my parents a monster was under my bed. And when I was, gee, in my forties, my mom then announced that she used to see the same thing under her bed. And yet when I was a child, they were like, ‘there’s nothing there. There’s nothing there. ‘ So it was scary. And then I would see what I’ll call images of see-through people around family or out at the shops, and I didn’t know what they were. I didn’t know what I was looking at. This part of me didn’t know, but obviously, my soul part did.
Johnny Burke: So you were able to see spirits and things like that when you were young.
Gwenda Smith: very much so.
Johnny Burke: which is pretty common amongst mediums and, empaths. I hear that quite a bit. So how did you learn to actually harness this ability and make it work for you?
Gwenda Smith: That’s a great question because, to me, it seems to have naturally evolved and naturally grown as I have in this incarnation. It’s just come along as a normal part of my life. And when I started to hear them in a way that I could understand and know that they were bringing a message for someone nearby, I learned very quickly that it wasn’t really a good idea to share what they were saying. That didn’t win me many popularity votes. in fact, it caused me a lot of problems at school. So I learned just to be with them and not share it until I was 18 or 19.
And I met a lady who called herself a psychic, and she said to me, ‘Oh my gosh, you are going to be so powerful.” and I said. “In what way? Playing hockey? “And she said, no. because I used to play hockey at the time. And she said, “no, with your abilities, why aren’t you working with them? “And I said, “What do you mean?” And she told me that it wouldn’t matter where I was in the world, that I would always have this contact with spirit. So then I started to dedicate more time to actually talk to them, find out what they wanted and my encounters with angels. So it went from there.
And then my sister set me up for the first time that I would do what you would call readings for people. She invited me to her place, saying that she’d invited this fellow medium to come along and do readings for people. So I roll up and wait, waiting. No man appears that all these other people had arrived. And I said to her, “What time is he supposed to be here? “And she said, “Oh, he’s not. You are.” And that was it.
Johnny Burke: Talk about being put on the spot. So you mentioned messages a few moments ago. Now, this may have happened when you were younger or maybe was more towards your teen years, but what were some of the messages that you did receive, and what did they want?
Gwenda Smith: Most of the time, what they wanted, as they still do now, is for their loved ones to know where they are. That they are, okay. I know for people that sounds like, oh, what a cliche, you know, oh, they’re okay. They’re all right. But they really do say those words,’ let them know that I’m okay. Let them know that where I am is amazing.’ And of course, for those still in this world, especially if they’re not open to it, they’re like, well, how can it be amazing? so that’s typically their want. It’s really to help those that are still in this world to have more peace at their loss.
Then others have wanted things known about how they died, like a young man that was pushed off, a bridge here where I live. And he wanted it known that he did not jump. He did not fall. He was pushed. He showed me that he’d been attacked. He’d been in a fight with two other fellas, and he wanted his family to know that. So when they come through and they have really different messages, like that sort of thing. It’s tough, but it’s what I’ve been told a number of times, by spirit, this is your job. You need to do it.
Johnny Burke: Now, the person that was pushed off a bridge, the assailants? Were they ever caught?
Gwenda Smith: Yes, they were the only thing they were charged with was assault.
Johnny Burke: Your reading or your vision, did that help them be brought to justice, or was that someone else?
Gwenda Smith: What happens, and I really find this amazing is that spirit through, in this example, that young man, he will find someone he can connect with. In this case it was me, and he will show me what was done so I can see what took place. And through our combined power of thought, we can actually create the right kind of moves, if you like, from the police or the right kind of investigation for them, and even find perhaps what you might say the right officer, because some people, some police just find it very easy to sign a case off as well, this is what it was. They’re not really willing to go that little bit more where you will get someone else that goes, no, something’s not right about this. And they’ll keep looking.
So what Spirit does, and I love the world of spirit, the power is immense, but we have that power too. So when we can combine, then through that energy, I can call out that particular police officer if you like, to get them to take action on what they just know something’s not right and, they’ll persist.
Johnny Burke: It’s almost like you’re like a psychic detective.
