If I consciously manifest abundance, doesn't that make me greedy?

We live in a world of scarcity – or so we would be led to believe. We've had this belief drummed into us from a very early age. There's not enough of anything. Money. Time. Food. Work. Fun. Love. Affection. Honesty. Happiness. Laughter. Holidays. Good programmes on the telly. Gold awards for good pupils. We learn this belief from our parents, who learned it from their parents, and from our teachers, who learned it from their teachers and so on. Is it any wonder that we have such problems wishing ourselves a life of plenty (which we all do, because we know we deserve it) with this as our hardwired, yet nothing more than inherited, belief structure.

And, to make matters worse, this very same belief process looks suspiciously at anybody daring to have 'enough' or, heaven forbid, 'more than' us and automatically dismisses them as greedy and grasping. So, you can see, straight away, there is a conflict here. We all want more, but we don't want the accusations or the disapproval or the rejections that 'more' will inevitably bring to our lives. So we stop ourselves. The vast majority of us stop ourselves and instead opt for a life of mediocrity and struggling.

Now, is it just me, or is that a shit way to live? Here's the truth of the matter. The universe is abundant. Our world, our planet, our lives are all part of the universe – we can't get away from it – so that means that we, too, are abundant. All we have to do to claim it, is to release ourselves from thought patterns and beliefs that aren't even ours anyway – we learned them from people who learned them from other people who learned them from god knows who – and they have no significance or truth in our lives today.

If there is something you would like to manifest in your life, be it money, love, success, happiness, good health, all you have to do is ask. Sit quietly and in whatever way feels the most appropriate and comfortable to you, ask. You are talking directly to the universe, the Tao, God, Angels – whatever term you care to use – and telling them what you want to manifest in your life. And the universe, Tao, God, Angels love it when we do that and here's why. We are meant to be abundant. We are all meant to live a life of abundance. Do you really think the Tao/God is such a miserable mother that it actually enjoys watching us suffer and make do? No. And you know why? Because it expresses itself through us – we are like its ambassadors on earth – so if we're miserable and suffering through being less than we truly are, the Tao is hardly going to be having a good gig, is it?

Try from today to change your thinking. It's OK to invest in manifesting. Just make sure you add the proviso that what you ask to manifest should only do so if it is truly for your own highest & greatest good, and the highest good of all concerned - that way, if you've got it wrong and it wouldn't be beneficial, you won't end up up the creek without a paddle. Plus it shows that you are open and willing for the Tao to scrap that and send you something even better. It's a win-win situation.

Remember, manifesting anything for your highest good is not only your birthright, it is your responsibility. The more you do it, and the more good you attract into your life - making you a more sparkling and vibrant, loving and generous person to boot - the more you might just inspire others to do the same. There's enough for all of us, otherwise we wouldn't all be here. And the more of us trusting this process and getting down with the whole manifesting for our highest goods – which can only be for the greater good of all – the less of us will be left looking on from our unfulfilled and unhappy lives, muttering about greed and unfairness.

Now, surely, that's a much more healthy and productive way for us all to live.

Or is it just me?