Being broke sucks. Period. My season lasted much longer than I liked for sure but the beautiful thing about life and all its seasons is that if you remain open to learning and practice looking for the good, you can always gain some invaluable lessons and insights.
One of the most impactful lessons that I have learned is how to be grateful. I really try and make it a practice to be grateful everyday – grateful for the gift of Christ, grateful for my family, grateful for my home. In fact, I try and take it down to the lowest common denominator – grateful for heat in my house, gas in my care, food on my table.
Now that I have been on both sides of the table financially, I clearly see that you can have a season of lack financially but you never have to give in to a lack mentality. You know, the type of scarcity mentality that makes you feels like there is never enough and keeps you focused on what you don’t have. It is certain that this type of mindset will steal all the joy out of life.
The abundant mindset on the other hand is focused on finding joy in life.
My fondest memories were days when I could not afford to take my children to any paid outdoor activities but we put together a fashion show with 3 categories – dressy, sporty and casual and the kids went into the closets and put together their outfits and came out one by one so that I could judge their efforts.
Or I remember having danceoffs where everyone would pick a favorite song and we’d move all the furniture out of the way and just dance, bumping into each other, showing off our tightest moves until we’d all fall out laughing.
Or the days when I would make pallets on the floor, cooking popcorn, making lemonade and enjoying a DVD on my computer because we did not have a TV.
I even remember a day when my son asked if we could go out and eat and I didn’t have enough money but I told the kids to search every room for change and we scraped together enough to go to McDonald’s and get a couple $1 burgers, an order of fries and a drink to share. That was the best midnight snack ever!
This is true wealth – time spent loving on, laughing with and developing strong bonds with people you love.
Being broke in your bank account sucks for sure but the rich relationships that can be gained from an abundant mindset are truly worth more than gold.
What are your true riches? Are you enjoying them every day?