Unity's World Day of Prayer (Sept. 10, 2009) celebrates and affirms peace, abundance and love for individuals and the world. This year's theme—Reach In, Reach Out. We Can Change the World—eflects the importance of going within for guidance and reaching out to help others. The following article is one in a series profiling how Unity communities are changing the world through social action. To submit a prayer list, to sign up for the online prayer vigil, or to tell us about your social action initiatives, we invite you to visit www.worlddayofprayer.org.

 

Edwene Gaines, a prominent Unity minister and author, leads a dedicated group of individuals who are working to improve their small mountain community. “Our local schools have a high drop-out rate,” says Gaines. “Our Unity study group feels it is important to make a difference in our community, and we are dedicated to education. We want to visibly and tangibly reward those who succeed in graduating and encourage them to continue lifelong learning.”

Four years ago, to support this goal, Gaines' study group—the Lookout Mountain Wholistic  Center in Valley Head, Ala.—began giving graduating high school seniors computer equipment. This year, they gave away 10 laptop computers and printers—five to the top academic students and five to the top technical students.

Gaines has been a renowned teacher on prosperity for more than 30 years. In her book, The Four Spiritual Laws of Prosperity: A Simple Guide to Unlimited Abundance, she encourages people to tithe to the source of their spiritual nourishment. She also teaches that once people have given their tithe, they should go the next step and get involved.

“I believe that we must think globally and act locally,” she explains. “We must each demonstrate giving and participate fully in making this a world that works for all.”

The school chooses the recipients of the computers. Gaines says that this is important because there is no bias from her ministry in determining who will be rewarded. The study group learns who the recipients are at an annual awards ceremony. For two consecutive years, children of a local Baptist minister have been recipients. “The minister and his wife approached me at the ceremony last year and were very grateful for what we had done,” Gaines recalls. “While most people in our community have never heard of Unity principles, they know without a doubt that we are a positive influence.”

“It is a wonderful experience to see the faces of the young people as they receive these computers. They are truly grateful,” she says.
 
Her group helps the community in other ways as well. “As we give, we also receive,” says Gaines. “We give scholarships for spiritual or educational workshops and frequently pay travel and tuition expenses for students.” Gaines requests that people who receive these scholarships subsequently present a lesson to the study group on what they've learned. The group also collects food for local food banks, buys Christmas gifts for local nursing home occupants, and gathers clothing for a battered women's shelter.

“Our group wants our children to know that there are many options for them and that they do not have to settle for working a job that has no joy,” Gaines explains. “We want them to see themselves as capable and ready to follow their own dreams, even if no one in their family has ever done so before. We want to give them hope.”
 

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Ordained in 1979 as a Unity minister, Gaines has been called a legend, a pioneer and “the queen” of prosperity. She has committed her life 100 percent to transforming the world's abundance consciousness. Gaines has trained more than 400 Master Prosperity Teachers.

Click to learn about her book, The Four Spiritual Laws of Prosperity: A Simple Guide to Unlimited Abundance.

To hear a Unity.FM interview with Edwene Gaines, click here.

 

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