Success, Money and Love Are Cousins Who Were Raised by A Generous and Discerning Spirit

Have you ever seen someone who appeared to have abundance no matter where they were or what their circumstances happened to be? You knew they had about the same amount of resources that you did — and sometimes less — but it just seemed that they had a never-ending well of good fortune and goodwill, which includes finances, but also well-being and a loving spirit?

My grandmother, the Late Annie Mae Williams Champion, was such a person. Grandma always had money, a kind and timely word, a corrective spirit when needed, and an abundance of attention. These are all qualities that I believe led to her having an incredibly rich life. Of the six children she birthed, two passed away in infancy, four went on to be fully sufficient adults with families of their own, and one of them is my amazing mother, Patience Gwendolyn Champion Mitchell.

Grandma’s homegoing service was fit for royalty. Attendees representing every stage of her life honored her, and when people speak of her today — after being gone over 30 years — there is still great affection in their voices.

How did she do it? I took the time to really review her life in terms of a person, and not just as my grandma. And these are the qualities and principles that will help you, as they have helped me, to have a generous and discerning spirit when it comes to our money.

Principle One: It All Belongs to Us

The first thing is that Grandma never spoke in terms of lack. She believed that God was, is, and always will be omnipotent, omnipresent, and omniscient. She believed that everything belonged to Him, and as a child of God, she had access and was always welcomed to everything under the sun. So this Money Magic principle requiring an abundant and discerning spirit is understanding that it all belongs to us. Whatever we need, we just have to ask.

But it gets a little deeper than that, because there must be a place for the abundance — which includes money — to go. It is not that we just want money to sit in a pile doing nothing. We know just by looking at a pile of leaves during autumn that if they are not stirred or moved, they turn into a soggy mess that disintegrates and eventually blows away. Our money is not soggy, it is not messy, and we certainly are not going to allow it to disintegrate and blow away. Therefore, our money and the ask for more needs to be for a legitimate need or a goal.

That goal can be something as small as purchasing a brooch you saw in a store, or something as big as establishing a tutoring program for a local neighborhood school. Whatever it is, ask your Father, ask your Mother, and it shall be as you have commanded.

Principle Two: A Positive and Loving Attitude Simplifies Abundance

The second way that I noticed Grandma was able to simplify abundance no matter what was going on was that she always had a positive and loving attitude. Even when people were unkind or unhelpful, my grandmother adopted the attitude that no matter what she wanted accomplished, it could and would be done. As the first lady of several churches and a 50-year helpmate to her husband and my grandfather, Rev. G. M. Champion, Grandma was the Chief Love Officer of the congregation. That meant that when there were ministries that needed to be reconstructed and people who needed to be encouraged, she was the go-to person.

Grandma loved working within the women’s missionary society, feeding the hungry, and helping the homeless. Her love for people shone through her eyes and her acts of service.

Principle Three: Access to the Same Source Energy

The third way that Grandma exemplified mastery over her entire being — which included her finances — was knowing that she had access to the same Source Energy as every person who walked this earth, including the richest men and women in the world. The same God who blessed King Solomon, the same God who blessed King David, the same God who blessed the Queen of Sheba, and the same God who blessed every person of means was her God as well. And that meant His energy and access was available for her too — and she made good use of that.

How Do You Implement These Lessons?

I know some of you are thinking, “That’s beautiful, but these are different times. I have problems that require an immediate and extraordinary miracle. I am truly afraid of what will happen next if I do not deliver on my promises.” I hear you. And I am going to answer those concerns in order.

A problem is an opportunity for us to be creative. Each time my grandparents ran into financial challenges, they understood that it was not a punishment or a rebuke of their prior actions, but an opportunity for God to show up and show out. And so they would put their petition before the Lord and they would wait. The truth of the matter is that every emergency is not an emergency if there is no direct threat to your person or someone you love. It just feels that way because we do not want to be embarrassed. But embarrassment never killed anyone. It gives us an opportunity to rise up, to be better next time, and to be more empathetic and sympathetic toward others. You will be fine.

The second concern is delivering on our promises. The truth is, not every promise is supposed to be kept. Sometimes things happen that are beyond our worldly control, but always under our spiritual control. Once we remember that the physical is a manifestation of what is going on in the spiritual realm, we have ultimate power to make changes to our mindset and emotional state as necessary. When we are honest about our ability — or lack of ability — to make good on a promise at the physical level, the reaction of the other person will indicate the quality of the relationship and what needs to happen next.

For most people, they understand when extenuating circumstances are present. And if they demonstrate that understanding in a way that shows fairness, then we know there is a future in this relationship. But if the person responds with condescension, disdain, or outright arrogance, then we also understand that this is someone we do not need to be bound to. That person needs more refinement than Life is going to be happy to provide. But we do not have to be part of that process.

The last point brings up the most important consideration that has a direct impact not just on our finances, but on our abundance as a whole — and that is our pride. We were placed on this earth to be of service to others, but also to be served. It is a beautiful circle of life that will not be robbed of its opportunities to operate as it must. That is one of the universal laws, and something we agreed upon by our very existence on this earthly plane. But as we get older, we become very transactional in our thinking. And by we, I mean me.

There were times in my life when I reduced a kind action to a business transaction that required an equal or reciprocal response, when a simple thank you would have been quite sufficient and was the only thing expected. When we bring that transactional mindset to our finances, we get out only what we put in. And I am putting this out here because one of the main concerns I know you have is that you need a supernatural miracle.

Here is the thing: you will never be able to repay a miracle, and you will not have the opportunity to meet the supernatural in a way that is equal or above it.

The supernatural is a goal. It is a stretch. It is where we want to go next. But to get there, you must fix your mindset right now. So instead of thinking about our money in a way that is tit for tat or quid pro quo, we must think of our finances as blessings that continue to grow and exceed our wildest dreams as to their usefulness and their meaning in the present moment of our lives.

The focus is today. What do I need right here, right now? How can I be of service? How can I be served so that the circle continues? Once we answer those questions in the present moment, we stop worrying about tomorrow and what comes next. And once the worry is gone, the wonder can start. And when the wonder starts, we can ask God for what we really want in the situation — and there is space for Him to deliver.

I invite you to implement the strategies that were taught to me by my grandmother through her beautiful example. I would love to hear how they are working out for you. Peace and blessings.

Lynita Mitchell-Blackwell, Esq., CPA is a 7x bestselling author, estate planning attorney, and founder of the Sacred Self Leadership Movement. Her full SAVEDpreneur™ Spotlight is live on savedpreneur.com.