Affirmation: In these times of turmoil, I invest in Spiritual Practice for my freedom of economic insecurity.
As we move ever more deeply into Winter, a reflection on Creative Destruction seemed timely. Creative Destruction is inherent in capitalism, democracy and Mother Nature. Some might say even that Creative Destruction is the driving force of capitalism, democracy and Mother Nature. It is the reason that capitalism and democracy are inherently unstable and the reason that the only constant in nature is evolutionary change.
As you know, the financial news is full of turmoil and uncertainty. Whenever you read this the financial news will be full of turmoil and uncertainty because capitalism is unstable. One hundred years ago, General Motors did not exist. Fifty years ago, the Chairman of GM told congress that what was good for GM is good for the country and it was one of the largest capitalistic enterprises in the world. These days GM is looking for a government bail out to prevent it from going bankrupt after loosing billions of dollars over the past few years.
As you know, these days the political news is full of turmoil and uncertainty. It is predictably unstable. Political Parties in a democratic system rarely remain in power more than a decade. The population, given a free vote, will inevitably vote for change and the parties out of power will relentlessly compete for leadership by creating new ideas and criticizing old ideas until change is mandated.
As you know, the news is full of fear these days about climate change, the extinction of species, (or the discovery of new species), and devastation of the environment. Mother Nature is terribly unstable; here is a small example, the Great Blue Heron will establish its rookery in a healthy tall tree near water. The birds feed alone, but nest at night and raise their children in huge colonies of hundreds of birds. Thus, they need a very large tree for their support. However, their droppings are toxic to the tree. So, once a rookery is established, the magnificent tree hundreds of years old, will die a few years later. The Blue Heron rookery will be forced to move to a new location. But with the principle of Creative Destruction at work, the dead tree they must abandon then becomes a perfect place for the Osprey to build its solitary nest from which it will fish and raise its young.
What all this says that if you depend on your security from your job, your investments or your retirement accounts, then you are always at risk because these are all inherently unstable. If you are relying on the government for your support, either as an employee or for your pension, your economic security is an illusion. (For instance, keep in mind the insolvency of state and local government employee pensions or social security). Creative Destruction is always operating and never fails. As Jesus said “Remember those will be first are last and those who will be last are first” Luke 13:30.
Freedom from economic insecurity cannot be found in business success or political action, it can only be found in God. Jesus was very intentional about this when he said that the Kingdom of Heaven is within. Scripture quotes him saying “Do not acquire possessions here on earth… Instead gather your treasure in heaven.” Mathew 6:19.
Now, I am not saying that God is not in politics or that Spirit is not in business. As there is only One Presence – then God is in everything. What I am suggesting is that your peace of mind comes from spiritual awareness and not from business acumen or political skill. I am urging you to realize that financial turmoil and political upheaval are the ways of this world and that your only “salvation” is in Spiritual Truth. Investing in business or expecting the government to take care of you is short sighted if you want true security.
Here at Unity of Corvallis, we do our best to teach Truth each week on Sunday. In our dealings we intend to practice the Spiritual Principles that we teach. These principles- when applied- guarantee peace of mind. So, in times like these, in fact, at any time, if you sincerely want freedom of economic insecurity, then look to the Guide Within.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Dec 2008 Prosperity Thoughts
Dec 2008 Prosperity Thoughts
The time of year just before the winter solstice is often full of deep reflection for spiritual seekers. We simultaneously look back over the past year and prepare for the upcoming year as well. It is within this context that I want to share with you some ideas about right timing.
We know that there is an infinitely brilliant organizing intelligence responding to our needs. Some teachers suggest that we can set forth a date certain by which these needs will manifest. So, following this guidance, at the beginning of the year someone might declare: I will accomplish xyz by November 1, 2008, with the full and complete confidence that God will respond to their deadline.
Now, I have never taught this because it has never been my experience. To me, it seems as if people are being taught to dictate to God. I do believe in setting a firm intention for myself at the beginning of the year and then watching how it unfolds. More often than not, my need is met within a realistic time frame and sometimes in a delightfully unexpected way. Occasionally, my need does not appear to be met, and when I look more carefully, I notice that I got caught up in a strategy to meet the need and lost focus on the need itself. When I look beyond the surface of my strategy I can often see that the Universe has exceedingly manifested that which best meets my actual needs. Now, there are occasions when it looks like my need is not being met on time and abundantly, and that brings me to the point of this Prosperity Thought. Right Timing is everything.
