An Abundance Mindset “富足”的心態

Long before he laid down earth’s foundations, he had us in mind, had settled on us as the focus of his love, to be made whole and holy by his love.” -Ephesians 1:4

Before God created anything else in the universe, there was only Him, except He was not alone. God is eternally comprised of Three Persons: God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. God enjoyed a perfect relationship within the Godhead. The Three Persons of the Trinity were loving each other completely before anything else was created. God did not create because He was lonely. Creation did not happen because God needed something from it. Rather, creation happened because God was overflowing with love and He wanted us to be the recipient of His love. Therefore, since our God is a generous God filled with abundance, we must also live with an abundance mindset instead of a scarcity mindset. A scarcity mindset thinks that resources are limited and only looks inwardly to pursue their own needs, while an abundance mindset sees God as in control of unlimited resources and looks outwardly to pursue the needs of others. By doing this, he not only helps others but also himself. As Christians, we must all live generously with an abundance mindset, so that God can use us to be a blessing to others. 

5 Steps in creating an abundance mindset.

1. Start by thanking God for 3 things when you wake up. Start your day with an attitude of gratefulness. This will set a positive tone for the rest of your day and encourage you to live outwardly to bless others. 

2. Surround yourself with people who have an abundance mindset. An abundance mindset is a Christian mindset. We need to educate fellow Christians that God is in control of all resources and we must live generously, just as our God is generous. 

3. Focus on your unique strengths. God has granted all of us unique strengths and resources. We must never compare or be envious of others. Instead we must find ways to bless others with the unique resources that God has given us. 

4. Look at the glass as half full instead of half empty. If you look at the glass as half full, you become grateful and recognize that God provided for it and look forward to Him to pour more. But if half empty, you start from a point of bitterness and find ways to hold on to what you have instead of giving and blessings others. 

5. Do more of what you love. God wants us to enjoy our work. We can never completely bless others when we don’t love what we do. Yet most of the time, the answer is found in learning to love what we do, instead of finding another work to do. 

就如　神從創立世界以前，祂在基督裡揀選了我們，使我們因著愛，在祂面前成為聖潔，沒有瑕疵。 ～以弗所書1:4新譯本 ～

神在創造宇宙萬有之前，只有祂在那裏，但祂並不孤單。亙古以來，神有三個位格：聖父，聖子和聖靈。三位一體的神的三位格彼此間享有完美的關係，祂們在創世以前就已經彼此相愛。神創造萬有不是因為祂孤獨，也不是因為祂需要從創造中得到甚麼。相反的，神造人是因為祂充滿愛，祂希望我們成為祂愛的接受者。由於我們的神是慷慨、富足的神，因此我們必須有 “富足”的心態來生活，而不是抱著 “缺乏” 的心態生活。這種缺乏的思維方式認為資源是有限的，只能往裏看見自我的需要，追求的是自己的滿足。而持有富足的心態則認識上帝掌管無限的資源，並向外看見他人的需要，尋求他人的滿足。這樣的行為不僅能幫助他人，還能幫助自己。作為基督徒，我們都必須有富足的心態，活得慷慨，成為神祝福的管道。

建立富足心態五步驟：

1. 起床時首先為三件事感謝神。以感恩的心開始新的一天，能為這天餘下的時光建立積極的心，並幫助我們往外看見他人的需要而祝福他人。

2. 與有富足心態的人在常一起。富足心態是基督徒的心態。基督徒要常常彼此提醒，上帝掌管一切資源，我們要慷慨地活，就如同我們的神如此慷慨賜恩。

3. 善用你的獨特之處。神賜給每個人都有獨特的能力與資源。千萬不要與他人比較，心生嫉妒，反而當善用神所賜的特長與資源來祝福他人。

4. 看半杯水為半滿而非半空。同樣的半杯水，看見半滿時你會心生感恩，感謝神的供應，並期待祂會倒入更多水。但若看這杯水一半都空了，心都涼了。從痛苦的角度出發，就會想盡辦法抓住自己所擁有的，而不是給予和祝福他人。

5. 多做自己喜歡的事。神希望我們享受工作，若我們若不愛自己的工作，就無法祝福他人。其秘訣是學習熱愛自己的工作，而非換一份工作。

～ Min. David Or 柯啟洋傳道～