Should You Charge for the Gifts of Spirit?
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Should You Charge for Gifts of the Spirit?
Taken from Psychic Integrity, The Respected Practice of Modern-Day Mystics, Chapter 8 The Bottom Line
Some students ask me: Is it right to charge for one’s services as a medium? After all, it’s a gift from God, isn’t it? It seems like you are cashing in on God’s goodness by taking money for it.
I love that question and I grappled with it myself for many years. When we were working within the Spiritualist Church, an associate medium got a small booth at area psychic fairs and charged for short readings. I was aghast! I felt she was disrespecting the spiritual gift by charging for her readings.
Several years later, I went to a psychic fair just to see what it was all about. There were readers and vendors, and several people giving lectures about various spiritual and metaphysical concepts. The attendees were hungry for information. Some were unfamiliar with the concept of spiritualism, but still were interested in finding out about spirit communication.
The short readings that attendees paid for introduced them to spirit communication and psychic abilities. I realized that there are other valid ways to present spiritual information as well as in church. Educating the public about spiritual concepts can be a respectable way to make a living.
Let me ask you this: Have you ever bought a beautiful painting because the artwork and colors were so special? Have you ever had your transmission rebuilt by an expert mechanic who had been recommended to you? Have you eaten at a five-star restaurant and tasted the exploding flavors of the chef’s specialty? Or bought an engaging musical recording by an aspiring singer/songwriter? All these people have God-given talents as well. Would you suggest these artists just give you what they do, without any kind of compensation? If you’ll notice, the artists and chefs and mechanics that are extremely talented and sought after receive the highest pay.
Being a medium, psychic or intuitive is no different. Many readers have been led to do this spiritual work full time. It is their ministry. Ministers from many religions receive a salary and earn their living that way. Do not judge anyone who is asking for payment as an even exchange of energy.
When you go back to the thought and understanding that everything is energy, then money starts to make more sense. I believe that all service is worth a fair and even exchange of energy. Many times, that means paying money for what services you receive. Other times, an exchange of materials or other services is appropriate. Many people embrace bartering as a means for this.
If you intend to make a living as a psychic or medium, then you will want to address the idea of accepting money as a way of exchanging energy. Look around at other readers to get a good idea of what the market in your area is doing with charging for services. Be sure to stay within that market range. Many readers provide two different time frames for readings: one long session for full readings (usually an hour, depending on the type of reading you do), the other is a shorter session (to address specific areas or follow-up from another session).
Be sure to let your client know what the time frames are for each session, and then adhere to it by setting a timer. Starting on time and ending on time is essential. You create the time standard by the way you deal with it. I usually set my timer five to ten minutes before the session is over. I tell the client (before the session starts) that the timer will go off in time for us to wrap up the reading. That way they will know ahead of time when the session is done. If you honor the time set for the session and tell your client when it is over, then they will honor your time also.
Copyright Melissa Leath 2011
This is an excerpt from my book Psychic Integrity, The Respected Practice of Modern-Day Mystics.
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Melissa Leath writes A Mystics Journal on Substack. She supplies outrageous metaphysical babble/rant from a modern-day mystic's viewpoint and provides workshops about empowerment and psychic/metaphysical development. Her books Psychic Integrity, The Respected Practice of Modern-Day Mystics (Balboa Press, division of Hay House Publishing) and Does Your Child See Sparkles? are available through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Melissa’s long-term study includes years of group development, platform mediumship, meditation, becoming a spiritual medium and minister and a BA in Metaphysical Counseling. She has worked with 10s of thousands of clients in USA and other countries, taught development classes for 12 years and settled into online workshops.
Please contact Melissa at melisssaleath@gmail.com.
Such an important topic Melissa and one that I think that many people have wrestled with, including me! I do believe that the art of mastering our ‘craft’ means that we are able to charge for what we do. Having said that I would never deny anyone the help they needed for a fair exchange of energy.
Great article - I think most healers will wrestle with this one because we are the givers. It took me time too, to get clear on this topic. Another explained to me the significance of energetic exchange - giving and receiving creates equilibrium and mirrors how we value ourselves. It doesn't mean I charge for every little thing but not allowing ourselves to receive causes energetic imbalance, reducing the impact of what it is we offer, and eventually emptying our energetic cup. Plus lightworkers need to eat!