Living the Abundant Life

Life is hard. Life is good. Life is pain. Life is joy. But what does it mean to have abundant life?

I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly

John 10:10b KJV

 I’m still processing the answer to that question.

My sister got me a scripture journal for my birthday. It’s a beautiful hardbound book, part short devotional, part reflection guide, and part creative penning. Each entry focuses on a single word.

The day flourish popped up, I was surprised the author used John 10:10 for the verse to accompany the word.

I think of flourishing as growth. It’s something a flower does in summer if I remember to feed and water it. It’s something weeds do in my flower bed if I don’t actively pull them out of the ground.

In my mind, flourish  didn’t connect with Jesus’ promise of abundant life.

Not even after I read the devotional words. The reflection questions asked about what flourishing looked like to the world. What I thought it looked like to God.

Producing fruit. Duh. We need to be the fruitful vine abiding in him.

Still, the connection between John 10:10 and the word flourish didn’t come.

Later, I listened to a podcast while cleaning the bathrooms. I highly recommend this as it makes the tedious job something not to despise.

The guest on the podcast was talking about resting in God. Abiding. To find abundance in our relationship with God.

And she said something like, “That’s what it takes to have a John 10:10 life.”

Ding. Ding. Ding. Bells went off. Finally, God’s message slid past my preconceived notion of an abundant life being about what I was doing for God.

If I flourish in my relationship with him – staying close through worship, sharing my heart through prayer and listening to his encouragement from scripture – that’s abundant life.

Because if the thief comes to steal my health or wealth, I still have God and his guarantee of a flawless body and treasure in Heaven.

Pain? He’ll banish it. Tears? Those will be wiped away.

Yes, those promises are for the future. But the hope of them is what keeps us moving forward, flourishing—flowers in the desert of the world’s darkness.

Abide for abundance with God. Not abundance from him. Not abundance for him. With him. Staying plugged into God is the abundance Jesus came to give.

How would you define abundant life? What does living the abundant life look like to you?