Week 13 – Gratitude IS The Cause

In Sunday’s webinar Mark said something that continues to stick with me, “Gratitude is the cause, not the effect.” I love that!!!

When I heard him say that, I thought about how I say, “Appreciation is how I create.”  They are two ways of saying the same thing.  I didn’t always think this way, it’s been an evolutionary process.  One discovery, added upon another discovery, until eventually, one day … it all came together for me and I realized that over time, I had developed this process.

When I want something, first, I check within to ensure it is in alignment with the Highest Will and noble principles.  Then, I thank the universe for it, as if I already have it.  I appreciate what I already have.  Ergo, appreciation is how I create.  This is how I pray.  I do much more listening than asking.  My asking is mostly for inner wisdom, and guidance.  And I do a massive amount of thanking.

A Simple … Thank You.

Nothing complicated.  Heartfelt thank you’s.  Almost all day long, LOL.

(I’ve added another component since joining the *MKMMA.  Since I’ve clarified my Definite Major Purpose, my DMP, I also weigh in on what I want with my DMP in mind, too.  It’s a great “gate” process to help me manage opportunity costs.)

There’s a scripture in the Bible that used to cause me much consternation growing up.  Jesus was talking with a group of people and he says to them,

“He who has shall be given more.  And he who has not, even that which he has shall be taken from him.”

As a kid, I remember thinking… NOT FAIR!!!! NOT FAIR!!!!!

The whole idea went against my sensibility of what was right and wrong.  I didn’t have sufficient knowledge of Natural Law to understand it’s true meaning.

It wasn’t until I was in my forties that I finally understood what Jesus meant by this statement.  It became clear to me when I was reading a book on how Quakers make decisions together, *Practicing Discernment Together.  It’s a very interesting process.  Their meetings are mostly silence.  Something I can appreciate.  I love silence.  Sometimes, words can get in the way of that deeper inner connection.  It’s like they all get together and do a SIT.

The only speaking that happens is when someone in the meeting feels moved to speak.  There is a definite sense to this.  And they SIT in silence together, with an understanding that each of them, uniquely and collectively, are in communion with the same Higher Being, Beloved, Infinite Intelligence.

There is an enormous amount of trust that emerges from these silent meetings.

By the time I was reading this book, I had already been through A Course in Miracles three times.  The ACIM really brings home, over and over, how cause and effect actually work.  So I had the principle down by then.  Giving and receiving are one.  There is no separation, except in our perception.  If we block giving, we also block receiving.  And if we block receiving, we also block giving.  What we are blocking is the flow of energy that is one, which is why if we block one expression of that energy, we experience a block in overall expression of that energy, like flipping the on/off switch in an electric current.

Currency works best when it is in FLOW.

In any given moment, we are appreciating, or depreciating.  There really isn’t any neutral in this.  Neutral in flow would be like putting your foot on the gas and the brake at the same time.  I also like how Mark and Davene encouraged Movement in this webinar; the importance of moving, keeping energy in flow.

This metaphor of appreciation or depreciation of the flow of energy helped me FEEL how gratitude works in my daily life.

Inhale Love, Exhale Gratitude…

Gratitude ON, Gratitude OFF.

Flow ON, Flow OFF.

Low on energy, time to appreciate, or check where I am depreciating, and FLIP THAT SWITCH.

I’m human, I don’t always get this right, but it’s a metaphor I play with to help me.

*Practicing Discernment Together, spoke about this scripture, in a way that really helped me deepen the connection of its meaning.  To understand better what Jesus meant when he said what he did.  We can only give from what we have.  And if we perceive that we have nothing, or little, our perception will generate the experience of little, even more so.  We give from a sense of “little”.  This generates a downward spiral of the flow of energy.  Putting brakes on the flow of universal currency.

The concepts I learned from Cayce made sense on an even deeper level.  If you want to have friends, be friendly.  If you want to be loved, be loving.  If you want something, imagine what you want, and act as if it is already so.

This is powerful, when understood.  It is life-changing when applied, … when lived.

People often learn in stages.  At first an idea may be heard and automatically rejected as a matter of course, maybe even out of habit.  When it’s been repeated enough, perhaps, it may become heard, but not yet given real consideration.  Eventually, it can become understood, on what I call an intellectual level.  I noticed as a kid, that many of the adults around me, understood things intellectually, but didn’t necessarily apply them.

I was so influenced by Edgar Cayce, and he talked a lot, A LOT, about application.  And personal observation.  It takes time, and repeated action over time, to anchor an understanding deeper and deeper into our being.  To the point that a principle becomes much more than an intellectual exercise but rather a way of being, or as Og Mandino says, a new habit. (It’s brilliant what Mark and Davene offer in *MKMMA, super effective and fast ways of anchoring understanding into our deeper being.)

This is where the practice of patience can become a huge benefit.  As the saying goes,

“In patience, you possess your soul.”

Patience allows perspective.  And perspective smooths the way for persistence.  Each reinforcing the other.

Giving the gift of gratitude, living gratitude day in and day out, primes the creative pump for energy to flow through us and among us.

It’s the spiritual ecology of the human economy.

As Christmas and the New Year approach, I offer, GRATITUDE, Big Fat Dinny THANK YOUs to everyone who has encouraged and supported me, and each other, in OUR *MKMMA Journey.

Be kind and patient with yourself this season, and remember, YOU ARE LOVED.

GRATEFUL: A Love Song to the World | Empty Hands Music | nimo feat. daniel nahmod

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* Practicing Discernment Together, Finding God’s Way Forward in Decision Making

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* Master Key Master Mind Alliance (MKMMA)

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