For the last 3 weeks, we have opted to spend our Sunday’s in God’s creations in the vast mountains of West Virginia and North Carolina, instead of within the walls of a church building. We have been listening to our studies as we travel and I have been overwhelmed with a deeper more spiritual, more personal relationship with God in the process. I want to share some of my personal thoughts and insights that I have gained over the last couple of years and refreshed on over the last 3 weeks . . . If you saw the hit movie, Eat, Pray, Love (or read the book), you know that Elizabeth Gilbert (played by Julia Roberts) has a relationship crisis and decides to spend a year in Italy, India and Indonesia, in that order. In the scene when she first arrives in Italy, she surveys the breathtaking beauty around her and says: “There is a wonderful, old, Italian joke about a poor man who goes to church every day and prays before the statue of a great saint, begging, ‘Dear saint, please, please, please let me win the lottery.’ Finally, the exasperated statue comes to life and looks down at the begging man and says, ‘My son, please, please, please buy a ticket.’ So now l get the joke… And I’ve got three tickets.” Now I’m not telling you this story to encourage anyone to go out and buy a lottery ticket. I am referring to the “Tickets of Life”. In other words, have you stepped out in faith towards that thing you want? Have you taken a bold move? Aristotle once said, “Nature abhors a vacuum.” Stepping out, facing your fear, taking action, doing something – all of these, in effect, create a vacuum. They place a demand on the universe. It’s like asking a question of God. If there’s no question, there’s no answer. Most of the time, people have this backwards. So they wait. And wait. And then wait some more. And you know what they’re usually waiting for? Money. In fact, they believe that’s “how” they’re going to buy their ticket. It’s why they’re waiting and what they’re waiting for. But that’s not the way it works. You have to buy your ticket…first. You have to take action…first. You give the universe something to respond to…first. It’s a bit counter intuitive, I know. And honestly, it took me years to understand it. Let’s face it…when you’re broke, the first words out of your mouth are “I can’t afford it” whether it is to pay bills, buy groceries, or put gas in the car. Let alone the concept of giving it away. WHAT? Give what money I have away? Yes, that’s right. Give it away. The same applies to anything and everything in life. These are all “Tickets to Life”: • If you want more time; then give time. Spend a couple hours with a lonely person or volunteering in your community. Your time will be multiplied back to you. You will “miraculously” accomplish more in less time. • If you want companionship, then be a companion to someone. Go places, do things, or just hang out and enjoy your time together. You will get as much if not more blessing from doing this as the person you are a companion to. • If you want a relationship, then you must open yourself up and allow the other person to get to know the real you. Not the façade we all show to the world. You will be blessed with solid relationships when you trust God as first in all of your relationships. • If you want love, then BE love. Love others as you would have them love you. Watch the love flow. • And back to money. Yes, if you want more money, give it away. Set the universe into action. It is like a bouncing ball, what goes up must come down. Or like a ping pong game, the ball goes across the table back and forth and back and forth. The same with money, allow yourself to be only a vehicle through which money passes. Allow what comes in, to flow back out, some to pay bills, some to buy groceries and gas, but give some to BLESS others, (those in real need). It is in that which we give away to BLESS others that our blessings flow back to us. The more we give, the more we receive. But give with a LOVING and non-expectant heart, not a calculator. If you only give with a measure the size of a gnat, you will receive a gnat of blessings in return. If you give with a measure the size of an elephant, you will receive an elephant size blessing. Just give in love and be blessed. But here’s the deal: Getting MORE money, time, companionship, relationships, love, or anything else, involves some sort of transformation. You have to transform your mindset. You have to become somebody who thinks and believes differently than you do now. When you go through this inner process, you’ll begin to see, choose and act differently. You then will have bought your “Ticket to Life”. This is the Divine Plan that God expects of us. It all comes down to Love, Faith, and Trust and then ACTING out what you are and who you are. A creation of God. Living Life as He designed us to do. - Carol Arnold - Derived from several different studies including Joe Vitale, the Holy Bible, and my life experience.
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 00:34:27 +0000
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