I kept shifting from one side to the other in an attempt to get comfortable on the hard-as-rocks bed. This hotel did not offer creature comforts. It reminded me of hotels I visited while touring part of the world decades ago. It had the basics and was clean. Beyond that, it was lacking on many levels. I was feeling very discontented!
Yet as I contemplated what lack and abundance are, I see that it truly is relative. To a person living in poverty, my hotel room would have been luxurious. In realizing this truth, I felt ashamed of my attitude. When one lives with abundance, it is easy to forget what real lack consists of.
Recently, we passed by this store front in Annapolis, Maryland while visiting family. I took the photo of lovely green apples simply because of its beauty. Now I see it as a reminder of abundance.
From now on when I feel uncomfortable with my "lack" and start complaining, I am going to think of green apples. They will remind me to always have an attitude of gratitude. I do this by remembering that the Lord takes care of me.
This is why I love the beginning of the Lord's prayer in Psalm 23. "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want." If I am suffering with lack, or I am living in abundance, I will remember that the Lord takes care of my needs. He comforts me and supplies me with with what I need when I am living in lack, and rejoices with me when I am living in abundance. Either way, I can live life feeling contented..
".....for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do ally things through Christ who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:11-13)