Gwenda Smith: I have been
Johnny Burke: It’s not just seeing a vision; it’s actually using it for a good purpose.
Gwenda Smith: Yes. Always, always.
Johnny Burke: Definitely. So, you mentioned Angels a moment ago, angels, guides. Were most of the beings, the spirits that you were in touch with, were they in that realm? Or were they just like all over the place?
Gwenda Smith: Do you mean the soul of people that have passed were in that realm?
Johnny Burke: Everybody.
Gwenda Smith: Everybody.
Johnny Burke: Yeah.
Gwenda Smith: It is a little bit like minestrone soup. But no, not everybody is in that realm of, what I’m going to term as heaven. Because even spirit or the soul of people will refer to heaven and they call it amazing. But no, I’ve had encounters with other things, other beings, other entities that are not in that realm. Far from it. That’s why I say it’s a bit like Minestrone Soup, but the Angels and the guides are just incredible, absolutely incredible. The sensation that you get from them is nothing short of pure love, and it is intense. It’s amazing. Their energy is inexplainable. It’s simply divine.
It’s the best I can say about it.
Johnny Burke: And these encounters, are they visual as well? Like you can actually see what they look like?
Gwenda Smith: Oh, yes, yes. For me, I have the privilege, the humbling privilege of being able to see, hear, smell, sense, taste, even when it comes to spirit. So, yes.
Johnny Burke: There seems to be some overlap between star beings and angelic beings, and some speakers have actually told me angels are actually star beings.
Gwenda Smith: Mm, there are many different levels of angels. So maybe for some seers or some people that have interacted with them, they will come through in a way that sits well for that person. So they could say that they are a star being, which some people will also say, we are all star beings. Really, Johnny, I think that it is down to how people use language; what language is about. I have never had that kind of language used by the Angels or the guides, when I’ve interacted with them. But I am familiar with several different levels of angels. And then you have the masters that sit as well. So I think it’s more how other people use the language.
Johnny Burke: Besides the example you gave us about the man that was pushed off the bridge. What other experience with Spirit really kind of stands out?
[Gwenda Smith: So many, so many. I do love these two, actually. A gentleman came through one day when I was sitting in a house with a lady, and I’d explained that it needed to be only her and I home, no one else. So we were doing the session, and all of a sudden, it sounded like somebody had gotten in the pot cupboard in the kitchen and was throwing the pots everywhere. It was so loud, and in fact, it startled both of us. It broke my channel, so I looked at her and said, ” I thought we were the only ones in the house “and she was terrified and she said. “We are.” And I said, oh, okay. So let me just see what’s going on out there.
So I started to home in on the energy to go through the house, and this man appeared in the spirit in a beautiful emerald green, cardigan, old-fashioned cardigan. He had gorgeous brown pants on and polished shoes. And he stood in the doorway and said, “Oh, so you can actually see me.” And I said, “Yes, I can see you, and I can hear you. “And he said, “Well, what have I got on? “So I described what he was wearing, and he said, “Very good. So finally I have someone to talk to”, and he was really cranky. Because his son wasn’t doing the right thing with his will, and the other son wasn’t doing what he wanted with some of his belongings, and he wasn’t prepared to leave until that was known. And that was a really interesting encounter. The other one that stands out that I must share is my nephew, my nephew, Jack,
Johnny Burke: Right. You told me about him,
Gwenda Smith: Yeah. The encounter with Jack was very different. So Jack decided that he’d had enough in this world and couldn’t be here anymore, and this is only two years ago. He was 28. You would’ve thought he had everything to live for, but apparently not for him. So after he was gone, my sister said to me, “Is Jack still here?” and I said no, I’d been looking for him because of the way he left this world. I was concerned about him and where he was. So I looked for him and there was no sign of him. No sign. And I said to my sister, “No, he’s fine. He’s where he needs to be.” She said,” I don’t think he is. His mates keep reporting that his music and their bedroom lights come on.
One is saying that he’s sitting on his bed, “and I said, I think they’re in really deep grief for him because I don’t see him and I don’t feel him, but there was someone in my house, and I couldn’t see them. I would tell them, “I will send you away if you don’t tell me why you’re here and show yourself.” Nothing. Nothing. There’d be nothing gone.
