There\u2019s always been a debate between the availability of spiritual material and its cost.\u00a0 Can you put a price on illumination?\u00a0 People want salvation \u2013 however that word is comprehended, and the idea that the rich can buy it and the poor cannot has caused schisms in the great religions of the world for centuries. Today, the pursuit of illumination has left the churches and meeting halls empty. It has jumped from the pages of books and landed in the wide-open world of cyberspace. Not long ago the person who wanted to gain spiritual insight had to make an effort.\u00a0 They had to buy books or attend classes, all of which led them outside the confines of their comfort zone, and demanded some type of commitment.\u00a0 They had to spend money.\u00a0 They had to decide how valuable the spiritual pursuit was in relationship to their other activities.\u00a0 In one sense they all followed the command of the Master to \u201csell all that you have\u2026 and follow me<\/i>.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those who distribute and facilitate spiritual wisdom have a responsibility to maintain the value of what they offer.\u00a0 On the one hand it is a gift beyond price that is freely given.\u00a0 But without a degree of commitment, without making spiritual realization the most important part of one\u2019s life, what is gained can turn to ash.<\/p>\n
Two generations ago Joel Goldsmith gave his message to the world.\u00a0 It was a gift of love, and the dedication and work that went into his teaching of presenting the nature of spiritual union, brought him great reward. He taught that the words on the page were \u201cyesterday\u2019s mana,\u201d and that the lessons on the recordings were his<\/i> demonstration.\u00a0 Everyone must have his or her own demonstration of the Truth.\u00a0 No one can live on someone else\u2019s revelation.\u00a0 So how do you take possession of this universal Truth?\u00a0 How do you make it your own?\u00a0 You put everything you have into building your individual consciousness of truth. And the only way you can do that is through giving.<\/p>\n
Sacrifice is not a popular word in today\u2019s culture.\u00a0 Neither is patience.\u00a0 Society\u2019s infatuation with the Internet and social media has only increased the desire for instant gratification.\u00a0 But without giving up one\u2019s attraction to the world of material sense, none of the fruits of the spirit can be demonstrated.\u00a0 It takes patience to wean one\u2019s self off of the pleasures of this world.\u00a0 For many this is a sacrifice. It is so only because people desire the manifestations of the material forms of good rather than the source of that good. \u00a0When one realizes the infinite nature of Grace within them, the sacrifice changes into gratitude, into the realization that the abundance of life is not personal, and is never something an individual can possess. One is not giving up anything of value by turning to the Truth. In Joel\u2019s book, \u201cA Parenthesis in Eternity,\u201d he says, \u201cLiving in the fourth-dimensional consciousness, we seek nothing from the dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
So how does the serious student relate to the volume of Truth available on the Internet?\u00a0 Have pearls been thrown before swine, to be trampled?\u00a0 Those who seek this way of life to be healthy and rich will find neither wealth nor a perfect body.\u00a0 Those who realize \u201cI can of mine own self can do nothing\u2026 but the will of the Father which has sent me,\u201d<\/i> will find that God\u2019s will is that we have abundant life. The secret to an abundant life is gratitude.\u00a0 So we come back to the value of Truth.\u00a0 To make what you gather from the web effective in your lives, there must be a cost.\u00a0 It is not imposed upon you.\u00a0 It is not a requirement to participate.\u00a0 But without it you cannot reach the depths of consciousness where you can \u201ctake no thought for your life.\u201d\u00a0 It is your choice.\u00a0 Freedom in body, mind and soul is in direct proportion to the gratitude you tangibly express.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
There\u2019s always been a debate between the availability of spiritual material and its cost.\u00a0 Can you put a price on illumination?\u00a0 People want salvation \u2013 however that word is comprehended, and the idea that the rich can buy it and … Continue reading