"If Jesus Is A Wayshower, What Did He Show Us?" – Part 7 of Series "The Universal Law of Giving & Receiving"
“If Jesus Is A Wayshower, What Did He Show Us?”
Nancy Detweiler, M.Ed., M.Div.
Revised 2005
Part 7 of Series
“The Universal Law of Giving & Receiving”
We live within a created order that functions according to universal laws. Gravity is a universal law; the cyclic nature of the seasons is another. In order to live in harmony with our world, we must abide by these universal laws. Problems occur when we break or ignore them. These difficulties are not to be considered God’s punishment. They are, instead, the natural consequences of failure to obey the law. For example: If we ignore the law of gravity and choose to jump from a tall building, we naturally fall and suffer injuries or physical death.
Many universal laws are unknown to the general public. Memory of them is buried in the tomb of our materialistic society. Through the generations of adhering increasingly to the explanations of life supplied by the physical plane world, we have forgotten the universal laws that dictate the manner in which our lives unfold. Many of these laws are found in the Bible and the sacred texts of the other world religions. With the birth of quantum physics, scientists are now verifying laws that the ancient mystics taught thousands of years ago. Examples are: All of creation is one, interconnected unity. All of creation is energy vibrating at greater or lesser speeds. All of creation affects all of creation.
The Bible teaches that our lives are ruled by the universal law of reciprocity: “Give and it will be given to you.” (Luke 6:38) This law of giving and receiving is often called the Law of Prosperity. According to Webster’s Dictionary, to prosper means to thrive. To thrive is “to grow vigorously, to flourish, to progress toward or realize a goal.” How can we experience lives that are thriving or prosperous?
Of paramount importance is remembering the Source of all that we have, all that we receive, and all that we give. Charles Fillmore, in his book entitled Prosperity, offers a blessing that reminds us of this Source. It is also an excellent affirmation of the Law of Reciprocity and Prosperity.
“A Blessing for Offerings” Divine Love, through me, blesses and multiplies this offering.
The Father gives abundantly; I receive thankfully,
and give again generously.
This is the bounty of God, and I send it forth
with wisdom and joy.
Divine Love bountifully supplies and increases
this offering.
I give freely and fearlessly, fulfilling the law of
giving and receiving.
Thank you, God.
At the foundation of our being, we are vessels through which the energy of God seeks to manifest. The Source of all Good is God’s loving energy flowing through us. This flow of God-energy never stops. If it did, we would disintegrate instantly. We are, therefore, always receiving an abundance of love, prosperity, perfect health, perfect vocation, perfect relationships, and intuitive guidance. So, why don’t we know this? Why don’t we experience all of these wonderful possibilities in our lives?
Because we break the law of giving and receiving and thereby, create blocks to our life’s ceaseless flow of abundant energy. We dam up this God-energy by neglecting to give as we are receiving from God. Jesus taught: “The kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) Elizabeth Clare Prophet’s chart of our Divine Self is an excellent tool for understanding this concept.
This chart reveals our true state of being. The top portion represents the I AM PRESENCE or kingdom of God within us. This portion of Self is the reservoir for our prosperity. Everything we need comes from this God-Source. A stream of light-energy flows from our I AM PRESENCE into our Christ Self and continues flowing downward into our physical plane daily lives. We live within this capsule of white light that is connected to the kingdom of God within us. Each of us has a direct connection to God and to our abundant supply. This is who we are! It is the reason Jesus taught: “Seek ye first the kingdom of God and its righteousness and all these things will be given to you.” (Matthew 6:33) We seek the kingdom by allowing God to express through us; we seek righteousness by adhering to the universal laws. As a result, all that our Father/Mother God has is ours.
Because we have forgotten who we are, we create all kinds of barriers to the God-energy that is always available to us. We repeatedly look outside of ourselves to find the answer to our needs and desires. We forget our direct connection to the God-energy that will gladly supply all that we need. How can we tear down the barriers we have created that hinder us from thriving in every area of our lives? Let’s look at some examples.