It took for me to go to the other side of Australia and to feel like somebody pushed me into a shop several weeks later, and this card for a medium was like, it came off the wall at me. Like, why do I need a card for a medium? So. I did what was coming through and contacted her. And funnily enough, she had a session available that afternoon, which was even, she said very odd, and she started the session and straight away she jumped out of her skin and said, “Oh my gosh, you’ve got a young man here who just pushed the wet towels off the side of the table here.” Now if anyone’s seen ghost. That was depicted very well in that it takes them a lot of energy, and they actually have to learn how to move objects because they go through things Jack was able to push these wet towels off and frighten the daylights out of the lady, and he told her that he wanted his auntie, myself to know that he hadn’t gone.
He was too scared to go because he believed that if he went, no one would remember him. And that just made me cry. And he told her that he knew if I knew he was the one in my house and that he was the one playing with the lights and turning the music on that, he said to her, ‘she will send me away and I don’t want anyone to forget me.’
That was heartbreaking, Johnny. It was bad enough that he left us, but that was terrible. in the end, she said to him, well, “I can help you go to where you need to go. “And he said, ‘No, I want my auntie to do it when I’m ready. “Oh my gosh.
Johnny Burke: Wow.
Gwenda Smith: So when I came home to my own state. I contacted my sister and I thought, oh, how is this going to go? Because she was still in terrible grief, and I just had to do it, and Jax was standing beside me. So, I rang her and explained, and as you can appreciate, she cried the whole time. So we set our date for her to come to my place, into my sacred space and we set up, a special ceremony, I will call it, to assist Jack in leaving and knowing that no one would forget him when he was gone, but he would be able to be free for want of a better word, to really be where he is meant to and then visit, with ease. So. That was a huge, huge experience.
Johnny Burke: And quite a story too. I know it had to be very, very emotional for you and your sister. Does this have anything to do with your work with lost souls or what we might call earthbound spirits?
Gwenda Smith: Absolutely. Absolutely. Mm-Hmm. And some of them can be.
Johnny Burke: Oh, those are things that we try to avoid, obviously. But how did it start, with you helping some of the lost souls or earthbound spirits? Was Jack the first one? I.
Gwenda Smith: Oh, no, no. This has been my life, Johnny. So, what, 40-something years and, as I said, encountering all sorts of interesting beings, entities, and lost souls and those that have had their lives taken? So over the years, they just come; it’s like you’re a beacon as if you have some different kind of light or because they know you can see them. So they will come and approach me. The problem ones that create havoc in homes or hang around in someone else’s energy and do the voice thing; you know when people are diagnosed as being schizophrenic because they hear voices?
My first encounter with what I will call a not pleasant soul was actually because of a young child that was terrified, understandably. The parents called me because the child kept talking differently and saying that they were hearing someone else talk to them that they couldn’t see. That was probably my first encounter that comes to mind with a not very friendly soul. There’s just always been an innate knowing for me that I know how to deal with them and they don’t frighten me. They frighten the life out of other people,
Johnny Burke: I bet they do.
Gwenda Smith: They seem to know like Jack knew, but they seem to know if they come into my space or if I’m called, they’re in trouble because I’ll have them removed. And my favorite saying to the ones that want to be silly is, you want to do this dance with me? Do you see who stands with me? Well, let’s do it. Let’s do it because you don’t scare me. Yeah, I’ll have you removed.
Johnny Burke: So when you remove them, where do they go, into the lower realms?
Gwenda Smith: They go to where they are meant to go. So it’s not up to me to determine that. I will call upon specific archangels or the angels of mercy. If it is a human soul, if it is something that is not what I would call a human soul, then I call upon the sweepers of the tapestry, and they will come through. And that’s something else too. That’s never been anything that I read or learned because what I do, I haven’t learned. It’s just been my life. And those words just came one time when I was clearing a house and I was like, wow, where’d that come from? And I’ve actually seen the Angels of Mercy come through to collect two souls from an old hospital, and that was phenomenal. They’re like, wow. It’s almost like they appear on chariots, and they just sweep them up, and they’re gone.
