Today continues our multi-part series, “Prosperity is…”
You have a dear friend whom you love very much. You want them to know how much you really care for them, so you spend time, money, effort and put a lot of thought into giving them a special gift, one that you know they will really like. You know this friend intimately so the gift is especially tailored just for them.
On the day you give them the gift, you are excited, in anticipation of their reaction and their awareness of how much you love them. You give them the gift and they unwrap it….
And they lightly toss it on the table, barely looking at it, totally distracted and unappreciative.
How do you feel? What do you think?
This is what occurs when the Universe gives us a gift and we fail to recognize it. We gloss over the importance of the gift, miss the love and care that went into the gift with barely a glance and a dismissive wave of our hand.
If this happened to you, will you be giving this person another gift anytime soon? Probably not.
An ungrateful person is more than someone who is thoughtless and rude. They are actively blocking their own good! They are sending out strong vibrations to other people and to God that they are not ready to receive more gifts.
Do not be fooled by a person’s outer trapping of wealth. Many ungrateful people have plenty of money. What they lack is far more valuable.
Ungrateful people generally can be greedy, full of anxiety, unhappy, angry, arrogant, entitled, miserly, callous and rude. They can have serious health issues, phobias and paranoid tendencies. They are most likely unappreciative, have little sympathy or empathy for others, are secretly full of fear and envy, grandiose and full of false bravado.
Of course, these are extremes. Most people are at least somewhat grateful for some people and things in their life. Most people have some capacity for appreciation, recognizing the good that comes their way.
Gratitude is one of the most powerful attributes we can acquire, cultivate and grow as we deepen our prosperity consciousness. Practicing and strengthening an “attitude of gratitude” is a sure way to raise our vibration, which the Universe will rise up to meet.
And as we grow in gratitude, the Universe will respond, seeing that we are ready for greater and greater gifts of the Spirit.
A cheap type of gratitude where we see a news item about a tragedy somewhere in the world and think, “There but for the Grace of God go I.”
Comparing our lives to someone who is worse off is not ideal, but if that is what someone needs to generate a feeling of gratitude, so be it.
Gratitude as a feeling is a step up from not noticing our good at all, or worse — being actively ungrateful. Feeling grateful is a good way to start on the road up to being completely grateful for everyone and everything all of the time!
That’s right! One prayer I have used for decades is:
Thank you God for everything. I have no complaints whatsoever
This is a tall order, and although I have had moments where it is 100% true for me, those are rare.
No complaints? None?
Thank you for everything? Really? Everything?
That means the unexpected money that came in the mail. Of course. But…..
That also means the Stage IV cancer diagnosis I received in 2016? Wait! What?
High level gratitude is not just gratitude for the good things, the easy things, the pleasurable things. Gratitude on steroids is gratitude for the hard things, the difficult things, the painful things.
How can I find gratitude for the tragic loss of a loved one, the illness, low funds and no work? You must be crazy….
I can only speak from my own experience and relate the things I’ve done that have worked to bring me up and out of fear, worry and despair into a life of ease and freedom, prosperity and constantly flowing good.
And believe me, I do not do this perfectly or easily. Each new challenge is, well…. a challenge — to recommit to gratitude and to strengthen my faith in the goodness and wisdom of the Universe.
What could you not accept, if you but knew that everything that happens, all events, past, present and to come, are gently planned by One Whose only purpose is your good?
Perhaps you have misunderstood His plan, for He would never offer pain to you.
But your defenses did not let you see His loving blessing shine in every step you ever took.
While you made plans for death, He led you gently to eternal life.
Again, what a tall order! to find gratitude in difficult circumstances. When I was diagnosed in 1996 with HIV/AIDS, I certainly struggled to find anything good about it. I had seen friends suffer and die young, including my partner who passed away when he was only 25.
I talk about my illnesses, my partner, Willie’s death, and the death of a beloved pet, Sa’Mone in 2013, in my book, Prosperity Now! A 12-Week Journey to the Life of Your Dreams. All of these extremely difficult incidents were not met with immediate gratitude instantaneously, I can assure you!
But with time and with the support of people walking a spiritual path, with effort and with the constant reminder to “see things right,” these tragedies, and other difficulties in my life have morphed into bittersweet memories and powerful blessings!
In life and in their tragic deaths, both Willie and Sa’Mone created more good and more joy than sadness and sorrow. Pain, sorrow, and sadness are difficult and overwhelming, but the Way of the Universe is such that good always arises from tragedy, good that is always greater than the “bad.”
Laurie Anderson, poet and wife of musician Lou Reed, said at Lou’s death, “The purpose of death is to release love.” Think about that. All our love is lying there, unexpressed, in potential. If we “see it right,” we experience love pouring out in our grief—love that was there all along, waiting to be expressed.
But what about those who suffer tragedy? What about people who lose their lives or go through traumatic experiences?
Once, a mystic told me, “Just because someone we pray for dies, don’t ever think they didn’t get the miracle they needed.”
There is a much larger picture than we can see with our human eyes. Trust that God is all-good, that we are cared for and protected. When the world throws us a giant mess, a tragedy, or an unexpected sorrow, at some point, we can move through the feelings toward a place of peace, acceptance, and faith that goodness and love are there for us and for everyone affected.
One evening I received a phone call from my friend Cliff, a Jewish man from Brooklyn who discovered A Course in Miracles and became a world-class love exuder. Cliff just went around finding good and beauty in everyone he met. On the phone, Cliff told me, “I just called to tell you how much I love and appreciate you.”
“Well, thank you Cliff,” I answered, delighted. “I really appreciate
that . . . What prompted you to call me at this moment?”
“My knee was hurting me, and I knew that the only way I could feel better would be to give more love. So I began to think of the people in my life who I care about, and you came to mind.”
Thank you for everything. I have no complaint whatsoever.
This brief story illustrates an even higher aspect of gratitude. Next week we will talk more about the power of gratitude for bringing good into our lives despite appearances.
I am always available to help anyone with these concepts. Please contact me if you have thoughts or questions.
I discuss some of my prosperity successes and health challenges in the book, Prosperity Now! and am happy to talk to and work with anyone who is challenged by lack and limitations in their lives. As people who have worked with me know, I do not charge for my time so money should not be an obstacle.
Love and Blessings
John
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