Abundance

By Pastor Paul Gauche

Today’s Word: ‘Abundance’ as in… we have enough, more than enough, an abundance of enough.

On August 5, 2010, a cave-in at a 121-year-old copper mine deep in the Atacama Desert in San José, Chile, sparked an international rescue effort to free 33 miners trapped in the collapsed mine. They were 2,230 feet underground.

Warning: If you even have a slight hint of claustrophobia, you may want to stop reading right here.

If you followed the story, you know that they were rescued after 69 days. All 33 miners emerged safely, each with a remarkable story. You may not remember that during that time, everything they needed to survive had to be passed through a series of boreholes. Everything, including food, water, vitamins, clothing, sleeping cots and blankets, electronics, and other necessities—had to fit in canisters no bigger than 3.19 inches in diameter.

3.19 inches in diameter. What on earth would that be like? If you were to cup your hands in front of you and look into your palms, that would be about 3.19 inches wide—give or take.

Just think of the overwhelming gratitude and the utter abundance of the moment when those 33 miners first began receiving provisions from the world above them. Can you even imagine the response to such overwhelming abundance?

Here’s an important question: What if only what was essential for survival had to fit right there in the palm of your hands? It’s not a lot. But for some, it’s just enough. For others, perhaps an abundance.

Here’s an even more important question to consider: Imagine everything someone else needed for survival resting in the palm of your hands. Now imagine placing all of that in the palm of their hands. That seems rather doable. That suddenly seems like an abundance!

We do have enough, more than enough; we have an abundance of enough.

Thriving Reflections:

++ On a scale of 1 to 10 between scarcity and abundance, where would you put yourself?

++ How much is “enough” for you?

++ How does understanding “enough” give you a sense of thriving?

#100days50words

#Thriv’ëra

Paul Gauche is the Pastor of Life Transitions at Prince of Peace. His posts are part of his #100days50words project, where he blogs about a different word each day. You can follow his project on Instagram (@pgauche) or his blog,  Thriv’ëra Rhythms.