Here is a very current example. When our church office closed, Debbie and I moved everything left into our house. So my downstairs closet is full of archive boxes, our garage shelves are full of church hospitality supplies and our utility room is loaded with paper and office materials. On top of that we had the church copier, a magnificent beast, moved here as well. It took at least 4 men to move it downstairs.
Oh, by the way, did I mention that I donated my old copier from my law practice to the church as well, so we had two large high volume copiers here, one in the garage and one downstairs. Oh well, we tried to sell them at the big garage sale. Not one offer. Then, after a while, they needed repairs again and we decided to release them with love rather than throw good money into fixing them. We first tried to sell them on Craig’s List. Not one call. We tried to give them away on Freecycle. Nope. How about giving them away for free on Craig’s list? Nada. We tried to give them away to our copy repair shop for parts or to refurbish, they said “no, thanks!”
I did not want to just haul them away to the dump- it did not meet my need to be ecologically conscious. So, I had two needs, one to get rid of the copiers and second to do it in an environmentally kind way. We called copy repair shops in
I began to shop for refrigerators even though the copiers had not yet been released. I thought maybe that if the refrigerator showed up, the copiers would then leave, but I couldn’t find what I wanted. Some refrigerators were too old and beat up. Others that seemed like possibilities’ were sold by the time I called. The new ones I shopped for were too expensive, and the new ones I could afford were too small, it seemed as if it was always something.
When things appear stuck, sometimes it is my unwillingness to ask for help that is the bottleneck. I posted a short email on the list server asking for help. One person offered to help, he asked me to just allow him to handle it and to trust him. OK, that sounds good, but then he was delayed a couple of times. I was grateful for the help, I knew there was a good lesson in there about trust, and I still wanted my refrigerator!
Finally, he showed up with someone to help him load it. They were taking it to a place where it would be recycled and all systems looked good. After all this time, my needs were getting met. As we loaded the 2nd copier on the trailer to haul it away, I mentioned wanting a refrigerator. The guy who came to help mentioned that sometimes he came across refrigerators that were in good condition and he said he would keep an eye out for me.
Then, the very next morning, he called and let me know that a nearly brand new refrigerator had showed up on his dock. It had one little problem with a display light in the door and otherwise it seemed to work fine. I told him I would take it, sight unseen because I trusted him and I knew that Right Timing was at work.
My needs were met, on time and abundantly; both of the copiers are gone, recycled, and we now have a 2nd refrigerator. All I had to do was my own footwork. I needed to get clear on my values. I needed to take the steps which were mine to take (for example, get clear on what type of refrigerator I wanted, post on Craig’s List, call the copy repair people, be open to other suggestions such as the Freecycle idea). Most importantly, I need to trust and allow Sprit to work things out. To do that, I needed to be willing to ask for help.
I write this out for those of you who are wondering why the intentions you set in January did not manifest. It might be that Right Timing has not yet occurred. Things are set in motion to bring you your good, just not as fast as you expected. Or, perhaps it is that you have some foot work to do (either spiritual or otherwise) and that the bottle neck is in your own lack of authentic action.
I end with the amusing teaching story of the guy who set an intention at the beginning of the year to win a Lottery. Month after month he prays to God to have him win the Lottery. He uses affirmations. He makes a treasure map. He Masterminds all towards winning the lottery. He promises to tithe a full 10%. Then late in the year, he still had not won and was in church praying. He said, “God, how can you forsake me? I set an intention. I have prayed without ceasing. I have visualized and affirmed and masterminded all towards winning the lottery. Why won’t you manifest my good and let me win the Lottery…”.
Suddenly there is a blinding flash of light and the heavens open and the Voice of God booms out….. “Dude, give me a little help on this one, go buy yourself a lottery ticket!”
Affirmation: I trust God’s Right and Perfect Timing.
Extra Credit Affirmation: God does not do for me what is mine to do; I will do my footwork to manifest my own good.
Prosperity Thoughts Thanksgiving 2008
Prosperity Thoughts
As our holiday Thanksgiving is nearly upon us, it is natural for us to take a moment and look at all that we have for which to be grateful. The tradition of Thanksgiving is to look at all the good things we have received and remember how blessed we are with loving friends and family, good health and our prosperity. I am not saying that we are all naturally grateful because that has not been my experience - I personally had to work through a lot of negativity before I found a grateful heart. My point is that it is a lot easier to be grateful for those things we enjoy and savor than it is to be grateful for those things we did not/do not enjoy.
