A common practice in my life is to take time between Christmas and the New Year to reflect. It’s essential for me.
This time allows me to review the accomplishments of the past year, identify areas where improvement is needed, and pray and dream for what the New Year might look like.
It also reveals areas where I struggle!
The last couple of weeks have revealed how I am often inclined to believe there’s “not enough:”
“There’s not enough time to accomplish everything.” “I’m not smart enough, fit enough, strong enough, competent enough, connected enough… etc.”
It’s a repeating taped message, more annoying than elevator music!
When we emphasize our scarcity (our lack of enough) and ignore our sufficiency (having all we need for the moment), we minimize our usefulness for others.
A great example of this is the apostle Paul.
“… a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness” - 2 Cor. 12:7-9 (ESV).
We’re not sure what Paul’s “thorn” was. However, it’s clear he understood his insufficiency (his weakness). But Paul also grasps the source of his sufficiency.
In her book, The Soul of Money, author Lynne Twist addresses the myth of scarcity. She stresses:
“Sufficiency isn’t an amount at all. It is an experience, a context we generate, a declaration, a knowing that there is enough, and that we are enough.” [1]
It’s honorable to improve my skills and address my weakness. However, it is disserving to my self and others to avoid responding, because I think I’m not enough.
When I’m willing to let go of scarcity, I discover the surprising truth of God’s sufficiency! Even my insufficiency is more than enough when God’s grace meets my weakness.
Frankly, I’m tired of hearing the same old tune of scarcity. I need to enjoy the song of sufficiency.
As each of us enters this New Year, my prayer is that we will remember we have a choice as to which tune we allow to play.
[1] Lynne Twist, The Soul of Money: Transforming Your Relationship with Money and Life (New York: W.W. Norton and Company, 2003), 44.