Because there is still so much wonder in the moment…

Do you realize how freakin’ amazing it is that a plane this size can fly in the air?  Or that you can travel 500 miles an hour eating ordinary food?  There’s a power outlet for your laptop.  And do you realize how freakin’ amazing a laptop is?

And what about your cell phone?  Forget cell phones. Have you ever seen a fax machine?  You’ve got to be kidding!  You take a piece of paper, write something on it, push it through some rollers in New York and the exact replicate comes up two seconds later in Hong Kong?

Have you ever studied a praying mantis?  Noticed the bark pattern of a tree?  Just sucked on a blade of grass?

Think of all the astonishing, amazing, and spectacular things all around you at this very instant.

When’s the last time you appreciated it with wide-eyed wonder it really deserves?

P. S.  I’m here at the NSA Conference.  If you’re here and you see me, give me a shout.

-RG

Stop beating yourself up.

That position is already taken.  There are plenty of people that will do that for you.  There are governments that will do that for you.  The media will do that for you.  Organized religion will do that for you.  You may be in a relationship with someone that does that for you.  They don’t need any more help.

There is only one person in the world that has to believe in you.  That is you.  And there are more.  I am one of them.  But the one that matters most is you.

So if you ever get doubtful, or need a little reassurance, come back here.  And remember…

You are amazing!

-RG

Let’s go deeper…

Do be afraid of fear.  Be afraid the day you have no fear.

Because the point you have no fear – is the point when you settled for a life of mediocrity.  Don’t you dare ever settle for that!

Seek out your fear.  Embrace your fear.  And live in the fringe of fear – because that’s where the breakthrough live!

- RG

Now we have a little different take on it at my church than some others do. 

Some read the Bible and classify man as having original sin.  In Unity, we see it as original blessing.

That’s why if you watched the service, when the choir sang Amazing Grace, they substituted the word “soul” for “wretch.”  We don’t think people are wretched.  We believe you are a perfect child of God.

But because we’re human, we sometimes get off course and make mistakes.  When you are getting less than prosperous results, that is a sign that you have made a mistake.  Those mistakes offer us the lessons we discussed in the last post.

When you’re on the path of enlightenment, you learn from the lesson and move on to the next one.  And here’s the gospel, which actually means good news:  If you do make a mistake, you have the benefit of grace.

And that’s amazing!

-RG

The title was, Be Rich for God.  And one of the areas we looked at was the lessons we receive from the universe, and what they mean for us.

A dysfunctional relationship is a lesson.  An addiction is a lesson.  So is a scary medical diagnosis, a business failure, or a car accident.

Sometimes we are being taught the lesson, and sometimes we are the vessel teaching it.   And when the lesson is for you, and you don’t want to learn it, there’s no rush.  The universe will be happy to send it again! 

One thing I know is this:

The things I hated the most, the most difficult challenges I ever endured – offered me the greatest gifts.  Of course I didn’t realize it at the time…

When my business was seized by the IRS and auctioned off, that wasn’t a lesson I wanted to learn.  But if that wouldn’t have happened – I would still be working 14 to 16 hours a day in a restaurant, and never discovered my true assignment in life.

Getting shot and left for dead isn’t a learning experience I would particularly recommend.  But if I didn’t face down death like that, I could never appreciate life the way I do now.

Whatever challenge you’re going through, make sure it’s one you’re also growing through.  Learn the lesson and look for the hidden gift.

And know that the more difficult the challenge – the greater the ultimate gift!

- RG

Even more important are the questions you ask yourself…

Because you are capable of a tremendous amount of self-programming yourself, whether you are aware of it or not.  A big component of this is your expectations, mindset, and how you frame things.

For example, you could ask, “Can I do this?’  Or you could ask, “How can I do this?”

You could ask, “Can this even be done?”  Or you could ask, “If it could be done, how would it be done?

If that sound simplistic or trivial to you, I promise you it is not.  So what kind of questions do you ask yourself?

-RG

As I am preparing the service I will be doing at Unity on the Bay this Sunday, those words from Psalm 35 keep rattling around in my mind.  After much reflection, the title I chose for my talk is, “Be Rich for God.”

As always, I’m not here to convert anyone.  And labels don’t interest me.  It doesn’t matter to me what you call your God, or even if you think of it as nature or a universal power.  I love the scripture above for a number of reasons.  Shouting for joy in a righteous cause celebrates that God has our back, and everything that happens is Divine Order.

The next part reminds us to always be grateful, and encourages us to exalt a power greater than ourselves.  And the last part really brings it home, because it affirms that your creator wants prosperity for you.

