The Abundant Person
In the church, there was a sister who was enthusiastic about church affairs. Though her clothing was very plain, she was plump and always wore a smile on her face, exuding tranquility. Looking at her, one would think that she surely led a carefree life with no worries about food or clothing. However, during a Christmas event where she gave testimony, I was deeply moved by her words.
She used to be a garbage collector, having fallen from being wealthy to collecting garbage. Where did her abundance and serenity come from? Let's take a look at her experiences.
In earlier years, this sister's family was very wealthy. In the early 1990s, they spent hundreds of thousands to buy a large bus for long-distance travel. Later, an accident occurred; not only was the bus destroyed, but several lives were lost as well. After dealing with the accident, the sister's family was left not just destitute, but homeless, as their house had been sold to compensate others.
With no money, her husband took his family to set up a makeshift shack near a garbage dump in the suburbs because they couldn't afford rent. They lived off what they could collect from the garbage. That winter, it was very cold, and the children’s old cotton clothes were worn out, yet new ones were nowhere in sight. The sister prayed anxiously in the church. The next morning, when she opened the door, she found a plastic bag placed beside it. Inside was a cotton coat, perfectly suited for her son's age and size. The sister joyfully thanked the Lord. Later, every time the seasons changed, there would always be suitable clothes neatly placed there for her family. The sister said, "Lord, you have always treated me so kindly, providing for my needs in my most urgent times. I thank and praise you."
Actually, this sister didn’t know that those clothes were secretly placed there by other sisters in the church. It all started when another sister overheard her prayer. This sister had an old cotton coat for her own son that he no longer needed. Wanting to give it to the sister but feeling embarrassed about its condition, she placed it secretly outside the shack at night. Later, other sisters followed suit, and this sister remained unaware of the truth.
Though the problem of clothing was solved, life wasn’t just about clothes—they still needed to eat, and the children still needed to go to school. All these things came from scavenging through garbage piles, which certainly wasn’t a life of wealth and abundance. Once, it was time for the children to pay tuition, and everyone in the class had paid except for her daughter. The teacher urged them repeatedly, saying that if the tuition wasn’t paid, her daughter wouldn’t be allowed to continue attending school. The sister became very anxious and worked harder at scavenging through the garbage. One day, she woke up before dawn, climbed onto the garbage pile, and found an old pair of shoes. Although old, they were still in good condition. She brought them home and let her daughter try them on. Unexpectedly, when her daughter put her foot inside, she discovered something inside the shoe. It turned out to be an old sock wrapped around a bundle of money. With this, not only was her daughter’s tuition covered, but there was even some leftover. The sister rejoiced, saying, "Lord, you are truly merciful." At that moment, she felt like the richest person in the world.
Another time, her daughter wanted an electronic keyboard. The sister had looked at it a few times but thought it was unaffordable, so the child's wish remained unfulfilled. Suddenly one day, while scavenging, the sister found an invitation. The invitation stated that by participating in a certain activity, there was a chance to win an electronic keyboard from a music store. Seeing that the date was still within reach, she prepared and attended the event. Surprisingly, she actually won an electronic keyboard. Upon returning home, she began singing hymns loudly.
Although not wealthy, the sister always felt lucky, believing it was all arranged and gifted by the Lord. Filled with joy and gratitude, she said, "By the grace of the Lord, we have everything we need while living by this garbage heap. I am truly abundant." That year, when the bus accident happened, others died or were severely injured, but her husband was unharmed—a miracle she attributed entirely to the Lord's grace... She didn’t say, "It was this great disaster that caused our family to fall from riches to becoming beggars without a home."
As the sister spoke above, I fell into deep contemplation below. I have a car, a house, and can buy whatever I want, yet I always feel lacking. I always compare myself to the CEOs of listed companies and billionaires, thinking I'm not rich compared to them. Compared to those around me, some have bigger houses than mine, and some have better cars. To improve the performance of my company, I work tirelessly, gaining nothing but fatigue and anxiety. It seems I am indeed poor—poor to the point that I don't know what abundance is, poor to the point that my desires are endless.
The Bible says: "Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet your heavenly Father provides for them. And the birds of the air, they neither sow nor reap, yet your heavenly Father does not let them starve. How much more will He provide for us!"