Lots to get or to give?

The question of the day to answer for me was…

Do you see yourself as a person who has lots to give, or lots to get?

Yesterday, my daughter wanted to do a bit of shopping here in St. Moritz, where we’re staying for two days. So I agreed to go with her for a couple of hours.

Honestly, shopping can be one of the most exhausting activities on earth. I do it once in a while because I need clothes to wear and other odds and ends, and I don’t mind looking for fun on occasion. But I frequently last about 20 minutes and my enthusiasm meter starts sinking quickly. My wife really dislikes shopping, which is a good thing by the way! It sure helps keep the bills down.

Anyway, getting sidetracked…as we were walking down the street, and mostly window shopping, I asked myself why shopping often leaves me feeling depleted if I do it for very long.

Then it hit me, “Shopping is about getting stuff. It’s not about giving. It’s about getting.” And when you think you need to “get something,” you obviously believe you lack something, and you unwittingly start to manifest the belief of lack in other ways than just what doesn't sit on your shelf at home.

I started to reason my query through spiritually.

Life is Love, as we learn in Christian Science. Life is experienced at its best when we are engaged in some activity of Love.

Love is about giving, sharing, caring, and participating in the beneficence of God’s grace upon one and all, and these kinds of mental engagements uplift thought, inspire attitude, and give wholesome meaning and purpose to life. They keep us healthy too.

As I pondered my question, I realized that if we begin our day with, “I need something,” we’re reasoning out from a premise of lack. And I’m not talking just about getting things. It could be getting attention, getting famous, getting known, getting money, getting someone to do something our way, getting revenge, getting angry, and all of their kin. An attitude that believes it needs to get something believes it lacks something. And this is not a cool way to live. It’s can be downright miserable, honestly.

I realize there are millions of people in the world who have yet to receive the basics for human survival, like food and shelter. I’m not talking about those kinds of needs. That’s a whole different subject to address.

But back to my question…”Do I see myself as someone who has lots to give, or as someone with lots to get?”

As I walked around the lake at St. Moritz this morning with my son and wrestled with the implications of answering this question aright, I easily concluded that “I have lots to give!” And I truly do. Why? Not because I possess a lot of good myself. I don't. I don't possess any good. I reflect it as God's image. And God is infinite. As God's image, I have lots to give...in fact an infinite amount of goodness and love to give.

I’m still learning it, but two decades ago when I entered the full-time practice of Christian Science, I came to terms with the truth that God is my Source, my Supplier, and my Sustainer. The world could not offer me anything that was better and more enriching than what came directly to me from divine Love, I decided. Life is not about getting. That is the self-centered mortal way of vainly seeking what comes only from Spirit. Life is about giving.

In giving we receive, and in true unselfish giving we receive mightily and abundantly. It’s just the way the law of Love works. Give and you shall receive, as Jesus taught and demonstrated.

This was a very productive day in the spiritual course of things, and I'm grateful for it. I like the idea of consciously knowing, “I have lots to give!” It’s very freeing. I encourage you to give it a try, if you haven’t already!

Lake with St. Moritz in the background