I would like to suggest that this Thanksgiving season we take a moment and see if we can be grateful for those rough patches on our path. One helpful tool I have used is to remember that is our choice how to give each event in our life meaning. We can choose to live from regret and disappointment for those things we did not enjoy or we can choose to find a blessing in each. You see, it is Spiritual Law that there is always a blessing in every situation and circumstance. Many people are unwilling to look for this blessing and thus never find it. Those that do, find a profound sense of gratitude and compassion in their hearts.
AA captures this sentiment in one of its “promises”. The AA Big Book promises every alcoholic that no matter how far down the scale they personally have gone; as they move forward on their spiritual path and in their sobriety they will come to see how their experience can benefit another alcoholic. Compassion and empathy for another is a vital trait for all healers and lovers, and one way it is acquired is through finding the blessing in difficult situations.
However, for some of us, the process of acquiring compassion for others as a result of our own difficulties is too abstract. It seems like spiritual slight of hand- we want some direct benefit for ourselves. The adage that whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger tends to speak to this. A few months ago, I talked with someone who shared a whole litany of bad things that were going on in their life, recent divorce, no active romantic interest in spite of diligent efforts, poor physical health, no money to live on, unable to find any job, terrible economy and this only touches the surface of their perspective on their life situation. The only good thing that they could find in all of this was that it finally brought them to a willingness to look at their relationship with God. Now, those of you that are advanced students on the spiritual path know that this is quite a blessing in itself, but for my friend, it seemed small solace. Still, this one single blessing was enough to give hope to continue looking for blessings for one additional day. And sure enough, one day at a time, little miracles and blessings occurred and now my friend can see a future.
Let’s agree though, we do not really want to face utter desolation to find our spiritual path. Let’s say that our lives are reasonably satisfying and that we are doing reasonably well, but we have had some serious bumps along the way. Can we always find a tangible blessing even from difficulties long past? My answer is that spiritual law applies in every instance and so yes, there is always a blessing.
Here is an example that might help. My daughter was born into a dysfunctional home with a lot of strife and upset. I divorced her mom before she was in preschool and unfortunately there was a lot of uncertainty and chaos in her day to day life from a very early age. My ex and I shared custody so there was a lot of logistical detail and inherent unpredictability in her childhood. We did not agree on many things and nobody could predict how the balance of power would pan out on any given decision. Things that should be happy celebrations were fraught with trouble. She played soccer like many little girls. Her mom and dad would come to the games and she never knew if there would be a humiliating spat between them. Her soccer team had a pizza party at the end of the season- where should she sit, with her mom or with her dad? She was the first of her group of friends to have divorced parents, so no one knew how to navigate getting permission to go places or to have sleepovers. When she started dating life became even more complex. The holidays were inordinately complicated- and not just on the emotional front. As she got older; juggling multiple holiday events became annual fare for my daughter as she was torn between separate family schedules.
I could go on and on about the problems my daughter faced growing up- I do not want to minimize here, but I think you get the point. As you may be aware, many people do spend a lot of energy complaining about their childhood. (I should know, I spent years in therapy complaining about my own childhood). Here is the blessing. A few years ago, my daughter got her picture in the LA Times. My daughter works in live theater and you might think she is an up and coming actress or singer, but no, she is a stage manager. She deals with chaos and prima donnas in a calm and centered fashion. She is incredibly organized and able to navigate a myriad of dysfunctions in every show. In the LA Times photo; she is sitting at a table in a production meeting taking notes. She is in the background; some famous director is in the center of the shot. For each show, my daughter is the one that compiles a binder of all that is to happen in the production. She organizes the details of the whole production company, interfacing with the costume designers, the prop shop, the musicians and performers and the house managers and all the rest of the creative staff. She operates on split second timing for each scene change and each lighting cue and sound effect and so forth. The complexity is amazing, and utterly does not faze her in the least- because compared to what she grew up with, this is calm and manageable.
My daughter is really good at her job because of the skills she learned as a little girl in making order out of chaos. She has turned a traumatic and difficult situation into a tangible blessing. This Thanksgiving, be grateful for those things you enjoy receiving. In addition, take some time to find the blessing in those things this past year that you did not like. It is profoundly transformative.
Affirmation: I am sincerely willing to find the blessing in everything.
As our holiday Thanksgiving is nearly upon us, it is natural for us to take a moment and look at all that we have for which to be grateful. The tradition of Thanksgiving is to look at all the good things we have received and remember how blessed we are with loving friends and family, good health and our prosperity. I am not saying that we are all naturally grateful because that has not been my experience - I personally had to work through a lot of negativity before I found a grateful heart. My point is that it is a lot easier to be grateful for those things we enjoy and savor than it is to be grateful for those things we did not/do not enjoy.
