Journey to Abundance

Abundance is a state of consciousness.  We cultivate abundance when we are grateful for what we have and consume only what we need. This keeps the energy moving so that our supply constantly renews itself and we always have enough.  When more resources than we need flow to us, we gladly share our bounty with others. We stay in the flow by not holding on to more resources than we can use productively and not piling up possessions. Having more toys does not make us happier.  It can even undermine our happiness because we take what we have for granted and cease to value it.  What we don’t value, celebrate or appreciate will not prosper and grow.  It will become a burden that we carry.

Opposite States of Consciousness:  Lack, Scarcity, Poverty, Envy of others, Lack of appreciation for what we have, Selfishness, Stinginess, Hoarding, Not sharing our resources with others, Having too little or too much.  

The Teaching

Contrary to what many people think having more toys does not lead to more joy. Having a barn full of antique cars that you don’t drive may make you the envy of others, but it does not bring as much joy as having one car that you love, work on and drive with pleasure. 
     How many boats or planes or houses do you need to be happy?   Maybe you think you need 5 or 10 or even more.  But the real answer is “none.”  You don’t need any of this stuff to be happy.  Joy comes in the celebration and productive use of the possessions you have, even if they are few.
     Jesus told us that it is easier for a camel to move through the eye of a needle than it is for a rich man to enter heaven.   That is because the rich man is burdened by what he owns.  He must serve it, warehouse it, maintain it, protect it.   He becomes the servant of what he owns.   This is true for any addiction that we have. 
     He also reminded us that we can’t take any of this with us, so we should not store up riches on earth, where they will wither and decompose.  Instead we should seek spiritual riches that create joy for ourselves and others.  For these riches can be shared and will grow and prosper.
     On earth, forms come and go.   Each is but the container and the container has a useful life.  It may be a year or two, or it might be 20 years, but in the end the form will break down and a new form with need to be created.
     The Law of Thermodynamics tells us that energy cannot be created or destroyed but it can be transferred.  When the old form dies, the energy embodies in a new form.   This is the extraordinary process of death and rebirth  that enables growth and transformation to occur.
     If we are going to live in the flow of abundance, in which there is always enough for everyone, we cannot be attached to the forms.  The attachment to form creates suffering, because all forms will need to be surrendered. If we want to be rich in spirit, we must align with the energy, not with the form through which it expresses. 
     So for example, joy is an energy.  You can feel joy in a possession that you actively and enthusiastically use, but when that possession breaks or is destroyed, you need to let it go and hold onto the joy.  Find another vehicle to express your joy.  There are many vehicles, many pathways to choose from.
     Joy and gratitude are spiritual riches, not material ones.   Expressing your joy or inspiring joy or gratitude in others is the real currency of abundance.  It does not matter what the form is.  You can be a basketball coach working with kids or a nurse working with cancer patients. The currency is not the job description but the energy you invest and express in your job.
      Abundance comes from giving and receiving energy.  So choose a form that enables your energy to express as freely and spontaneously as possible   The more energy flows in your consciousness and relationships with others the more joyful and abundant your life will be. 
     Lack, poverty, scarcity, happen only when you stop giving your energy freely. Then the energy slows down.  It may even become fixed.  That creates a blockage that must be removed for the energy to flow again.  How do you remove the blockage?  You open your heart, you trust, you share, you stop trying to protect or control.  You open up the channel so that energy can flow again.
     So if there is lack in your life, it is because you are holding on and trying to control. You are not giving love, so how can love return to you?  
     Don’t spend your time envying the possessions of other people and feeling like an unworthy victim because you have less than they do. That is a game that you cannot win.  It just traps you in fear and limitation.  Instead, be happy for them and hope that what they have is bringing joy into their lives.   Be happy for the success of others and you will attract success into your own life.   Give what you would receive and your gift will set the energy in motion.  What you send out will come around to you when the time is right.
     You don’t succeed by withholding love from others.  So extend a helping hand when you can.  Give a few words of praise or a smile.  Don’t underestimate your gifts but give them freely. 
     Don’t focus on what you want and do not have. That creates scarcity and lack in your life.  It reinforces your victimhood.  Instead, focus on what you do have and are free to give.  That creates the flow of abundance in your life. 

The Practice

Today, practice being grateful for what you have.  Express your appreciation to others.  Share your riches, your possessions and your love.   What you value, share and appreciate will prosper and grow.
     Don’t take what you have for granted.  Don’t depreciate the gift that you have been given.  If and when you feel you don’t have enough and need more, realize that this is a sign of that you are not valuing the gifts that have been given to you.  Don’t look for more.  Don’t focus on what is absent or missing or you will reinforce the scarcity you are experiencing in your life.  Focus instead on the feeling “I have been given what I need.  By expressing my gratitude and appreciation, I can grow what I have.” The seed can be watered and become a thriving plant.
     Don’t be angry at God or the universe because he gave you only a seed.   Don’t waste your time envying others whose plants are fully grown.   Get busy, plant the seed and water it.  Tend to your garden and the harvest will come.
    You are not as victim. God did not give you less than he gave to others, even if it appears that way.  Learn to look through the eyes of Spirit and see that God gave you exactly what you need to realize your full potential.   Even if seems that He is asking you to work a little harder than your neighbor, that too can be a gift, because it will make you stronger and more determined.
     Don’t focus just on the material gifts that have been given to you.  You cannot take them with you.  Focus instead on the spiritual gifts that have been placed in your hands and share them with others.   When you do that you will see how the universe is supporting you and your faith will be renewed.

Journaling Question

Abundance comes from giving and receiving energy.  What form best enables your energy to express freely and spontaneously?