Divine Compensation: Recovery and Abundance

Financial hardship is among the greatest stressors to our health that we can experience. This has been even more exacerbated by the current economic downturn that not only impacted jobs, homes, investments and retirement ? it also left many people feeling anxious about their day to day lives and future prospects. We caught up with Marianne Williamson, the #1 New York Times bestselling author to talk about her unique path to financial recovery and abundance that she outlines in her new book, The Law of Divine Compensation. She will be at the Upper West Side Barnes & Noble, at W. 82nd St. andBroadway, on Thursday, November 29that 7 p.m. What is the first thing you would say to a person who is suffering financial hardship or loss? Can they really alter their destiny by changing their mindset? We can always alter our destiny by changing our mindset, but sometimes changing our mindset isn't easy. When we're depressed, fearful, anxious and so forth, it's not so easy as simply saying, "Okay, I'll just decide not to feel this way!" That's where a belief in a higher power comes in. Sometimes we need to pray for help in changing our mindset. The Law of Divine Compensation is concerned with the kinds of thoughts that both attract and deflect miraculous breakthroughs in our financial and work lives. In a self-organizing and self-correcting universe, healing is natural; correction is natural; miracles are natural. We're so convinced that everything that goes up must go down; what we need is a realization that everything that goes down will eventually go back up! But when we are in the midst of struggle, frustration, stress and anxiety, how do we go about realigning our thoughts and opening our minds to the possibility of a miracle? By prayer, forgiveness, compassion, self-awareness. By practicing the discipline of a more loving way of thinking and being in the world. You mentioned forgiveness, and have said in the past that forgiveness is the most powerful tool for new beginnings. Why is this so? Love produces miracles automatically. When we're not forgiving someone, it's like we're putting a barrier in front of our hearts. And wherever there's a barrier to love, there's a barrier to miracles. Forgiveness is when we stand on faith in what lies beyond. Beyond what people did lies the reality of whom they are. In the book you say faith is visionary (not blind) - can you explain? When a pilot has low visibility, he doesn't assume there's not a horizon; he simply flies on instruments. That's what faith is: simply knowing that something is there, whether or not you can see it. What you know is there is an all-loving, self-organizing, self-correcting universe ? but sometimes we can't see it! Faith is the spiritual equivalent of flying on instruments. The subtitle of your book refers to Work, Money and Miracles. What does the Law of Divine Compensation say about each? That our work on earth is to serve love; that money is one of the ways that the love we put out into the world then comes back to us; and miracles occur naturally as expressions of love.