Last week, my friend Lori Portka got mugged – social media mugged. The online trolls didn’t steal her money, but they tried to take away her confidence in it, her love of it, her respect for it.
She had shared one of her paintings on Facebook – the gorgeous one above that says “Money serves my highest good.” Lots of us “liked” it and shared it. But on one page, a heated argument erupted over the painting’s sentiment. Lori was tagged in the conversation, clicked the link and was heartbroken to find people angrily calling her greedy, smug, and misguided.
Anyone who knows Lori or her artwork knows this is a woman who celebrates abundance in all its forms – love, community, creativity, nature, intuition, inspiration. She channels everyday beauty and her God-given gifts into art that soothes souls. And yes, she also honors the energetic flow of money, aware that it gives her the freedom to do her best work, serving the highest good.
Voice trembling and confidence wavering, Lori called after it happened, in part because she knew I’d stood in her shoes only days before. After I shared details about my upcoming Into the Light sessions, I received so much glorious support. But a couple of emails from naysayers got my heart racing. They wondered why I would charge for sharing messages from Spirit: “Should you really make money from something so sacred?”
It shook me for a minute, it did. But I got still, listened to my heart, re-read the messages from Spirit and found my yes. I know the questions came not to break me down, but as an invitation from the universe to stay grounded in my truth.
Life I Love by Lori Portka
Shouldn’t we place the highest value on those moments when divine intervention allows us to do our best work in the world?
I would never think of not paying the poet who says his words just come to him, or the doctor whose intuition leads me to a new opportunity for healing, or the photographer whose innate gift allows me to see the world in a new light, or the pastor who prays for inspiration as she prepares next Sunday’s sermon.
I believe, more than ever, we all come here with innate gifts and hearts wired for deeper connection with the universe that created us. When we listen to that voice within and use the gifts that bring us joy, there is nothing more worthwhile.
And I believe there’s enough of us doing that and supporting that to sustain a kindness economy – where money serves the highest good, where we put stock into what matters most, where sacred and healing work is considered golden, where inspired hearts don’t have to go broke or feel broken.
I believe in the power of creating community and cultivating abundance by helping the divine shine through each of us in its own way, supporting one another with our love, our praise, our trust, our money. There is plenty to go around, for goodness sake.