So, to me, when it is those angels. They do go to what we might call the realms of heaven, but when it is something else that’s not of human incarnation, or the human soul of the divine, uh, they go somewhere else. And I generally ask, they go where they belong, where they come from, and I leave it up to whoever’s collecting them.
Johnny Burke: Right, but you don’t really know where that somewhere is, and maybe you don’t want to know.
Gwenda Smith: I’ve been to a couple of places that I wouldn’t want to step into- pretty unpleasant, so it’s not where I belong. So even at the Pearly gates, when I met with grumpy old St. Paul, it’s St. Paul, by the way, not St. Peter, who stands at the gates. And he tells me, “What are you doing here? You’ve got no place being here.” In other words, it’s not, not my time. So I’ve been up there, and then I’ve been to some darker places that I prefer not to go.
Johnny Burke: It sounds like some of the, beings, the angels and even some of the guides, can be a little snarky and even have a sense of humor. I’ve heard that more than once. Is that true?
Gwenda Smith: Yeah. Yeah, they absolutely do. And sometimes they have an awesome sense of humor. They’re an absolute crack up.
Johnny Burke: That’s pretty cool. I like that. I can imagine, some spirit guides that are divine beings, but they still curse like truck drivers. They’re watching me or someone else talking to each other and thinking, ‘what’s this idiot going to do now?
You want to take ’em?’ No, no, no. I’m not doing it. You do it this time. Come on, man. I’ve got tickets to Prince. Just take ’em off my hands.’ Can you imagine that?
Gwenda Smith: Yes, I can. Yes, I can. I’ve seen the guides. I’ve actually seen a guide in my room throw their arms up in the air and shake their head because the person that’s come for guidance keeps butting at it, head butting at it, and won’t accept it and wants to argue it. And then the guide throws her arms up in the air and shakes their head like, ah, can’t do anything with this one.
Johnny Burke: All right. Good to know. Humor is obviously very important. It’s just very, very surreal. For those of us that grew up going to mass, going to church, they were really presented as something that is outside of us, whereas many mystics believe that it’s within us. What are your thoughts?
Gwenda Smith: Yep. Very much, that’s what I call our divine essence. A lot of people do our own divinity. We are, after all, a spark of what I call God the creator. I will not use the word the universe, because the universe is a big place, and I don’t necessarily want to be part of everything that’s out there.
Johnny Burke: That’s a good point.
Gwenda Smith: I don’t call upon the universe or talk about the universe having my back. I don’t think so. So yeah, we are a divine spark of God, the creator. And yeah, we have that power. We have incredible abilities.
Johnny Burke: That’s what I keep hearing. And speaking of divinity, what is it to be in Divine Union?
Gwenda Smith: Oh my. Oh, it’s just bliss. it’s to be in harmony and alignment with your divinity and the divine with God the creator. So to actually be able to live your life through the essence of who you are and that mighty, mighty power of the divine is the way to have a life that is free of struggles and hardships. It’s bliss. You’re able to find solutions to what are perceived problems. You’re able to have a fuller and happier heart and a much more calm and peaceful mind. Who wouldn’t want that in this day and age, Johnny?
Johnny Burke: Oh, I don’t think there are many people who would not want that, but how do we get there, or how do you assist us in getting on that path?
Gwenda Smith: It is nothing short of so, so fulfilling to see the aha light go on with someone when I take them on that journey or they sit in one of my sessions and think, oh. So that little nudge that I was getting, that sign I saw the other day that all mattered like, oh my gosh, that’s where I go. Like the guides. Oh my gosh. Was there a Prince concert going on Somewhere? I need to go. But yeah, it’s when people suddenly realize that they are always being guided and that they are always answered when they call for help. That’s the one thing about heaven and all of the heavenly beings, they can’t look at their watch and go,’ oh, it’s that Johnny again. And I, look, I’m on break, I’ll come back.’
Johnny Burke: I wouldn’t blame them if they did.