I would like to suggest that this Thanksgiving season we take a moment and see if we can be grateful for those rough patches on our path. One helpful tool I have used is to remember that is our choice how to give each event in our life meaning. We can choose to live from regret and disappointment for those things we did not enjoy or we can choose to find a blessing in each. You see, it is Spiritual Law that there is always a blessing in every situation and circumstance. Many people are unwilling to look for this blessing and thus never find it. Those that do, find a profound sense of gratitude and compassion in their hearts.
AA captures this sentiment in one of its “promises”. The AA Big Book promises every alcoholic that no matter how far down the scale they personally have gone; as they move forward on their spiritual path and in their sobriety they will come to see how their experience can benefit another alcoholic. Compassion and empathy for another is a vital trait for all healers and lovers, and one way it is acquired is through finding the blessing in difficult situations.
However, for some of us, the process of acquiring compassion for others as a result of our own difficulties is too abstract. It seems like spiritual slight of hand- we want some direct benefit for ourselves. The adage that whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger tends to speak to this. A few months ago, I talked with someone who shared a whole litany of bad things that were going on in their life, recent divorce, no active romantic interest in spite of diligent efforts, poor physical health, no money to live on, unable to find any job, terrible economy and this only touches the surface of their perspective on their life situation. The only good thing that they could find in all of this was that it finally brought them to a willingness to look at their relationship with God. Now, those of you that are advanced students on the spiritual path know that this is quite a blessing in itself, but for my friend, it seemed small solace. Still, this one single blessing was enough to give hope to continue looking for blessings for one additional day. And sure enough, one day at a time, little miracles and blessings occurred and now my friend can see a future.
Let’s agree though, we do not really want to face utter desolation to find our spiritual path. Let’s say that our lives are reasonably satisfying and that we are doing reasonably well, but we have had some serious bumps along the way. Can we always find a tangible blessing even from difficulties long past? My answer is that spiritual law applies in every instance and so yes, there is always a blessing.
Here is an example that might help. My daughter was born into a dysfunctional home with a lot of strife and upset. I divorced her mom before she was in preschool and unfortunately there was a lot of uncertainty and chaos in her day to day life from a very early age. My ex and I shared custody so there was a lot of logistical detail and inherent unpredictability in her childhood. We did not agree on many things and nobody could predict how the balance of power would pan out on any given decision. Things that should be happy celebrations were fraught with trouble. She played soccer like many little girls. Her mom and dad would come to the games and she never knew if there would be a humiliating spat between them. Her soccer team had a pizza party at the end of the season- where should she sit, with her mom or with her dad? She was the first of her group of friends to have divorced parents, so no one knew how to navigate getting permission to go places or to have sleepovers. When she started dating life became even more complex. The holidays were inordinately complicated- and not just on the emotional front. As she got older; juggling multiple holiday events became annual fare for my daughter as she was torn between separate family schedules.
I could go on and on about the problems my daughter faced growing up- I do not want to minimize here, but I think you get the point. As you may be aware, many people do spend a lot of energy complaining about their childhood. (I should know, I spent years in therapy complaining about my own childhood). Here is the blessing. A few years ago, my daughter got her picture in the LA Times. My daughter works in live theater and you might think she is an up and coming actress or singer, but no, she is a stage manager. She deals with chaos and prima donnas in a calm and centered fashion. She is incredibly organized and able to navigate a myriad of dysfunctions in every show. In the LA Times photo; she is sitting at a table in a production meeting taking notes. She is in the background; some famous director is in the center of the shot. For each show, my daughter is the one that compiles a binder of all that is to happen in the production. She organizes the details of the whole production company, interfacing with the costume designers, the prop shop, the musicians and performers and the house managers and all the rest of the creative staff. She operates on split second timing for each scene change and each lighting cue and sound effect and so forth. The complexity is amazing, and utterly does not faze her in the least- because compared to what she grew up with, this is calm and manageable.
My daughter is really good at her job because of the skills she learned as a little girl in making order out of chaos. She has turned a traumatic and difficult situation into a tangible blessing. This Thanksgiving, be grateful for those things you enjoy receiving. In addition, take some time to find the blessing in those things this past year that you did not like. It is profoundly transformative.
Affirmation: I am sincerely willing to find the blessing in everything.
