A few years ago I did an interview with Lorraine Trout and Liz McDougall on how spirituality can be used to break the cycle of poverty in a persons life. Trout is the full time minister and McDougall was the part time minister of the Centre of Positive Living in Saskatoon. Following are the thoughts they shared with me.

Classes are held on raising prosperity consciousness where Trout and McDougall work with a person on where they are currently at. The person is shown choices availiable to improve their life situation. Trout and McDougall feel the outer experiences that people go through is a reflection of their inner thinking, plus that if a person changes their thinking their life circumstances will improve for the better.

Being unemployed doesn't mean one can't live an abundant life as a person needs hope more than anything else. But fear and ego can be major obstacles in preventing a person making positive changes for themselves. As a result, McDougall and Trout feel once a person develops a higher awareness they don't wan to use fear over anyone else. They have observed that poverty gets broken down as a person steps out of its cycle and make new choices in life.

A rich inner life - as opposed to the outside one - provides strength, inspiration and courage. Trout and McDougall have seen several pair of eyes opened to opportunities not realized before. The vast majority of people they deal with are helped in gradual steps instead of all at once. Especially when a person takes themselves out of the blame game or victim mentality to develop a spiritual practice that breaks down barriers to building a better life.

McDougall and Trout encourage people to develop their own meditation practice so they become more centered. They have seen that if one person meditates per city block, crime goes down in the immediate area. Once a person starts to change themselves, it spreads outwards and old structures fall apart.

People can share what they have even it is a smile or kind word. An example is when dealing with a cashier or table server who then passes it along to the next person in line. It could create a domino effect which could involve many people.

Living by spiritual principles may sound simple but it is not an easy road to travel on. But it does provide new ways of thinking.

Ron Murdock
ronmurdock73@yahoo.ca

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