 Fair
Or Powerful?by Alan Cohen I visited a church where a husband and wife team of ministers conducted the services each Sunday morning. At the outset of their ministry, the two took turns delivering the sermon. On the Sundays when the wife, who is a very eloquent speaker, addressed the congregation, large numbers of people showed up. On the alternate Sundays, when the husband spoke, about half the number of congregants attended. When the couple became aware of the disparity in attendance, they decided that no matter how many people showed up, the fair thing to do was to continue to give each minister an equal opportunity to speak. But as time went on the numbers of listeners to the wife increased, and the number of listeners to the husband decreased. Moreover, the church was facing financial challenges. The couple revisited their agreement and conceded that the universe was giving them a clear message: it was obvious the wife was to be the Sunday speaker. Although the husband’s ego was bruised, he admitted he did not really enjoy speaking, and there were other aspects of the ministry to which he was more attracted, such as working with the youth group. So the couple divided their responsibilities according to their personal strengths and the maximal results they could each manifest. Soon the Sunday attendance shot up every week, the youth group attendance swelled, and the church stepped into unprecedented financial prosperity. Success does not issue from what looks fair on paper, but from what yields the most powerful results. If it works, it is fair; if it is not working, it is not fair. Each one of us prospers individually when we are true to our own talents and heart’s desires. This same principle also applies to all relationships and organizations. Whatever you have depends not on a set of stock external rules, but on the consciousness which you are holding. The Law of Attraction determines that you are always getting exactly what you deserve by virtue of the beliefs and attitudes you embrace. When a friend of mine set out to work in a program to help inner city residents, she began with great idealism and a sense of injustice that these poor people were downtrodden by society. “If only these downtrodden people had money like the rich,” she muttered, “they would have an equal chance to succeed.” After a few years in the program she changed her tune. “I don’t think it is money they need,” she admitted. “What they really need is the knowledge of what to do with the money.” Regularly she saw people spend their paychecks and government subsidies on liquor or drugs. Very few people used money on behalf of uplifting themselves. She discovered the best way to help people who live in poverty is to reveal to them their inner riches and help them discover their self-worth so they will use their resources not to keep themselves downtrodden, but for self-improvement that proceeds from inside out. A minister recounted that before a Sunday service a woman came into his church and told him she was going to commit suicide because she didn’t have any money for breakfast for herself and her child. The minister gave her $25 to buy groceries. The woman came back after the service and complained she was still hungry. “What did you do with the $25 I gave you?” he asked. “I bought lottery tickets.” she answered. There is a theory that if all the money in the world were redistributed equally among all the people of the world, within six months the money would be back in its original hands in the original proportions. This is not because life is unjust, but because it is totally just — each of us manifests according to our own consciousness. Life is always fair, but it is fair according to principles that proceed from a place far more intrinsic than the surface rules by which we have been taught to evaluate fairness. A Course in Miracles reminds us, “I am under no laws but God’s.” Life is fair in that the situations around us are a perfect reflection of the thoughts, beliefs, attitudes, and expectations we hold. The moment we recognize the utter justice of our manifestations, we become extremely powerful, for we realize that we are imbued with the power to co-create with God. “Here is a blank canvas and a palette of beautiful paints,” the Universe says to us. “You are free to paint whatever picture you wish. And if you don’t like what you have painted, you are free to paint a new and more rewarding one.” If you align your actions with your inner vision, your manifestations will be both powerful and fair to everyone you meet. As you are true to yourself, you will serve and bless the entire world, for your authenticity proceeds from the divine principle, “as you think, so shall it be.” |