Saturday, October 25, 2008
November 2008-Prosperity Thoughts
Affirmation: With God: everything is possible!
Today was a splendid fall day, with bright sun and splashes of autumn color everywhere. I walked along the river for an hour or so this afternoon. The many flavors of green and the multitude of shapes of the leaves bring to mind the infinite creativity of Mother Nature. The leaves along the trail remind me that we in the time of change of seasons and that winter is close upon us.
In the meantime, on Wall Street stock prices have dropped some 20% over the past few weeks, (which is not good news for most of us), the price of crude oil has dropped by 50% in the past few months and the price of gas at the pump has already dropped over 25% (which is good news for most of us) and the value of the dollar has risen sharply (more good news for most of us). This is a time of high volatility.
This is a perfect time to practice spiritual principles.
In changing times like these, there are at least two things to keep in mind.
First, we humans are supremely adaptable. We have, as a species, solved every single problem that has ever faced us for tens of thousands of years. Even so, our creative genius has barely even been tapped. We have inhabited every region of his world and thrived in each. We have found resources over and over again to up level the quality of our life. The combination of our intelligence, adaptability and perseverance means we will continue to thrive because it is our nature to thrive.
I know that some unscrupulous authors preach that we are nearly doomed and this is the most perilous time ever. That is utterly false; there has never been a better time to thrive in the whole history of humankind. We live longer, (in better health), enjoy life more and have more time to invest in the things we love than any generation before us. We have more freedom, more choice and a greater ability to connect and make a difference than every before. Moreover, we are not alone; more of our brethren have these same opportunities as well.
We are one with the infinite correlating intelligence in the Universe and we can use this creativity to solve any problem and overcome any temporary condition that may face us, either as individuals or collectively.
The second thing to remember in times of great upheaval is that God is our only source. If we are relying on retirement accounts or our job to provide our substance we are misled. If we are looking for our home or apartment for shelter, we are diminishing our Selves. If we are relying on our car for transportation, then we are lost. God, and only God, can provide the resources to carry us through the time of great turmoil. Divine Mother is the great Nurturer and no job, condo, or other material good can support our well-being like Divine Mother.
We all know that our Ego thinks that it is what keeps us safe and provides for our well-being. We all know this is false evidence appearing real. If we are willing to be still and know, then we can access the great peace, the peace that passes understanding as it is called in the Bible. Use your affirmations and your meditation and your breathing to open yourself to your inner guide. This inner knowing will never steer you wrong. This calm and stable presence is only a heartbeat away no matter where you are and no matter what is going on in the financial markets or in nature.
The insight for you today is to remember that with God everything is possible.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Oct 2008- Prosperity Thoughts part III
Prosperity Thoughts October 2008- part 3
Affirmation: Thank you Spirit, I am grateful for all that I have, all that I circulate and all that I am.
One of the beauties of New Thought is that there is little institutional dogma to contend with. In the area of prosperity, for example, each of us is free to make our own definition of “prosperity”. One person’s vision of prosperity might be to live in the country while another’s would be to live in a bustling college town. In healthy New Thought circles neither person would be judged for their choice or their preference.
However, one of the difficulties some people have in creating a prosperous life is finding a definition of prosperity that is sufficiently inclusive to fulfill all their needs. If they are defining prosperity in terms of money, then they often find themselves short of time or in poor health due to the long hours or hard work needed by most people to make lots of money. Some more artistic types define prosperity as the ability and freedom to create their own lives, but then find they are living at the subsistence level when it comes to material goods.
The point here then is not to try and intellectually develop the perfect definition of prosperity. Instead, I suggest that we use our present circumstances along with the innate definition we each have of prosperity as part of a spiritual feedback loop to help us evolve to ever more prosperous thinking and thus more prosperous living- as each of us alone understand our prosperity.
This process of fine tuning our understanding of prosperity requires rigorous self honesty because the world is reflecting back to us whatever it is that we are holding as prosperity. Your thinking alone will dictate your experience, just like my thinking alone will dictate my experience.
One very effective spiritual tool is to develop a practice of intentional and conscious gratitude for those small things that bring us joy and fulfillment each day. It is more powerful if we write these down in a gratitude log and extraordinarily powerful if we speak them aloud to those that help bring us our prosperity. Thus, when we write a check, we write, or think or say aloud “thank you” to the person or institution that gave us the goods or services we sought. When we receive our paycheck, we actually thank our boss for giving us a job. When we pay our taxes, we thank the government for all the services that are provided “freely”. When someone does us a small kindness we treat it as a blessing rather than take it for granted and think or write or say “Thank You”.
