by Cindy M. Wu, co-author of Our Global Families: Christians Embracing Common Identity in a Changing World + author of A Better Country: Embracing the Refugees in Our Midst
I recently went around the dinner table and asked my family what they wished they had more of. The responses came immediately: time, money, sleep, leisure, peace, to name a few. When I asked what they had plenty of, however, those responses required more thought.
I recalled my year in Mexico, straight out of college, when I lived with a Mexican family who welcomed me into their home as a daughter and sister. They lived in an overcrowded, under-resourced neighborhood, and for one memorable year I shared a table (and just two toilets) with 13 members of the Cortés family. Every day, Mama Vicky fed me delicious home cooking. She also fed me back to health—after a scolding—when I got sick from eating street food against her advice. The entire family provided for me not out of the bounty of their material riches, but from a place of sacrifice and generosity. I felt richly loved.
Those experiences of abundance in the face of scarcity in Mexico changed me. They challenged me to be grateful for what I had. They inspired me to be more generous. And they spoke to me of my humble place in this world, as I, a stranger in a distant land, was welcomed with extravagant hospitality.
But that wasn’t the first time I was welcomed as a stranger. Through Christ, God welcomed me into His heavenly family (Galatians 4:5), lavishing me with grace and providing for my every need. When did you last ponder the extravagant hospitality of God? The last time you reflected upon being the recipient of abundant grace? God’s hospitality gives us new eyes to see. You crave less and give more, complain less and praise more. You notice and share abundance.
In God’s Kingdom, there’s no need for a scarcity mindset because He has room and resources enough for everyone. He promises to satisfy every thirst and fulfill every longing. Take a moment to notice abundance and provision in your life, and ask where you need to share it, knowing that He who didn’t spare His own Son graciously gives us all things (Romans 8:32).
Read more from our Advent devotional series.
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