Sunday I will take it farther and suggest that God not only wants you to be prosperous, but actually needs you to be prosperous.

What do you think about that?  Any questions or thoughts you’d like to see me address Sunday?

BTW, doesn’t matter where you live.  We’ll be streaming the entire service live.  Join me to get a peek at my spiritual home.  You’ll see the service, a guided meditation, and a musical sign language performance from a troupe of deaf kids you have to see to believe.   It will go from 11 am to 12:30 eastern time on Sunday.  Watch the live feed here:   http://www.livestream.com/randygage

- RG

The Miami New Times blog has a post up this morning on Mitt Romney’s taxes that is so reeking of negative memes about money it is breathtaking in its scope.  (DISCLOSURE: I love New Times, as it is a great alternative paper.  And it will always hold a fond position in my heart, because then editor Jim Mullin bought the very first freelance article I ever wrote.  And I love their blog because it’s an edgy, thought-provoking, no-holds-barred look at the circuses we call government and politics in Miami.)

But this post today has as much per capita per paragraph negative programming as you’re likely to find anywhere.

People are very emotional about money, so it’s very susceptible to memes.  Pandering to people’s beliefs that money is bad and rich people are evil is like shooting fish in a barrel.  And this post today certainly does that!

It starts with a compelling headline:

Mitt Romney’s Tax Forms’ Craziest Revelations:  Swiss Accounts, Mormon Payouts, Low Taxes

Even the National Inquirer would be hard pressed to top that.  Then they take a photo of Romney and Photoshop in a few crisp 100-dollar bills over the flag, to ensure that even the most dim-witted mouth-breather gets the connection.  (As demonstrated by the reader who comments “to damn rich to be president!”)

Then check the language sprinkled through the piece:

“insanely rich”

“all in pure profit from investments, not working wages”

“the real dirt on Romney’s cash”

Then it looks at tithing, one of the most spiritual of all prosperity practices and labels it “Mormon payouts.”   It’s not often I bypass a chance to rant against organized religion, but that is a is a bit over the top even for me!

Forget the politics, forget the parties, forget the candidates.  Simply look at the subliminal messages in the post about money and wealth.  And know you are being programming with thousands more like this every day.  This is just one of thousands of reports, articles and posts that will be filed today, filled with sensationalistic language about Romney’s tax returns.  Most aren’t as blatant in their hated of money as this one.  But they’re even more dangerous to your prosperity because they don’t jump out so obviously.

Thoughts?

-RG

But that is missing the point…

The real path is the one where you no longer desire drugs, drink, or cheating.  You become the person for whom these things hold no allure. 

Your morality comes not from obeying rules or laws, but from living in accord with the values you believe in, and the principles you hold.

-RG

Money is not evil.  Money is neutral.  But it does amplify what you already are, good or evil.  And it certainly can be used for manipulation and mind control for evil ends.  You are seeing some breathtaking examples of this in the current presidential primary election taking place here in the States.

But the lessons we can learn apply to people everywhere…

This election will be the most expensive, bitter, and divisive contest in our lifetime.  Money and mind manipulation techniques will be used to pit poor against the wealthy, and as a wedge between the races.  In you live in America, you will be assaulted with more manipulative programming in one year, than you have ever experienced in your life thus far.

So let’s talk about what you are already seeing, what you can expect in the general election, and how you counteract against all the negative mind viruses that will be swirling around the data-sphere…

We have to start with ABC presenting the interview with Marianne Gingrich on Thursday evening.  This report was unconscionable for ABC to air.  There was no real news value in an ex wife gossiping about her former husband from a divorce ten or 12 years ago.  None.

So why was it aired?

Money.  Or more specifically, the money that is produced by higher ratings, which produces higher commercial rates.  This was a blatant sellout by ABC for a buck, and another step over the line from news reporting to sensationalistic infotainment.

Now John King did the right thing asking the first question about it…  

King is one of the most astute political minds on television, and well respected on both sides.  He’s a consummate professional who was doing his job.  The ABC interview was going to air that evening and other networks were already playing salacious excerpts from it.  John phrased the question so Gingrich could address it or decline to.

Now of course Newt took the question and turned it around to get not just one, but two standing ovations.  It was one of the most brilliant moments in any political debate ever, and will be analyzed for years to come by political pundits, psychologists, and marketers.

These kinds of retorts make headlines, and influence elections.  Remember when Reagan joked about not making Walter Mondale’s “youth and inexperience an issue,” or Lloyd Bentsen’s “Senator, you’re no Jack Kennedy!”

