All is Given

There are two basic approaches to life--one in which the world is a world of scarcity, given to us by the skinflint god, and the other in which the world is a world of endless possibilities, bestowed on us by a loving Father.

--Douglas Wilson

The older I get (which is not very old at this moment) the more I recognize how wrong my assumptions are about adulthood. I have a a hard time shaking off the feeling that my bootstraps must be given a hardy lift and I must become a lady of self-sustaining strength. Childhood is understood as a time of receiving and completely relying upon others. It's allowed and expected. But when the hour strikes twelve, then all must be labored for, all must be earned. Open hands are put to the plow. 

I think there's something to be said of the goodness of work. To work with your own hands and earn your own bread is a good thing. But in the process it's so easy to forget that every dollar you receive in exchange for your labor is still something given. It is manna from heaven supplied through the "mask" of your neighbor. 

I recently watched the new Cinderella movie. In a scene near the end, Cinderella's step mother exposes her own bitter view of the world. "Nothing is given," she snaps. In her eyes, all will be taken if she cannot snatch it all back, no matter what means she must use to do it. "Love is free," Cinderella interjects. And of course, she is right. Who can earn love? Who can earn relationship? Is the love of the Father not a gift we can simply humbly receive? Can we really make anything effective on our own? Can we really cause any seed we plant to bear fruit? 

All is given. All is of grace. The world we live in is one of abundance because we have a generous Father. We don't deserve or earn one drop of His good gifts. But He is a good God.