15th March 2026 

Abundance of Grace

During Lent, the Lectio 365 prayer team are running a series on the wilderness. We are learning from scripture but also from the Desert Fathers and Mothers of the third and fourth centuries, men and women who sought the presence of God in simplicity and solitude, away from the trappings of city life.

I have been struck by how many of these men and women came from wealthy, even aristocratic backgrounds. And yet, upon inheriting their parents' wealth, they gave it all away in order to find a deeper contentment in Christ. The Desert Father Hyperichius said this:

"To accept poverty freely is the monk's treasure. Therefore, my brother, lay up treasure in heaven, where there will be endless time for rest." (see also Matthew 6:24ff)

To voluntarily choose poverty is very different from being forced into poverty because of unjust structures and unequal distribution of wealth. It is right to say that there are many people in our community for whom a little more wealth would make an enormous difference. That is why we partner with Living Well and with CAP to support people in need to flourish.

Perhaps it has less to do with the amount of money or possessions that we have and more to do with our attitude towards them. Today's reflection, in the light of Jesus' words in Matthew 6, asked whether we live with an abundance or a scarcity mindset? 

In an abundance mindset, we trust that God our Creator has made a good world teeming with abundance - more than enough for all of us to enjoy. We live in this world as those called to bear the image of God, reflecting that image back to God in worship and out to the world in love. A scarcity mindset, on the other hand, says that there is not enough to go round, that I have to keep on working to build up my wealth, my possessions, because in the end, I can only rely on myself. Fundamentally, much economic injustice, and much warfare in the world are caused by a scarcity mindset - we see someone else with something that we want or need, and we grab it, by force if necessary.

Like Zacchaeus last week, many of the Desert Fathers and Mothers discovered that, when they gave up their attachment to worldly wealth and possessions, they found a new freedom, a new life. This season of Lent may be a time where we can consider letting go of our attachment to some kind of wealth or possession, and stepping into the new freedom of God's abundant grace.