Everyone needs a spiritual tune-up from time to time, says Bernie Siegel, M.D., author of 365 Prescriptions for the Soul. When life throws you a curve ball, such as a illness or money troubles, it's easy to feel disconnected from your faith. When he needs a little inspiration, he says, he looks for a sigh: 'For me the most significant sign is a penny. Its value is in the message, not the materialism."
The face of a penny contains three messages: The word Liberty reminding us we are all free to be ourselves. The image of Abraham Lincoln, facing forward which reminds us to accept our mortality and live in the moment. And above all is the phrase "In God we trust!" Each time Siegel finds a penny, he picks it up and spends a moment thinking about those ideas.
When he collects 100 pennies he buys a lottery ticket, with the promise that if he wins he'll use the money to do good in the world. "I think of the found coins as pennies from heaven-crumbs left for someone to follow home." he says. "it's an uplifting experience."
