by Peter Woodbury

We have been inundated in recent years by the “abundance” consciousness, the “prosperity gospel” and the “law of attraction”. We demonize lack as a “poverty” consciousness. The proponents of these concepts drive Ferraris and own islands in the Caribbean. Who wouldn’t like an Island in the Caribbean? So we can clearly understand the allure of these ideas. But my thesis today is that the misapplication and misunderstanding of these concepts is largely used to justify greed, excess and selfishness.

I recall from Cayce readings 1637-01 & 02, where a man is told about a past-life in the “Peruvian lands” and how he had gotten involved with some ill-gotten gains, a “treasure”. He had apparently stolen and hidden this treasure from the rightful owners, the native Peruvian people, who had trusted him. So guess where the after session questions went? The man started asking Cayce if the treasure was still in the same place and could the Cayce source “give latitude and longitude of object of quest”! He wanted to go dig it up! After some back and forth, the Cayce sources basically said that these sources will not be used for your continued self-destruction. The theme of the reading was to assist the man spiritually to understand ideals, his karma and how it was influencing him in this life, and what he could do constructively about it, but the man was having none of it. He still maintained the greed and selfishness consciousness of that experience. He wanted the “fool’s” gold not the true gold of the soul.

In the Autobiography of a Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda has a conversation with a “renunciate” – someone who has foregone worldly things (derived from the word renounce – to give up or reject) and is solely focused on the spiritual life. In their conversation, and I paraphrase, the renunciate explains, “It is so interesting to me that I am called a ‘renunciate’ when I am attempting to fully claim my divine inheritance.  I think the general population should be called renunciates, for they are the ones that have renounced the divine and filled their emptiness with material things that are of no eternal substance”.

Then we come to the Master, Jesus, who in in John 10:10, states, “I come that you may have life and have it more abundantly”. This seems to be the essential quote of the proponents of the “abundance” consciousness and “prosperity” gospel. But what did Jesus mean by “life and life more abundantly”? Cayce said Christ is the consciousness and Jesus is the pattern. The pattern for every soul to follow to reunite with God, through the oneness or Christ Consciousness. Now, last I checked, Jesus traveled by foot or donkey, he wore robes. I don’t recall Him having jewelry, fancy transportation or a fat bank account. So if He is the pattern, He certainly wasn’t saying that “abundance” had anything to do with material possessions.

I believe that is the key. What is this abundance Jesus spoke of? Well, He was abundantly connected to God, and in this abundant connection, His needs were taken care of. He didn’t hunger or thirst (until the end) as He trusted in God. Cayce said that He is the example of what is possible for anyone who puts their FULL faith and trust in God. I believe the abundance mentality is the mentality of faith in God, and having that trust that your needs will be met. The “Enough Consciousness”. Let the prayer be, “God, may I, and every soul alive today have enough, have what we need. Not more, not less.” Wouldn’t that be a beautiful world if we shared what we had in excess? Isn’t that the miracle of the fishes and loaves? We achieve abundance through faith and sharing.

There’s several themes in Cayce’s work that have had profound influences on me. One of those is that if you seek to serve, if you seek to “feed my lambs, feed my sheep”, your needs will be met. And if you have a service to offer the world, you can be in the middle of the desert, and people will find you. The original “internet” is the connectivity of all souls on the subconscious level. I had an unusual upbringing in many ways and one of them was that I had been throughout Europe, Africa, South and North America and the Caribbean by the time I was 12. My father wanted me and my siblings to have a large view of the world conditions as they existed. Among many lessons, I saw the gamut of wealth to extreme poverty. My father, an accomplished psychoanalyst, drove an old red Toyota (that only he could get to start!) for at least 25 years. My parents believed in service and in finding the JOY in service. In applying what I have learned throughout my life, I do believe I have an abundant life. I enjoy helping people. My work as a regressionist is dedicated towards helping people reconnect with their soul consciousness. I have more work than I can fulfill, so I have begun teaching. I feel I am on target with my purpose and mission, but I, too, drive a 20 year old Toyota (my dad would be proud!). I have found purpose and meaning in my life through centering myself in loving service and finding the joy in loving service. My physical needs are met, but like the old joke, “I have enough money for the rest of my life…if I die next Tuesday!”  I believe I’ll have enough, whenever that “next Tuesday” comes!

I hope that as we move forward in this 21^st century and towards that time of peace, that we all become forerunners and examples of the “ENOUGH” mentality and consciousness – through loving service, having what we need, sharing and receiving from each other, and claiming that abundant spiritual life that Jesus came to teach us about.