Living in Abundance: Moving Your Thoughts Towards Prosperity
When moving towards a life of abundance, one of the biggest obstacles you will face is your thoughts. The human brain is constantly scanning for dangers in your environment. This is a protective factor, equipping you for the difficulties of life. Thankfully, most of the risks identified by the brain never happen in real life. However, this constant scanning results in a heightened state of anxiety and a life of fear.
This state of fear, plus the sensationalism of modern media, further intensifies your anxiety. You live in a world that is continually reporting on the propensity of financial depression, economic stagnation, and governmental failures. It seems every media report is about the potential collapse of societal systems.
There is an alternative to this constant state of fear and scarcity. When you look to God as your sustenance and supply; these systems of fear and lack no longer impact you. However, to live in this new state of abundance, you must change your thoughts and how you spiritually see the world.
Living in Abundance: Faith, Wisdom, and Love
Consider Jesus at the beginning of his ministry. Historically, we know very little of Jesus’s childhood, adolescents, and early adulthood. Jesus was the son of a carpenter and likely grew up poor as he lived in the peasant village of Galilee. While he lived in proximity to the culturally vibrant towns of Sepphoris and Tiberius; it is unlikely that he would have even been middle class because of the oppressive structure of the Roman empire. In addition, Jesus was likely a “subject” versus a “citizen” of the Roman empire further detracting from his cultural and economic influence.
Modern culture looks at socioeconomic and educational background as a measurement of potential for success. Economic advantages, educational opportunities, and access to resources often determine an individual’s level of success. However, Jesus had none of these advantages. Despite this, Jesus began a ministry that not only affected ancient Israel, but the entire world. Bearing in mind Jesus’s background, how did he develop the ideas, dreams, and concepts of his ministry? We often read the Bible as if Jesus just woke up one day and God laid out a divine plan for him to follow. Yet, if Jesus is a true representative of the human experience on planet earth; then you have to dismiss this notion.
Living in Abundance: Changing Your Thoughts About Wealth
When considering the word abundance; it is easy to interchange this term with wealth. God promises no one a life of wealth. God does promise to meet your needs and to equip you for service. Jesus was very clear in his teachings that basing your sense of abundance on physical possessions and wealth is a mistake. In Matthew 6:19-21 (WEB) Jesus teaches that placing your trust in earthly possessions actually puts you at great risk, as your earthly possessions are subject to moths, rust, and thieves.
Living in Abundance: Awakening Divine Provision in Your Life
The story of the Feeding of the Multitude is the only miracle of Jesus narrated in all four gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John). The story begins with Jesus seeking alone time with his disciples after hearing of John the Baptist beheading.
As Jesus and the disciples set off by boat, great crowds chased after them along the shoreline. The disciples pulled into an inlet, beaching the boat. When Jesus saw the crowd, he felt great compassion. Christ saw they were a sheep without a shepherd. As a result, Jesus spent the afternoon into the early evening teaching the crowd about the spiritual principles of the kingdom of God.
As dusk settled; the disciples expressed concern they were in a rural area and the crowds needed to be sent away to get shelter for the night. Jesus commanded his disciples to feed the crowd. However, the disciples protested, “It would take eight months' wages to feed a crowd this size”. In response, Jesus instructed his disciples to gather what food was available. They found five loaves of bread and two fish. Jesus requested the crowd sit in groups of 50 and blessed the meager meal. Jesus broke the loaves and fish until it fed the entire crowd. There was such a great abundance of food; when everyone finished eating, the disciples gathered twelve baskets of leftovers.
Living in Abundance: Expanding Beyond Anxiety & Scarcity
We live in anxious times! The Covid epidemic brought about a universal sense of angst that settled across the entire world. Despite improvements in our country’s economic stability, our collective consciousness has become focused on shortages, dysfunctional supply chains, and ever-increasing prices because of inflation. While income has increased because of a shortage of employees; the price increases fueled by disruptions in the supply chain and corporate greed have gobbled up those pay raises.
The World Health Organization noted in March 2022 that the Covid pandemic increased rates of depression and anxiety by 25 percent. Changes in the work environment, social isolation, and lack of support from family and friends caused this sharp increase. Add to these stressors people’s fear of infection, grief over loss of loved ones, and financial concerns; is it no wonder that we all live in fear of scarcity?