In doing this over time, we create a flow of gratitude for the good in our lives. Those things for which we are unwilling to be grateful then stand out more starkly. This helps us it at least two ways. It helps us into alignment so we become more consciously grateful or it motivates us to make shifts to change our circumstances so that we can feel more gratitude. Our innate definition of prosperity will become a more transparent gatekeeper as we endeavor to put this spiritual practice to good use.
Affirm with me now: Thank you Spirit, I am grateful for all that I have, all that I circulate and all that I am.
Affirmation: Thank you Spirit, I am grateful for all that I have, all that I circulate and all that I am.
One of the beauties of New Thought is that there is little institutional dogma to contend with. In the area of prosperity, for example, each of us is free to make our own definition of “prosperity”. One person’s vision of prosperity might be to live in the country while another’s would be to live in a bustling college town. In healthy New Thought circles neither person would be judged for their choice or their preference.
However, one of the difficulties some people have in creating a prosperous life is finding a definition of prosperity that is sufficiently inclusive to fulfill all their needs. If they are defining prosperity in terms of money, then they often find themselves short of time or in poor health due to the long hours or hard work needed by most people to make lots of money. Some more artistic types define prosperity as the ability and freedom to create their own lives, but then find they are living at the subsistence level when it comes to material goods.
The point here then is not to try and intellectually develop the perfect definition of prosperity. Instead, I suggest that we use our present circumstances along with the innate definition we each have of prosperity as part of a spiritual feedback loop to help us evolve to ever more prosperous thinking and thus more prosperous living- as each of us alone understand our prosperity.
This process of fine tuning our understanding of prosperity requires rigorous self honesty because the world is reflecting back to us whatever it is that we are holding as prosperity. Your thinking alone will dictate your experience, just like my thinking alone will dictate my experience.
One very effective spiritual tool is to develop a practice of intentional and conscious gratitude for those small things that bring us joy and fulfillment each day. It is more powerful if we write these down in a gratitude log and extraordinarily powerful if we speak them aloud to those that help bring us our prosperity. Thus, when we write a check, we write, or think or say aloud “thank you” to the person or institution that gave us the goods or services we sought. When we receive our paycheck, we actually thank our boss for giving us a job. When we pay our taxes, we thank the government for all the services that are provided “freely”. When someone does us a small kindness we treat it as a blessing rather than take it for granted and think or write or say “Thank You”.
In doing this over time, we create a flow of gratitude for the good in our lives. Those things for which we are unwilling to be grateful then stand out more starkly. This helps us it at least two ways. It helps us into alignment so we become more consciously grateful or it motivates us to make shifts to change our circumstances so that we can feel more gratitude. Our innate definition of prosperity will become a more transparent gatekeeper as we endeavor to put this spiritual practice to good use.
Affirm with me now: Thank you Spirit, I am grateful for all that I have, all that I circulate and all that I am.
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Generosity...October 2008
Affirmation: My Commitment to my prosperity is measured only by my generosity.
Generosity arises in two ways, spontaneous and intentional. Spontaneous generosity arises when we feel enthusiastic about something in the moment and decide to be generous. Since it is the result of how we feel in the moment, it is conditional. The generous impulse arises out of our current set of emotions coupled with our innate nature to be generous. This is why, in most churches, the offering is taken during the weekly service just after the music and the sermon. Time honored practice has established that optimum donations occur when the congregation’s impulse towards spontaneous giving is heightened after an uplifting message and inspiring music.
Spontaneous giving is a worthwhile spiritual practice. It activates the law of circulation and the law of cause and effect. It is however, conditional giving which is far different than unconditional giving.
Intentional giving arises not from momentary passion but from a sense of commitment in support of a project or endeavor. Thus, it is unconditional. It is an investment in the mission that drives the generosity and not a temporal condition of momentary enthusiasm. In the example above, if a guest speaker gave a poor talk, those spontaneous givers might lessen their donation, whereas a dynamic guest speaker might increase donations.
Unconditional giving is also a strong spiritual practice. Like spontaneous giving it activates both the law of circulation and cause and effect; however it is also a tool that can help the intentional giver with surrender, release, trust, unconditional love, commitment, and many other powerful spiritual disciplines.
One way that some congregations work on this practice together is through an intentional giving campaign.
