What Is Enough?
“Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.”Proverbs 30:8–9 (KJV)
Most of us never decide how much is enough. We just keep reaching for more. A raise becomes the new normal, and the next target appears. Without a finish line, the race never ends.
One of the wisest prayers in Proverbs asks for a limit: “give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal.” The writer knew that both too little and too much can pull us from God.
Paul gives the floor: “And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” He also gives the reason: “godliness with contentment is great gain.”
Try sitting down and working out what your family actually needs to live, give, save and rest well. Then let that number guard you. When you know what enough looks like, you can stop striving for what you never needed.
Read it yourself
Read Proverbs 30:7–9. What two things does the writer ask God for before he dies?
Have you ever decided what enough looks like for your household?
Father, feed me with food convenient for me. Teach me contentment, and keep me close to you whether I have little or much. Amen.