All of us want to prosper economically. Physical plane laws teach us that we must work for everything we have. Universal law states in Luke 6:38: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap; for the measure you give will be the measure you get back.” What a difference! Physical plane law would have us work for a set salary, which may or may not meet our needs. Universal law promises abundance to overflowing, as we give. Of course, the attitude with which we give is the all-important factor. To give grudgingly creates barriers to receiving. Remember we receive as we give. The Apostle Paul taught: “The one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.” (II Corinthians 9:6-8) To give joyfully is to receive in abundance. But, remember the Source. We all receive from the God-Source. We must give, expecting nothing in return from the physical plane. Of course, God will use physical plane avenues through which to provide our abundance, but these avenues may have nothing to do with our jobs. God’s abundance is unlimited and can arrive at our doorsteps through undreamed of channels. To look to the physical plane for our abundance is to turn away from the true Source, the kingdom of God within us. In Luke 21, we find Jesus and his disciples observing the temple worshippers as they bring forward their offerings. “He looked up and saw rich people putting their gifts into the treasury; he also saw a poor widow put in two small copper coins. He said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all of them; for all of them have contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.’” The widow contributed all she had because she knew the Source of her supply. She was not afraid to give all she had at the moment because she knew God would supply her every need.
We must give with a wholeheartedness that holds no fear, no resentment, no hesitation, no selfish motives, and that expects nothing in return. We must give, remembering the Source of our supply. Giving to a person or organization that will use your gift—to expand light and love on our planet—allows the God-energy to flow from you into the world. It removes barriers to your receiving a ceaseless flow of abundance.
Another example of giving and receiving can be found within relationships. How can we create a thriving relationship? The same laws apply to all areas of a thriving lifestyle. We receive exactly what we give. The challenge, we all confront, is that our lives are entangled with physical plane concepts and experiences. We find ourselves afraid to love, lest we get hurt one more time. We find ourselves filled with resentment, anger, and fear—all of which hinder our ability to give cheerfully within a relationship. Or, we may feel deprived or unfulfilled and seek to fill the vacuum in our lives by placing expectations on those with whom we are in relationship. In truth, we deprive ourselves. When we give love with strings attached, we receive love with strings attached. We create thriving relationships by remembering the God-Source within our being. As long as we maintain open channels for the flow of God’s loving energy into our lives, we feel totally loved. As we allow this unconditional love to flow through us and find expression in the way we love others, we will have thriving relationships. It is when we forget the Source, and its unconditional love, that we project love with strings attached.
Another example of giving and receiving is found in the maintenance of perfect physical, emotional, and mental health. Our society displays an almost total disregard for the honoring of our physical bodies as the temple of our indwelling God. On the physical level, we receive perfect health as we give to our bodies well-balanced and nutritious meals, regular physical exercise, relaxing play, and plenty of sleep. On the emotional level, we receive perfect emotional health as we give our emotions a regular diet of beauty in the form of creativity that expresses our unique talents, music that calms and heals, and love of our authentic selves. On the mental level, we receive perfect mental health as we give ourselves a steady diet of uplifting, inspired reading, transmute our error thoughts, and replace them by integrating affirmations of Truth into our lifestyles. As we give loving care to our physical, emotional, and mental bodies, we will receive perfect health in return. We cannot expect perfect health if we, instead, allow these bodies to become repositories of our lack of concern and negative feelings and thoughts. As we rid ourselves of negativity and lovingly care for our bodies, the God-energy has open access to flow through every fiber of our being, granting it perfect health.
Our Father/Mother God awaits the opportunity to fill our lives with all that we could ever desire. But first, we must open our lives to the unfolding of the universal law of giving and receiving. We must know the Source of our supply and be willing to cheerfully share it with others. The flow of giving cannot stop without creating barriers to our receiving. The flow of giving must continue from one person to another, one organization to another. To give where the money will be wasted or misused is to create barriers to our receiving. We must give with the motivation of assisting in the creating of a better world, both for the individual and for the planet. It is wise to give also to the source of our spiritual nourishment. To give in this manner activates the fulfillment of God’s promise: Give and I will “open the windows of heaven and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.” (Malachi 3:10)
UNITY’S PRAYER OF PROTECTION
The Light of God surrounds me,
The Love of God enfolds me,
The Power of God protects me,
The Presence of God watches over me.
Wherever I am, God is.
And, all is well.
BENEDICTION
Go forth, knowing: “Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked [or world], or take the path that sinners [those who ignore the universal laws] tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night. They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season,