Here is our story on intentional giving. We have been raising the prosperity consciousness of those attending Unity of Corvallis each year for the past six years. At that time, only a few donated any money to the church and the two main donors were highly conditional in their giving. If things went the way they liked then they donated, if not, they withheld their financial support. You can see thus, that this was a power and control dynamic that was designed to condition the system to align with the values of the two large donors.
Over time, the large donors left and the community as whole had to begin taking ownership of their ministry. For several years we drew down on our reserves because people were just not ready to invest in co creating a sustainable enterprise. Gradually trust began to build and people began to realize the value of commitment to an authentic community that by definition had to be larger than their selves. This is a very profound change, and one that is very difficult to take alone. Most people instinctively resist being the most committed; it means they have the risk of disappointment if people do not join them and they have risk of being responsible to carry more than their share of the load. You can see this is still a conditional giving experience.
The intuitive solution to this is to consciously share the risk, and that is what spontaneously happened two years ago at a town hall meeting. Members actually requested that we offer a “pledge drive” to facilitate a co commitment process. This allowed each interested member to pledge financial support knowing that they were joining directly and simultaneously with other like minded souls in support of their own spiritual growth and the success of Unity of Corvallis. This was far better for people than committing individually and the result is that many people pledged and honored their pledges for the 15 month pledge period.
For the first time many experienced unconditional giving by honoring their intentional commitment no matter how they felt each week or each month. It was to the larger enterprise that they were investing in. By not relying on their emotions to drive their donations, and instead relying on their intention, it activated a powerful growth spurt for many.
We have offered a renewed opportunity for intentional giving ever since. This is a tricky process because for those that are not ready to try unconditional giving, it “triggers” many of their fears concerning "lack", trust, commitment and so forth. Many people resist intentional giving for many reasons and this process helps each get in touch with their own set of fears.
The idea behind an intentional giving campaign is to allow you to experience the joy of unconditional love and to tangibly experience your resistance to being in the flow of unconditional love. You see, money is only a form of energy just like love is a form of energy. It is often hard to measure love, especially unconditional love, but it is very easy to measure money. Thus, in a holographic universe such as ours, the consciousness that circulates love unconditionally is identical to the consciousness that freely circulates generosity and prosperity. If someone is fearful and withholding about giving money, they will be fearful and withholding about receiving love as well. These same principals apply to giving your time and talent. It is all the same law.
Make no mistake about it, Unity of Corvallis needs your financial support to keep on track with our mission of being a thriving authentic New Thought Center. And, under the laws of circulation, if you are part of this mission, if you resonate with its values and if you appreciate how it improves the quality of your life and the life of those surrounding you, then it is imperative that you give generously.
“Generously”, in this context, means your fair and reasonable share. Some have more financial resources than others and so can offer more cash. Yet when you give from your heart, that which is yours to give, then there is no order of magnitude for generosity. As Jesus taught in the “Widow’s Pittance”, (Mark 12:42), it is the intention of the giver relative to their overall circumstances that does all the work, the amount given is immaterial. Rich people giving large amounts with a stingy attitude will result in a life experience of a stingy consciousness, whereas a less wealthy person giving a much smaller amount with a generous consciousness will activate the law of circulation and create a generous world experience.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
October 2008 Prosperity Thoughts
Prosperity Thoughts October 2008
Affirmation: My consciousness, and only my consciousness, defines my sense of well-being.
Isn’t the key to experiencing prosperity rooted in consciousness? Let’s look at this idea. I think we all we know of people with wealth and material possessions who feel empty and impoverished. Since we also all know of people who are fulfilled and content even though they do not have much in the way of material goods I think it stands to reason that the actual fact of money or things does not predicate an experience of prosperity.
Moreover, I have known people that believe that acquiring some thing that they have been lacking will bring them a sense of prosperity. Then they get that new thing- a new job, a new relationship, a new house, or whatever, but within a short while they are still feeling that same sense of emptiness and impoverishment.
Thus, I think we can conclude that the experience of prosperity or poverty does not arise from a thing. Therefore our experience of prosperity and/or poverty must transcend the thing itself and come from our thinking about the thing. This is another way of saying it comes from our consciousness.
This leads to an interesting conundrum. Say someone is experiencing an impoverished existence. The question is, is it more productive to focus on changing their circumstances or to leave their circumstances alone and focus on transforming their consciousness? You see, I have found that many people are not even open to changing their consciousness about money and prosperity until they are feeling desperately impoverished. Yet, even in this state of desperation, they want to focus on how to make more money or to get a new relationship or some other strategy to get them out of the feeling of lack that is so painful. The thinking that got them into the experience of poverty retains its hold on their choices. Due, I think to the very desperation that leads them to be open on the one level, also leads them on another level to a life of struggle and stress. It seems to me, that for many, the only options they can see to get out of their financial predicament lead to more hard work and struggle. They are so attached to the idea that if they work harder and smarter then they can get out of poverty using external things to alleviate their sense of lack that they are almost totally resistant to a different approach. Our attachment to money and other things as security and as a manner in providing us with our good is just about as all encompassing a belief as we have.
