An Abundant Life, Part II

An Abundant Life

The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance to the full, till it overflows (John 10:10, AMPC, emphasis mine).

God wants so much more for us than we even realize. One C.S. Lewis quote that I’ve heard often, but have been pondering recently is this from his book, The Weight of Glory and Other Addresses: 

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

I think abundance can be looked down upon at times, but for me, it’s a matter of context. When I think about living with abundance, I don’t think about material possessions. One can have all the nice things, but if their hearts are not filled with the Holy Spirit, what are they left holding if/when things around them fall away?

For me, abundance means living a life as a daughter of the King. Stepping into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ changed my life when I began to realize the truth of the quote from C.S. Lewis. Infinite joy is offered to us through Jesus, and Paul described it well while he was imprisoned.

He says in Philippians 3:8: Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ. 

That’s a pretty powerful statement! Especially when we are reminded that the Apostle Paul wrote the book of Philippians to the church in Philippi while he was in chains. The book has only four chapters, but they are incredibly insightful when it comes to changing our perspective on what it means to live an abundant life. 

I’d encourage you to spend some time reading through the book over the course of the next week. Instead of just reading the words, thoughtfully chew on them while reminding yourself they were written by a man in prison.

Formerly called Saul, Paul had experienced such a transformational experience with Jesus Christ. He went from persecuting Christians to preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ while in chains. If Jesus can do that for Paul, what can’t he do for you and me? There’s nothing we’ve done, and there’s nothing that’s been done to us that Jesus can’t redeem and restore. 

John 10:10 says: The thief comes only in order to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance to the full, till it overflows. He wants us to live a life of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, and self-control. 

May we constantly consider what our lives look like, and how we’re reflecting the goodness, grace, love, and mercy of Christ to others. And may we all be challenged to consider, as C.S. Lewis said, are we far too easily pleased?