Stepping into abundant life through the door of His love

{If you prefer to listen rather than read, check out the audio version of this post here on my Abundant Life podcast.}

When I stepped in the door my jaw dropped. The buffed hardwood floors, the wrap-around staircase perfect for prom and wedding photos, the windows upon windows. As I walked through and saw the open floor plan, the granite counter tops, and all the entertaining space, I fell more deeply in love. Of course, the thing that my family fell in love with was the pool. That summer we had 57 days of triple-digit temperatures in Central California. My three daughters were pining for a pool.

Then I took a mental note of the number of other couples and families perusing the halls during this Open House. There was no way we would get this house. We couldn’t even offer near the asking price. I didn’t even dare dream. We were perfectly fine in our current home about a mile away, I told myself. We’ll wait. We’ll pray.

Fast forward two months. I get a phone call from my brother, who is also our savvy real estate agent, “You’re going to get the house. I expect a call in the next hour.”

“What?!” I balked in disbelief.

My heart did a few back handsprings. I never really even dreamed this would be possible. We had prayed for weeks. We simply said, “God, if you want us to buy this house, open the door. We will use it for your glory.”

Then we found out the owners were building another home and needed to sell this one by a deadline. Their real estate agent and my brother said we didn’t have anything to lose. We put in an offer. They countered. We counter-offered. They accepted.

Then the real work began. Not only did I have to pack up our current home in that triple-digit weather. I also had to get my kids launched in a new local school and church, while my hubby’s company endured a big restructuring. By God’s grace and some friends with servant hearts, we moved into our home in August 2018.

The Apostle Paul penned these words in a letter to the Ephesians: “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

God has certainly done abundantly more than we ever imagined by opening the door to this home. I’m ashamed to say I actually struggled at first. I was so afraid of what others would say or think. I was a missionary moving to a mansion by some estimations. When people would visit for the first time, I found myself apologizing for how big the place was. I struggled with guilt for having something so extravagant I didn’t need.

Then I stepped into 2019 – the year of abundance. Deep in the earth of my heart, I felt like God was inviting me into a harvest season after a long stretch of pruning and resting.

God started by excavating some of the misconceptions about scarcity and abundance deep in my soul. After doing non-profit work in Haiti for more than a decade with my late husband, it was hard for me to imagine God wanted me to live in abundance. I was surrounded by poverty and even lived in poverty for so many years that I had taken on a poverty mindset. I was confusing prosperity with abundance.

Friend, God has good things for all of us, starting with His lavish love and grace. Sometimes He gifts us community to lift us up. Sometimes He entrusts us with resources. Sometimes He may bestow on us a talent, a passion, or a gift that can be used for His glory.

Abundance allows us to accept His good gifts and share them with others without hesitation.

At the heart of it is this question: What will you and I do with the gifts God gives?

If someone gave us a special gift for Christmas, we would never leave it under the tree unopened. God gave me a gift, but I wasn’t even unwrapping it.

This year, I started to shift my mindset. I decided to see our house as an opportunity to share His abundance with others. My goal was to make every person who walked through the door feel loved and seen.

We welcomed many people, including our life group on Sundays, the Lead Loved group for local women leaders, my women’s Bible study group from our new church, a book club for local friends, our kids’ Track & Field and Cross Country teams, and countless family and friends.

As far as I’m concerned, this house – and everything in it – belongs to the Lord and His Kingdom. God has granted me a humble confidence that I am to unwrap this gift again and again, so I can share it with others and point them to His abundance.

Here’s the truth: The Bible doesn’t say having money or resources is a sin. How we steward those resources is what truly matters.

Let’s not be like the one servant in Matthew 25 who buried the money entrusted by his master for fear of losing it. Let’s be like Jesus who entered the world humbly through the womb of a teenager, was affirmed by an elderly priest, his wife, and their son John. He was welcomed by a band of angels, a motley crew of shepherds, a trio of wise men, and their entourage.

Jesus was born into the tension of scarcity and abundance. Jesus was humble, intentional, loving, and always giving God glory. We have an opportunity to follow His lead. Instead of chasing prosperity or having an attitude of entitlement, we can embrace generosity as Jesus did.

How has God done “abundantly more” than you asked or imagined?

(I’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic in the comments!)