Enough

That’s Auntie Mame in her favorite lurking spot.  Yes, there is an indentation on the top of the chair.

Mame, and her smaller companion Keywit, are fed daily.  I think you can tell simply by looking at her, she’s well fed.  She also receives three small treats each evening (even doing a small trick of taking them from my knee!) while Keywit watches and asks us, “What’s the big deal?”

For both of these felines, there never is enough.  They will come to us and explain they are starving to death, “Please, come quickly and put food down or we will waste away!”  Then they’ll beat us to the food bowl, where we find it has three or four missing bites.  Just this morning, Mame was checking my cereal bowl.  Checking, I’m certain, to see if I would share.  I would not.

As I watched her, I thought of how there’s never enough for us, either.

Give us this day our daily bread. (Matthew 6:11 KJV)

We pray this – sometimes daily – then stock up our pantries, larders and freezers with more and more, bigger and better.  And that applies only to food.  How about:

And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. (Matthew 8:19-20 KJV)

We’ve used our abodes as investments, a step up in the world, building equity so we could get more, bigger and better.  Well, until the bubble burst and home ownership has changed.

An internet glurge piece spoke of “Enough”:

"I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive.
I wish you enough pain so that the smallest joys in life appear much
bigger.
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish enough 'Hello's' to get you through the final 'Goodbye.'"

It appeared to Paul that men do not think they have enough:

For all seek their own, not the things which are Jesus Christ's. (Philippians 2:21 KJV)

We really can’t know what is enough until we know what God has in mind for us.  Enough for a pastor means a lot more Bible study than it does for me, for he is responsible for an entire congregation.  Enough for a missionary means a lot more prayers for his work from other people than it does for me, for he is responsible for souls of those still to be reached.  The measure of enough depends on our calling.

Right now we need rain so much more than we do sunshine, so the sunshine has gone beyond a bright attitude, is that more than enough?

Be cautious with your enough, too.  Take time to read the story of the wise and foolish lamp owners in Matthew 25.  Those who had their enough kept it:

But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves. (Matthew 25:9 KJV)

Continue on in that chapter and learn of three servants given talents who learned:

For unto every one that hath shall be given, and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath. (Matthew 25:29 KJV)

And, learn why.  Mame can’t apply these lessons to her life, but we are supposed to in order to give glory to God.  Then enough becomes abundant.

Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen. (Ephesians 3:20-21 KJV)