Gwenda Smith: They can’t do that. You know, they have to go, oh, the bell’s ringing. We, we’ve got to answer. People here are insistent that they’re not answering me. I’m not being heard. You know, nothing’s happening. But it is. It’s just that their messages, their guidance, and their pointers are very subtle because they are beings of pure love. So there’s no push and grunt and noise from them. It’s beautiful, and they will put it. People in your path, they’ll even take you to a book, a bookmark, or a particular cafe because you’re going to meet someone that’s going to be the answer. Or start talking about something that gives you the answer to what you’ve been asking.
But people look for something as if it’s out of Hollywood, you know, waiting for the big day. There’s the angel out of the sky, and it’s going to read to you from a Bible or read you from a scroll. The Dead Sea Scrolls. It’s not like that. They’re very subtle. They’re very gentle. They’re very quiet, whereas we get used to listening to the noise in our mind and listen to that rather than listening for the subtlety.
When I take you to that place of meeting your own divinity, it requires you to be very still and very quiet. It also requires you to be very open. So you’ve first got to be able to become aware of your own energy, what it feels like, and what your divine self feels like. And that too, because it is divine, subtle, and magnificent.
The best way to know you’ve encountered it is when you first fall in love. And that is when you’ve got the rose-colored glasses on. You might never have encountered that. You might’ve been lucky, but you have the rose-colored glasses on where you know everything is just, wow. You’re in touch with your divinity then, or the birth of a baby. Seeing a new baby, even a puppy, having a first puppy. That sensation that you get that is just, wow. That is, you are in touch with your own divine self. So when you can learn to sit quietly and go to that place and start to work with it, start to expand it and really feel it fill you and get bigger than you, because of course this body is nothing compared to what you really are.
We would start that way and then learn to ask for guidance. So you can call upon guidance from your own divine self because that is incredible. And learn then to listen or observe. And I love to teach people to become their own observers. Observe your own life. Step back and observe how you react, how you talk, what your thoughts are, and are they fulfilling? Are they making that divine spark come alive and expand, or are they contracting it? Are you feeling tension and having issues? Because as soon as your intention and issues, you’re away from your divine self. So then to align further with the divine is prayer. Prayer is it; it is the way of sacredness, and it is the way where you can really align yourself to the divine. And through that it’s just, it’s bliss. It is simply beautiful, and it removes everything. Yeah.
Johnny Burke: So in your experience, and it seems like you have, quite a bit of that, you seem to know what actually happens when we die. How did you learn that, and what do we need to know about that ?
Gwenda Smith: You need to know it’s magical. If you knew just how good it was there, you probably wouldn’t want to be here. But you know, you’ve signed up for an agreement and a timeframe, so that’s it.
Johnny Burke: Agreements. Okay. All right. I’ve heard that a lot, too,
Gwenda Smith: Well we do and keep coming back because we’re slow learners, so, It’s, well, you know, even the guide’s like, oh, here we go again. But how do I come to know? I know because of my encounters with souls that have departed, I’ve actually seen them be taken. So when a soul has been at an accident site, and I’ve been there, they’re standing, observing their physical body. And they’re at peace. They’re not someone who has been kicked out tragically and wonders what’s happened. That’s a different story because that does happen. But they’re standing there observing and looking around at the site. And then I’ve seen an angel come and take them and it is beautiful.
Jack himself absconded from the Library of Life in Heaven. And he said it was my fault because I’d asked him to come to his mom at Christmas time last year, and I said, “No, it’s not my fault, Jack. You’re not allowed to leave the library of heaven until you’ve finished reviewing your life.” and he said.” My rules, auntie- my way. “And I said, well,” I don’t think so. “And then all of his beautiful image started to shimmer and looked like it was breaking apart. And he said, “What’s happening? What’s happening?” And I laughed and said, “I told you that you can’t break the rules of heaven. See you later, Jack.” and off he went. So I’ve had those encounters and then I’ve been able to have the vision of what heaven looks like from those souls. They show where they are and what it’s like.