But those rejoinders pale in comparison to this one… 

Newt shrewdly and deftly performed the most successful turnaround manipulation you may ever see in a political campaign. 

Basically in one fell swoop he transformed himself from philandering swinger into superhero fighting the forces of evil, a/k/a the “elite” media.  He instantly goes from predator to innocent victim, and the Republican operatives in the hall ate it up.

Next let’s look at the Bain Capital issue.   In this case you have some of the Republican candidates casting aspersions on Mitt Romney for his role at Bain Capital.  It perfectly plays into the meme that rich people are evil and get wealthy by exploiting poor people.

In an election campaign, this is like shooting fish in a barrel.  Everybody knows all the problems in the world are created by rich people exploiting the poor.

But of course there is no basis in fact for this; quite the opposite…

Without venture capital firms, there would be almost no new businesses started.  Millions of jobs they produce would never be created.  And when a business is in the red, sometimes the highest good for all is to downsize some jobs, to allow the business to survive.  Some jobs are saved, and others may be regained in the future.  It’s not fun, and no one likes having to do it, but it is sometimes necessary to create the highest good for all.

Republicans claim to be the party for free enterprise.  For their own candidates to cast aspersions on Romney for making money turning around companies, is like Donna Summer chastising the Bee Gees for making disco.  This shows that when a primary election is on the line, the principles they claim to believe in go out the window.

Naturally this will all turn into sound bites and fodder for the Democratic campaign in the general election, should Romney get the nomination.   So don’t think I’m just singling out the Republicans here.  They’re in the news because they’re the only ones with a primary going on.  You can be sure the Obama team will try to frame the election as the populist reformer against the exploitative, venture capitalist blue blood, continuing to feed this class warfare mentality.

Appeals to inequity are powerful mind viruses, because they cater to the entitlement mentality of the masses.  The Republican challengers are using this against Romney now, and it will come back to haunt them in November when the Democrats turn it back against them.

The Corruption of the Process by the Super PACs…

These Political Action Committees now change everything, because they allow any campaign to attack another with impunity, and create the illusion that they are separated from the messages.  The money that will be poured into them between now and November will break down the political process.

This is actually a good thing, because it will take this happening to lead to real reform…

The McCain-Feingold campaign reform is kind of like Communism and Socialism:  It’s one of those ideas that sounds good, looks good, and looks good on paper – just don’t actually work in the real world.

It created the loophole that birthed these Super PACs, because it’s vital to our elective process to have freedom of speech.  But now these Super PACs will be (and already are) carpet-bombing the electorate with so many hundreds of millions of dollars of sleazy, undocumented attack ads, the population will rebel.

I predict McCain-Feingold will be repealed and we’ll get back to a more free enterprise system with unlimited donations from people who want to do that.  But people will have to disclose their support, and candidates will be required to stand behind and take responsibility for their attacks.

Race-Baiting…

There is no doubt that having a job when you’re young, positive role models to emulate, and learning independence are all vital elements of developing prosperity consciousness.  But don’t think for a second that Newt’s statements about the Food Stamp President, kids getting janitor jobs and entitlements are anything but race baiting.

Presidential primaries are all about collecting enough delegates, and the general election is all about the Electoral College.  So for Newt today, it’s all about winning South Carolina, and making a strong showing in Florida.  His hope is to outlast Santorum and get it down to a one-on-one versus Romney.  That allows him to claim the mantle of true conservative and paint Romney as the “moderate to liberal Governor from Massachusetts.”  To do that he needs Southern conservatives and obviously decided that thinly veiled race baiting is his best strategy to do that.

So what do you do to protect yourself?

Question everything. Notice the message and more importantly, the subliminal or subconscious message within the message.  Anytime you see money brought into the equation, analyze the context it is being presented in.

You should probably tune out and disregard anything presented by a Super Pac that doesn’t have an, “I’m X, and I endorsed this message” tag at the end.

Money is not bad, nor is it good.  It simply is.  It can be used to divide and manipulate, as you are seeing in this campaign.  Or it can be used to unify and inspire.  Don’t let the way money is being used in this campaign to create negative beliefs about money or success.

Ultimately it comes down to becoming a critical thinker, noticing the manipulation attempts and rising above them.  No one can manipulate you unless you let them.

So what do you think?

Have you been paying attention to the subconscious manipulation taking place?  What about you guys overseas?  Are you watching the US campaign?  How does it compare to yours?  Please share your thoughts below.

-RG