I've Been Stealing From You!

You only get out of something what you bring into it, whether it is your job, your relationships, watching a movie, or reading a book. They all help you to get to know yourself better in some way. The more awareness we can bring into what we do, the less we will rush and miss the things we need to see about ourselves.”

John D. Mosley

Photo by Judy Beth Morris on Unsplash

Have you ever gone down the self-improvement aisle at your local library?

Even if your library is a very small one, like mine, i'd be willing to bet that there are dozens, if not hundreds of titles on personal development, success, spiritual fulfillment and other related areas.

Go on YouTube, and you'll find thousands of meditation videos, TED talks on productivity, morning routines for high performance, and every other conceivable self-empowerment system under the sun.

You can find podcasts, blog posts, social media posts, Tik-toks, Instagram reels, and countless other avenues that will point you in the same direction.

But if all this is readily available, just for the cost of a few keystrokes, or a short drive into town, why do so many of us struggle to make the simplest changes? Why is success and happiness so elusive?

Why are we all not masters, surrounded by masters?

Could it be that what we need is not then knowledge, but rather wisdom? The ability to separate the wheat from the chaff. The discernment to know what to retain and what to discard.

which brings me to…

The Stealing

In the past weeks, I’ve been listening to the masterful series of books “Conversations with God” by Neale Donald Walsch.

In it, "God"( voiced masterfully by the incomparable Ed Asner and Ellen Burstyn) voices the thought we often ask ourselves about those who do “spiritual work”:

"How can you accept money for what you are doing? For this book that you believe will change lives, and is changing lives?"

After several rounds of arguments with God, the author arrives at the idea that people value things that they see other people value.

It is by giving value to a thing, and only by that giving of value, i.e. a monetary value, that we actually receive that value.

Furthermore, we will receive value in exact proportion to that value we assign, if only to justify what we spent. As not to feel like we were taken. Like we are stupid.

So, in our attempt to be kind, gracious, and giving, we disempower those we seek to uplift. We steal the value we hope to provide. We become like cat burglars. Thieves in the night. Barabas’s who would stand in the way of salvation.

Barabas was a thief, or robber, sentenced to be crucified alongside Jesus. 7 days before the crucifixion (there’s that number again!). At the feast of the Passover, a choice was made for one prisoner to be set free. The people decided to free Barabas and keep the savior. The idea of this story is that we must release those things, those illusions, which would rob us of our opportunity to know our savior.

My Sob Story

As I've said before, Three years ago, I got sucked into a coaching program that (almost certainly) put me in far over my head for the level I was at (zero).

I had dreams of quitting my job in months and becoming a full-time coach (health and fitness at the time) I believed in my heart the words of salespeople with high commissions and high quotas who were only too happy to prop up my dreams to the level of certainty.

(This is a lesson I should have learned from my time in the Army Reserve - Never believe the stories of recruiters!)

About halfway through, I realized that my dream wasn't going to happen in the allotted year of the program. But by that point, it was too late to get anything back from my Seventeen-Thousand-Dollar investment.

(Yes it was that much. And before you call me a fool, and how you never would have done such a thing, and proceed to make yourself feel better about yourself - well know that is kind of the point of this lesson - to help you dispel illusions - of need, of lack, of insufficiency and superiority - and find freedom)

Rising from the Ashes

But a funny thing happened because of that experience of loss.

The knowledge of what I put in, and the fire I had kindled by doing so, sustained me.

It sustained me through endless lean months where I saw no signs of success and soul-crushing heartbreak which threatened to tear my family apart.

It led to a profound spiritual awakening and the realization that happiness and peace are available - Right Now!

And now the idea that I am a great teacher, showing the way for others to their own fulfillment, has become so ingrained in my psyche, and imprinted on my soul, that the thought of giving up has become inconceivable.

By giving up any thought of resentment, I came to realize that I had never lost anything at all.

Everything that I gave, even that grand sum of $17,000 that I had to mortgage my house to acquire, I gave to myself.

And knowing that now, I would have given up so much more to learn that lesson.

Your Opportunity Awaits!

So now I’m giving you the opportunity to do the same.

As much as you may enjoy the poems and posts I produce, I know you are not getting the value that you could out of them.

For the simple fact that I’ve been giving them to you, without charging anything!

That’s how I’ve been stealing from you - by taking away the value that you could have received from them.

So starting with this post, I’m giving you that value back by making these longer Wednesday posts available in their entirety for subscribers only.

Now I know it may not seem like it, and you may resent me, and think I’m the very definition of evil for doing such a thing, but I am giving you a gift. I know that in my heart. And I hope that you’ll come to see it that way.

Why I’m Doing This Now

The reason I’m making this move today is I have something wonderful in store for you.

Something monumental. Something that will change everything you thought you knew about success, happiness and the game of life.

Something that will turn your current paradigm on its head, and light the way to the path you have forgotten.

I can’t wait to develop it, and share it with you as I go!

I’m not asking for a lot. In fact, I’m asking only for the bare minimum that Substack allows.

But I’m betting that even that little bit will be enough for you to see the beauty and abundance around you, and to see your life for what it could be.

Thanks so much for your time and friendship. It means the world to me!

And for those of you with the courage to take that next step, I have included a special message below…

A poem about what it takes to know yourself as one with God!

Truth does not struggle against ignorance and love does not attack fear.

A Course in Miracles

Would You?

How much do you want peace?
How badly?