Image from Think Quest
Have you ever shied away from seeking financial independence? If so, I’m sure you’ll take consolation from that fact that you’re not alone in thinking and feeling this way. Too many people have felt this way (myself included) and still do (myself excluded :-)).
In so many ways and through so many different people, we’ve consciously or unconsciously inherited the belief that seeking financial independence (often confused with accumulating wealth) is antithetical to the spiritually (often confused with religiously) directed life. This unfortunate inheritance, rooted in mistaken understandings and beliefs, is the cause of a great deal of conflict, guilt and failure to secure financial independence. But rather than being antithetical to spiritual growth, financial independence actually enables us to growth and thrive spiritually.
Before I continue, I should explain what I mean by spiritual growth and a spiritually-directed life. Put simply, spiritual growth is the awakening to and living from the truth of who we are and a spiritually-directed life is one whose priority is spiritual growth. And just to make sure there are no other ambiguities here, let me also explain what I mean by financial independence.
Financial independence is being free of all the pressures, fears and limitations that impact on us when we lack the essential things that money can provide us with. Financial independence does not bring us happiness. Rather, it removes the barriers that prevent us from experiencing and living from our natural state of happiness. In other words, financial independence allows us to live from our true nature!
It is important to understand that financial independence does not equate to the amassing of wealth for the need to do this is reflective of a mind that in entrenched in the falsehood of lack. Financial independence is about the freedom from the pressures, fears and limitations that are associated with lack. In this sense, it is possible that a person who does not experience lack despite having a very ‘modest’ income is financially independent! In the same way, a person who has amassed a fortune but remains fearful of losing it is not financially independent!
Herein lies the spiritual truth of financial independence. By removing or seeing through the barriers of fear, pressure, worry and limitation, financial independence enables us to experience our true nature which is in fact, abundant, limitless, powerful, joyful and free!
So long as you do not confuse financial independence with the amassing of wealth or an ironclad guarantee that you will never run out of money, but instead understand that it removes barriers to the realization of our true nature, there is absolutely no need to shy away from it! On the contrary, it is important to recognize that financial independence is a necessary (though not sufficient) condition for spiritual growth and the experience of happiness.
Lucy Lopez
Awakening to Happiness!