It is, in my experience, a rare person that is feeling desperate for money and work who is willing to step back and examine all their thinking that led them to that desperation in the first place. In my own journey, I was once out of work, having been fired from a series of jobs and desperate. Instead of searching for work, I searched for truth and I spent about six months not looking for a job at all. I was committed to transforming my consciousness first because I did not want to repeat the same pattern of thinking that got me into a desperate jam in the first place.
It was during this period of intense pain and deep reflection that I first learned of the idea of “right livelihood”. I first began to look at how I could serve and support others on their journey rather than how I could make money. I began to notice that my well-being and happiness did not depend on my paycheck or how well I did in my job because I did not have a paycheck or a job.
Once we understand and integrate the idea that our consciousness determines our sense of prosperity, then we can intentionally use our consciousness to expand our sense of prosperity. We can focus on spiritual growth as a tool to fulfillment and abundance rather than continue to try and achieve prosperity by acquiring ever more things.
Generosity and Gratitude are the two classic tools we can use to shift our consciousness away from impoverished thinking and into abundant thinking. I will write more about them over then next few weeks.
Bless you
Affirmation: My consciousness, and only my consciousness, defines my sense of well-being.
Isn’t the key to experiencing prosperity rooted in consciousness? Let’s look at this idea. I think we all we know of people with wealth and material possessions who feel empty and impoverished. Since we also all know of people who are fulfilled and content even though they do not have much in the way of material goods I think it stands to reason that the actual fact of money or things does not predicate an experience of prosperity.
Moreover, I have known people that believe that acquiring some thing that they have been lacking will bring them a sense of prosperity. Then they get that new thing- a new job, a new relationship, a new house, or whatever, but within a short while they are still feeling that same sense of emptiness and impoverishment.
Thus, I think we can conclude that the experience of prosperity or poverty does not arise from a thing. Therefore our experience of prosperity and/or poverty must transcend the thing itself and come from our thinking about the thing. This is another way of saying it comes from our consciousness.
This leads to an interesting conundrum. Say someone is experiencing an impoverished existence. The question is, is it more productive to focus on changing their circumstances or to leave their circumstances alone and focus on transforming their consciousness? You see, I have found that many people are not even open to changing their consciousness about money and prosperity until they are feeling desperately impoverished. Yet, even in this state of desperation, they want to focus on how to make more money or to get a new relationship or some other strategy to get them out of the feeling of lack that is so painful. The thinking that got them into the experience of poverty retains its hold on their choices. Due, I think to the very desperation that leads them to be open on the one level, also leads them on another level to a life of struggle and stress. It seems to me, that for many, the only options they can see to get out of their financial predicament lead to more hard work and struggle. They are so attached to the idea that if they work harder and smarter then they can get out of poverty using external things to alleviate their sense of lack that they are almost totally resistant to a different approach. Our attachment to money and other things as security and as a manner in providing us with our good is just about as all encompassing a belief as we have.
It is, in my experience, a rare person that is feeling desperate for money and work who is willing to step back and examine all their thinking that led them to that desperation in the first place. In my own journey, I was once out of work, having been fired from a series of jobs and desperate. Instead of searching for work, I searched for truth and I spent about six months not looking for a job at all. I was committed to transforming my consciousness first because I did not want to repeat the same pattern of thinking that got me into a desperate jam in the first place.
It was during this period of intense pain and deep reflection that I first learned of the idea of “right livelihood”. I first began to look at how I could serve and support others on their journey rather than how I could make money. I began to notice that my well-being and happiness did not depend on my paycheck or how well I did in my job because I did not have a paycheck or a job.
Once we understand and integrate the idea that our consciousness determines our sense of prosperity, then we can intentionally use our consciousness to expand our sense of prosperity. We can focus on spiritual growth as a tool to fulfillment and abundance rather than continue to try and achieve prosperity by acquiring ever more things.
Generosity and Gratitude are the two classic tools we can use to shift our consciousness away from impoverished thinking and into abundant thinking. I will write more about them over then next few weeks.
Bless you
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