Johnny Burke: Okay, I’m dying to hear this. What does it look like? Are there buildings? Does it look like Earth, but just 10 times better? I’ve heard that there are a lot of colors that these people experience in the near-death experiences, right? But colors that don’t exist here on Earth.
Gwenda Smith: Yeah, the colors are phenomenal. Absolutely phenomenal. So if you were to look at the blue of your shirt, you are wearing and gee whiz, try to imagine it being luminous 50 times over. You wouldn’t be close. It is incredible, but where are they now? This part’s really interesting.
Each time I’ve encountered a soul who shows what they’re doing or what it’s like, it’s more like it’s aligned with their life here. So if they were a gardener and loved to garden, they would show me incredible gardens of heaven and tell me that the smell is totally different from here. So the old-fashioned rose that had magnificent perfume, which has been removed now for a reason, has a hundred times the scent when it’s in heaven.
But then I’ve seen fellows that have been farmers, and they’re still working on tractors and trucks in heaven. Whether that is to comfort their loved one, or whether that really is what they’re doing. Because I know from work with the Angels and grumpy old St. Paul that. Heaven is bliss. And we don’t have a physical body. We are simply beings of energy. So, to visualize us working on a tractor or a truck, well, how would we? It doesn’t make sense, but that’s what they show. And their favorite things are beautiful grassy knolls, waterways by rivers, oceans, and things like that. If it’s just bliss, absolutely beautiful.
Johnny Burke: I’ve heard similar accounts of what some people refer to as the spiritual realm. It has many names, obviously what you call heaven. It’s good to know. You’ve heard this more than once- you’ve experienced it.
Gwenda Smith: Yep.
Johnny Burke: That’s from the mediumship, path, or just from your sessions and what you can see?.
Are you able to see things like that without going into a session, just spontaneously, or?
Gwenda Smith: Yeah. I learned long ago how to be what I say to people, just a normal human walking around because I had to. So if I go to the shops or a restaurant if I want to, I can see everything that’s going on and everything that’s moving through the living, everything’s living, but through those in this world. I can see it all and see different levels of being, and I don’t need that. I’ve got to be able to live my own life otherwise I’d be in a straight jacket. So I learned how to close it out, and I’ve only had a few occurrences where spirit had bypassed my request that I not be disturbed or that this is not the right time and place.
I had a phenomenal experience when I was away working in Kuala Lumpur; I worked in tourism, and one of the senior fellows in the state tourism commission and I used to lock horns. We just didn’t like each other, so we turned up for this dinner with all the teams, there were two seats left at the table next to each other, and we were the only two left. So we had to sit next to each other. Neither of us were happy about that. The next minute, I’m getting this tapping on my shoulder as physical as if I were to tap you. And I, I turned to look, and there’s spirit standing there, and he said,” I’m his brother. I want you to give him my message.” And I went, “What? No way. “And he said, “You know you have to.” And I said, “You’ve got to be joking.” My God, I have a hard enough time with him without telling him his brother is here. And especially we are in a big restaurant where a contingent of colleagues and he said, “I don’t care. You know the rules. ” I’m like, oh my God.
Johnny Burke: You know the rules.
Gwenda Smith: Oh my God. And I said to him,” I’m not doing it. You had no right to come here at this time. “He goes, “Well, it’s the only time to get your attention.” Oh. So I told him, “I will see to it, not now. ” And he said, “I’m not leaving, you know? I said,” I know.” Oh, my Lord. And I kept looking at this fellow, thinking, oh, this is just not going to go well….
Johnny Burke: Couldn’t you have just gotten one of the archangels toremove him or at least delay the discussion until it was in a more appropriate place?
Gwenda Smith: That’s a great question, Johnny, because you know, here we talk about free will and right of choice, right? It still remains in place in spirit. So he wants that conversation. Now, that’s his free will in place. So no Angel, they were there. I’m like, gee, thanks guys. but no Angel can intervene. And also because he had a really important message that he needed his brother to hear. This man was the target of the mafia. I’ll call them.
Johnny Burke: Okay.
Gwenda Smith: yeah,
Johnny Burke: I get that.
