Too Good To Be True?

Why do we become anxious when life unexpectedly exceeds our hopes? When granted unbelievable good fortune, we immediately look over our shoulder to make sure the boom isn’t going to fall . Does this reflect a belief that we’re allowed to experience only so much happiness — as if the gifts that lie beyond a certain level are to be seen but not touched and our hand will be slapped if we reach for more?

We’ve often been told that life isn’t easy — don’t expect too much — we should settle for less — be content with what we have — and you don’t always get what you want. These false beliefs undermine our fantasies about something wonderful happening in our lives. Chiding ourselves to "get real," we discount these daydreams with "that would be too good to be true."

Collectively we falsely believe that whatever is true can’t be too good. This depressing reflection on life presents a pretty dim view of what’s possible for us humans. The insistence that we’re fooling ourselves to think that we can have an improved or even a grand existence creates a convincing detour from the pathway that leads us to the Realm of Blessings. Supposedly this thinking protects us from disappointment. But sadly it curtails the good stuff for which we secretly long.

When the imagination starts to dance at the edge of "too good," it brings us frighteningly close to our birthright of heaven on earth — where all miracles abound. We back away from this possibility by refusing to believe that wonders can happen without having to pay a price with the occurrence of equally bad things. In addition, we punitively assume that something will transpire to take all the good away. After all, we can’t have it all and then some. That’s too much. Source will surely be displeased if we become too happy — as if we haven’t worked, endured pain or been deprived enough to be worthy of any extensive benefit. Our minds trade off the good with the bad. As long as there’s enough hardship and misery we’re appropriately "serving time" on the planet and should be entitled to some measure of good. This spiritual crisis requires the acceptance that it truly is OK to live a wonderful life without undue suffering — a true paradigm shift.

Do we really have to sacrifice something — suffer a loss — in order to receive a boon? If so, then how will we ever expand to our true size as spiritual giants? Can humanity enlarge its sense of worthiness to finally release the notion of having to tradeoff all blessings with curses as we take in the extent of what we deserve and our spiritual rights? We must stretch to trust that our hearts’ desires can be fulfilled without guilt, penance, strings attached, a shattering fall from grace or falling prey to inflation/entitlement as we release any unconscious programming that says we can’t possibly hope for more. Only then will we fulfill our spiritual mission to embody and bask in the bliss of Source’s abundant Love.

What is too good anyway? Where do we draw the line between acceptable versus excessive good fortune? Must we wrestle with guilt when somehow "accidentally" the Universe gives us more than we think we’ve earned? But sometimes "too good to be true" reflects a lesson that’s not about earning but rather about humbly receiving. Sadly we negate many possibilities with "too good to be true" and remain in our comfort zone of not quite enough or just enough without extra.

When the Universe drops a big gift in my lap, I tremble with uncertainty about the "rightness" of such a cosmic favor for little ‘ole me. Yet my life has evolved through periodic godsends that previously seemed unreachable. They’ve occurred in the form of finances, love, travel, career, inner peace, friendship, insight and inspiration. When encountering these bestowals I have to muster up the courage to trust that my soul is ready to experience the impact of the Divine Plan’s demonstration of my innate worthiness. It’s tempting to shy away — frightened that I can’t meet the moment because it’s too much.

Upon receiving these endowments I remind myself that we all need to embrace, without paranoia, the goodness flowing towards us. Otherwise we forfeit a precious initiation into the Cosmic Garden where the restless yearning for more resolves into a sweet experience of fullness sustained by the Divine Mandate of Well-being. But we’re often addicted to a hungry, restless craving and unconsciously reject the offering because we fear it might simply be a cruel cosmic joke at our expense — as if Source enjoys toying with us by holding the carrot before the donkey. This perceptual distortion of our spiritual privileges prevents us from nestling into the rich luxury of all that is good and available.

Cosmic Good springs from the realm beyond the lower mind and cannot be logically rationalized. Because it puts us directly in touch with the Mystery, our fear of the unknown is stimulated. The ego tries to determine what’s "too good to be true" based on whether we’ve been good or bad. But deservability is not on the radar screen of the floodgates that open to pour out divinely timed opportunities. Attachment to learning through scarcity blocks our trust in the Mystery that ushers in untold felicity. It’s hard to imagine that we could justifiably receive such wonder without paying "dues."

When opening to all that is "too good to be true," we begin to perceive the "good" in all aspects of our lives, even the most difficult lessons. Soon we realize that nothing is "too good to be true." But this realization involves a crisis in perception of our Divine Value that we may resist by stubbornly denying the blessings in our lives. Resistance then leads to a joyless, tightfisted existence of allowing only bits and pieces of fulfillment in order to protect ourselves from the heights of "too good to be true." Just because humanity supposedly fell from Grace doesn’t mean we’re not ordained to reclaim the Grace that showers our soul with cascading goodness.

Boons to our existence have nothing to do with egoic will. They’re encoded in our karma as junctures to clear the soul’s amnesia of its Divine Heritage. We’re mandated to open to these moments of "too good to be true" with the trust of a newborn babe that suckles in all the Divine nutrients needed at that moment. To push away these benedictions is a slap in the face of the Divine Plan that opens the Way into our greatest potential. So, humbly these blessings must be embraced, no matter how big they are, with the quiet knowing that we’re worthy and ready.

The greater Universe is staggeringly greathearted. To take our place alongside the great teachers who have entered the Realm of Too Good in order to embrace their enlightenment mandates that we allow all that is too good to be true in our lives to be just the beginning of a magnificent adventure into the new Frontier of Happiness.

The Tibetan stands in a vast garden of multicolored roses as far as the eye can see — the foothills to the sumptuous resplendent realms. He teaches:

"Humankind believes that real goodness lies only in the spiritual realm — as if there is an arbitrary division between heaven and earth. Blessings naturally shower all of humankind. To believe that something is ‘too good to be true’ reflects a nearsighted assumption that the Universe is limited.

"The heavenly realm is longing to be fully manifest on earth. Therefore guilt, fear and contraction must be released. Only then can humankind satisfy the mandate to accept an earthly life that is splendid — far beyond what they feel is their due measure.

"To stop short of the heights of goodness available to all is to betray one’s true spiritual nature. All souls are entitled to a life that absolutely is "too good to be true" when compared to the usual third dimensional expectations. Humankind is so accustomed to learning through suffering that it distrusts the Realm of Delight. Release the false belief that self must survive on only scraps of joy. Don’t be afraid or overwhelmed by the sheer presence of Good that shapes humankind’s existence as it flows through the great Portals of Fulfillment.

"Godsends are natural extensions of Love. Get used to them! To integrate these benedictions self must become comfortable with an enhanced sense of deservability. This karmic stretch leads to mastery. All great teachers have passed through a gateway in consciousness that seemed ‘too good to be true.’ A life that seems ‘too good to be true’ is actually just the beginning of comprehending the Great Goodness that is Source.

"Do not be afraid of ecstasy. Release the entire question about whether something is ‘too good to be true.’ Rather ask, is it good enough to be true? As humankind completes the paradigm shift in consciousness it will evolve through the new learning format of growth through pleasure.

"True is Good — so good that it encompasses everything. Self’s ability to accept this knowledge opens the Gateway of Flowering. Ultimately, bliss can not be capped. All that is unimaginably wonderful is NECESSARY to fuel the soul homeward .... liberated at long last."