Before ‘enlightenment,’ I thought I was a generous person. Back in the late nineties, while at a Thanksgiving Eve service, I proudly declared, “I am grateful that I can share canned goods with those in less fortunate circumstances.” A dear friend laughed at my statement; I didn’t understand what was humorous.
I now realize that I gave away something that was valueless. The items that we have in the physical world are a loss to us and a gain to the receiver once we give them away. A Course in Miracles says, “To the ego, this is perceived as a means of getting rid of something it does not want.” (T-7.VIII.1)
The Holy Spirit’s fundamental law is sharing. Share what is in your mind and notice that it is still there. When we focus on a thought, it increases. Choose to give away love, joy, peace, harmony, or any other quality of God. Notice what is returned to you. We get what we give.
A Course in Miracles says, “If you share an idea, however, you do not lessen it. All of it is still yours although all of it has been given away. Further, if the one to whom you give it accepts it as his, he reinforces it in your mind and thus increases it. If you can accept the concept that the world is one of ideas, the whole belief in the false association the ego makes between giving and losing is gone.” (T-5.I.11)
A Course in Miracles study group meets in the Education Bldg. on Monday nights from 6:30-8:00 pm. New and continuing students welcome.