Gwenda Smith: He had been a detective in his life here. So people wanted answers as to how things happened, I actually didn’t know who he was, or what he was- a detective and what happened to him when he tapped me on the shoulder. So I had to wait for us to be in a place that I could try and approach this man. gosh,
Johnny Burke: That must have been a neat trick.
Gwenda Smith: I reckon it was the hardest thing ever. But, long story short, he ended up thinking I was the best thing since sliced bread and bought me four beers for himself. He comes back and tells me they’re for me, but he drank them, and he just said, cheers to you. You’ve made a big difference. And he was so different with me after that. It took such a lot of courage to step up to him, and he’d already had several beers at dinner, so, you know, often it’s not a good thing to talk to someone on deeply emotional things when they’ve been drinking alcohol,
Johnny Burke: But he accepted the message that you gave him. Right. it’s pretty incredible. I’m almost tempted to ask you to be like my psychic bodyguard just to shield me from, whatever I’m not supposed to be exposed to and like warn me of like when I’m in danger. That’s probably the first time I’ve heard something like that. It’s interesting.
Gwenda Smith: He gave me the message in such a way that his brother knew I couldn’t make it up.
Johnny Burke: I would think that spirits, when they’re across the veil, they have a sensibility that we don’t have here, and they know exactly what they need to do in order to get the message across.
Gwenda Smith: They do. That’s where I get really peeved by people who call themselves psychics or mediums. They may hear a spirit or the message of a spirit, but they put their own spin on it. They interpret what the spirit has said and then put their own interpretation. And to me, that’s breaking universal law and they don’t have the right to do that, but many of them do. I often get sent to spiritual fairs to bust up the not-so-good ones.
Johnny Burke: That’s a totally separate subject about how some mediums are not really trained. My thoughts are a long story made short. I interviewed someone from the Forever Family Foundation, Bob Ginsburg. And what they do there, and you probably already know this, is they certify mediums by testing them, and the result is that only about 15% actually are certified.
Gwenda Smith: I’m surprised it’s that much.
Johnny Burke: My thoughts- for what it’s worth, mediums are kind of like acting teachers; there’s a lot of them out there, and a lot of them probably shouldn’t be practicing,
Gwenda Smith: Yeah.
Johnny Burke: That’s just the way it is. So how do we know as a sitter who’s looking for a medium, how do we know that we’re not in front of somebody who is putting their own spin on it and breaking or violating universal law as you just described?
Gwenda Smith: Thank you for asking that question. That’s a really important question. As a sitter, if the person that you’ve gone to see asks you questions, get up and leave and don’t pay them anything. If they’re asking you questions about your loved one or anything, don’t answer them. Get up and leave. And if they tell you that they’ve got your loved one with them. Or they’re standing next to you, and they start telling you what that loved one is saying, rather than be in the place of grief and tears because you so want to hear from them because this is how it makes it easy for these people to prey on others. P-R-E-Y is to say things that they know you are hoping to hear, but when you listen to what they’re saying, you will know it’s not the way that your loved one would speak.
That’s something I’ve always had from my people or sitters that come to me is, “Oh my God, that sounds just like my husband or my son or my grand.” And I say, “Well, that’s because I’m telling you exactly what they are saying.” So if what’s coming through does not sound the way that your loved one would speak or the sort of thing they would say, leave, you are not with a real medium. It’s not their right to put their spin on what’s Spirit is saying, their interpretation, or to change what the loved one is saying because to me, Johnny, it’s, it’s tremendously humbling and it’s a huge privilege to be able to speak between heaven and earth, to be heaven’s messenger.
Johnny Burke: I agree.
Gwenda Smith: I feel it warrants huge respect, both for the sitter and for the loved one in the next realm.
Johnny Burke: That’s some of the best advice on mediumship that I’ve had in a while, and I’ve interviewed quite a few. Great stuff. Gwenda, thanks for joining us tonight. In the meantime, how can our listeners find you online?
Gwenda Smith: It’s been an absolute pleasure, and I love your questions. Thanks, Johnny. I could talk to you for hours. People can find me online at healwithglenda.com.. You can also find me on Instagram @healwithgwenda_health_wellness