Conduct an experiment: go to a restaurant, a coffee shop, or any public place, and simply listen to the conversations around you. I know this may sound rude, but it can be quite eye-opening. I’ve noticed a trend: people tend to discuss what is going wrong in their lives, what they are lacking, and how difficult things are. We often focus on our problems rather than the gifts and joys life offers. It’s rare to overhear a conversation that leans toward the positive.
I’m not suggesting we ignore our challenges or pretend everything is great in our lives. After all, it’s crucial to have a community where we can share our burdens and support one another. However, what is troubling is our tendency to focus on what we lack while overlooking the many blessings and joys that surround us.
I’ve sensed a significant divide, even among believers. It seems there are two camps of belief, which tie back to John 10:10: “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Even as believers, they can allow the enemy to steal, kill, and destroy their lives, often adopting a survival mentality. Conversations typically center on lack—what they don’t have, what’s wrong with them, health issues, financial scarcity, and a victim mentality. Such beliefs are often rooted in fear.
In contrast, the other camp of believers approaches life differently. Although they may face similar challenges, their outlook is significantly more positive. They recognize the abundance in their lives and live with a mentality of hope and overcoming. They understand that the same power that raised Jesus from the dead lives within them (Romans 8:11). Their beliefs are grounded in trust.
As followers of Christ, our lives should reflect this difference. When others overhear our conversations, do they sense a spirit of gratitude or one of complaining? Do they detect excitement and zeal for life, or do they perceive drudgery? We should be the most hopeful and joyful people, knowing that our lives are held in God’s hands.
Having a grateful and joyful spirit.
To live with a grateful and joyful spirit is to truly rise above the average and live with excellence. The enemy wants us to believe that God offers only crumbs. However, the Creator dispels that lie by satisfying all our desires with a feast of abundance, if we only we see it.
The enemy wants us to believe that God only offers crumbs. The Creator crumbles that lie as He satisfies our every desire with a feast of abundance.
Arnold Allen
If we believe that God gives us only crumbs, we may become self-absorbed and self-centered, focusing solely on our own needs and desires. This is the opposite of how we are called to live as believers. Matthew 6:28–30 illustrates how God can meet our every need with His abundance:
“And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you-you of little faith?”
My “aha” moment in this passage was when Jesus emphasized that even Solomon, the wealthiest of all, who had everything he desired, could not compare to the beauty of the flowers God tended. If God cares so deeply for flowers, which are here today and gone tomorrow, how much more will He care for us—not just to survive, but to thrive?
So, are we adopting a scarcity mindset or an abundance mindset? Our beliefs reveal how we perceive God and reflect our trust and faith in Him. By living with a grateful and joyful heart, we can rise above living average and demonstrate to the world that we serve a God who offers us life to the fullest.
May we continue to live…
Rooted in Him,
