Embracing a Life of Being Enough
There’s something interesting to be noted about the functionality of a gas tank. When we decide to fill up our gas tank (or let’s be honest: we are forced to speed to the pump because our light just went on) we’re bringing ourselves to a source of replenishment. Without the gas, we’re in big trouble. We can’t really move our cars any further along the road, and we’ll inevitably just be stuck right where we are.
While we roll up to the gas pump and sit there for a few minutes, we might have the idea to completely fill the tank instead of just throwing in a few bucks. Why not? We’re already here, we’re not sure where we’re headed or how much gas we might need to get there, so we decide it’s probably safer to just fill up right now.
Well, sometimes you probably wish you could just pump out a little extra, right? Heck, some of us might even try to click the handle just a little bit more than we’re supposed to, even though there are signs that tell us not to. Signs that warn us of the potential dangers of “topping it off”. Yet, we just want it. We want even more than we’re given, because we like to feel that extra security. We don’t know how long our drive ahead might be, so we’ll squeeze out every last drop – stocking up on every bit of safety. All the while, we know fully well that what we have in our tank is enough.
The car was designed for a full tank of gas to engage the engine and to run the car properly. So, why doubt it? Why push it? Why add the extra stress? There is enough within the car. You have enough to operate. You have enough to keep going.
Do you relate to the gas tank? There’s a heavy connection between how we interact at the gas station and how we interact with God. So many times, I just want a little bit more. I just doubt that everything within my inheritance in the Lord, my God-given gifts and talents, that all of it will be enough. Do I have enough? Am I enough?
If you’re like me, you might convince yourself that you need more. More than what we already have within us. We tell ourselves that we aren’t enough because we look to the culture that runs around us and we feel like there isn’t a space for us to just be enough. We stress out over pulling all-nighters so our grades are nothing less than perfect. We spend late nights at work because maybe our boss will notice a significance rooted in over-performing. We fervently scroll through social media and self-loathe for the clothes we don’t have, the trips we aren’t taking, and the experiences we aren’t involved in. We’re breaking a sweat just trying to keep up with it all and I’m afraid we’ve forgotten how much our identity in Jesus really is enough.
How is Jesus truly enough? How is He really all we need for a life propelled into greatness, but centered in the resting arms of God? We hear it so many times, but if our identity is tied to Christ, then why do we strive to live outside of that? Why do we introduce ourselves to each other with our job titles, rather than the love that lives within us? Why do we lead conversations with our accolades, but set aside our compassion and understanding toward others?
“See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.” 1 John 3:1 (ESV).
Friends, the world around us isn’t deeply rooted in the spirit of God like you and I are. There is a race running around us, but you and I have been called for a much greater purpose. A purpose of love, an identity rooted in the gospel, and the views of the world differ. The world will find purpose in what you do, not whose you are.
The Christian life is one of counter-culture. The world, the culture keeps trying to overfill the tank they’ve been given, striving for more and more with a fatal implosion just around the corner. Beloved – you and I are rewarded with the most beautiful alternative: communion and relationship with Jesus. Scripture reminds us that it is easy to see the “fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything.” Colossians 2:9-10 (MSG).
Your identity in Christ is enough. While the world toils away at convincing themselves otherwise, you can rest in knowing that the Lord has bestowed upon you a life not promised of abundant tasks, but abundant life.
Maybe you’re in a place right now of trying to strive for more than what you think you’re capable of. My hope is that you find rest and comfort in knowing that the God of the universe has equipped you for exactly all that you need in this moment. You have a specific purpose to live out and have a calling over your life whether you have started to see that or not. There is peace in knowing that just your presence alone on this earth is enough.
“…whatever God does endures forever; nothing can be added to it, nor anything taken from it. God has done it, so that people fear before him. That which is, already has been; that which is to be, already has been; and God seeks what has been driven away.” Ecclesiastes 3:14-15 (ESV)
I hope this last bit of scripture resonates deeply within you as a constant reminder that God has done it. Rejoice in that fact – that which is, already has been. Nothing can be added or taken away. Your identity in Christ is surely enough, because God has proven sufficient.
Take a moment to rest in this assurance, and the promises of God. Don’t let the world and its opposing views let you think for one minute that your additional efforts will prove you to be anything other than the anointed child you are. Let the love of God fill your tank until it is enough, and then stop. He designed you to be enough. His promises are that it works perfectly when you’re enough. His fullness is within you – and you are called to safely venture through any of life’s roads in that truth.
Taylor Arroyo is a self-proclaimed ‘Southern Belle trapped in Southern California’. She currently resides in sunny LA, where she works in marketing for FabFitFun. In her free time, she loves: being outdoors, fellowship with friends, and most of all, spontaneous dance parties with her husband, Aaron!
