Self-Sufficient part 3
When we spend (or waste) our three T's (time, talent, treasure) trying to get something we think we haven't got... that's when we miss out on what we have got. That, in fact, is when we rob ourselves of what we have got. The trick is to change our mindset to realize that we have everything we need. Already. Right now. Because we have God. Because we have love. Because we have each other. Look at Exodus 36:7, "For the stuff they had was sufficient for all the work to make it, and too much." A little context here. The people of Israel were bringing offerings in order to get the temple built. And they brought so much that Moses literally had to tell them to stop. It was an overabundance. They had everything they needed. Above and beyond. And that's why I believe we are called to live out of our abundance. If you have TWO coats, give one to someone with none. Don't put yourself in a position where you're going to freeze to death. But don't hoard up all the coats, either. We are blessed... to be a blessing. God has provided all of our need, yes. But what we sometimes don't seem to understand is that we need to give. Love is giving. You can give without loving, but you can't love without giving. So this need for love in our lives, it isn't only about getting love. The Divine Order of things is to receive AND release. To receive BY releasing. To release by receiving. Look at Acts 20:35, "I have shewed you all things, how that so labouring ye ought to support the weak, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive." If you want to feel love... love somebody. Give then what you've got. But you can't give what you've got until you know what you've got. And you can't give what you've got if you're running around like a chicken with its head cut off, trying to get something. I have no lack because my God has no lack. My heavenly Father wanted the best for me, so He gave the best to me. He gave me His only begotten Son so that I could understand my identity AS His beloved Son in whom He is well pleased. He gave me His Spirit. The Holy Spirit, which is the Spirit of truth that leads and guides us into all truth; the ultimate truth of the universe that God is love and He loves you. He gave me His life. Jesus didn't just give His life FOR us, He gave His life TO us. So that we could experience it as HE lives His own life in us, and through us, and as us. He gave us everything. We have enough to do all of the work, and too much. We have an abundance. Jesus said He came that we might have life and that more abundantly. Love is what makes the abundant life abundant. Love is what makes the world go 'round. So instead of always chasing what we think we haven't got, and missing out on what we have got, we need to focus on what we have, so that we can give what we have. From a poverty, or slave mentality to a blessed to be a blessing mentality. Being self-sufficient is about more than just having enough for you. It's about having enough to share. Having enough to give away. Having abundance. And living out of that abundance. Giving what we've got because we know we've got it and because we know others need it!