An Abundance Mentality

If someone has enough money to live well and sees a brother or sister in need but shows no compassion—how can God’s love be in that person?

1 John 3:17

In the summer of 2009 at a Trader Joe’s store in Menlo Park, California, a woman named Jenni Ware was standing at a checkout counter when she realized she had lost her wallet. Carolee Hazard saw that Ware wasn’t going to be able to pay the bill, so she offered up the $207 that Ware needed to buy the items in her cart.

The next day, Hazard received a thank-you card and a check for $300 in the mail. In the card’s note, Ware suggested that Hazard use the extra $93 to get a massage. But Hazard felt she needed to do something else with the money. Unable to come up with any good ideas, she turned to her Facebook friends, asking them what she should do with the extra cash. One of her friends suggested she give the money to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Silicon Valley. Hazard liked the idea, so she matched the $93 with her own money and sent in a check to the Second Harvest Bank for $186.

But the giving didn’t stop there. After more and more people heard about Hazard’s gift, the 93 Dollar Club was born on Facebook. With other donations of $93 (and other amounts as little as $$093), this grassroots movement, which started out as a simple act to help a stranger, has led to others giving more than $100,000 to help combat hunger.

Here’s what we know about generous people: They believe that if they give, they will not run out of resources. They work with what is called an “Abundance Mentality.” It’s what Stephen Covey was getting at when he used the analogy of Scarcity versus Abundance:

The Scarcity Paradigm	Abundance Paradigm
Defense	Offense
Escape Loss	Pursue the vision
Safety	Risk
Maintain	Create
Fear	Faith
Reactive	Proactive
Win-lose	Win-win
Tight	Generous

Magnanimous people have no vanity or jealousy. They aren’t holding back their reserves. Of course, this applies to more than money. It has to do with how we give of ourselves. Talk together about how you can share the joy of generosity. What points of need are you each aware of and drawn to as a couple?

When we refrain from giving, with a scarcity mentality, the little we have will become less. When we give generously, with an abundance mentality, what we give away will multiply.

—Henri Nouwen

From the book