Is There a Kink in Your Hose?

Nothing can prevent you from prospering like having a mindset of lack. It’s like a having a kink in your garden hose. It greatly diminishes the flow!  Until the kink is removed you can never fully open and receive the abundant flow and prosperity God has for you.

What is lack?

The dictionary defines lack as, “the state of being without or not having enough of something.” What I find fascinating is that the first four words of this definition tell us lack is a state of being. The book of Proverbs says the same.

“As a man thinks in his heart so is he” – Proverbs 23:7

In other words, our being starts with our thinking. The truth is lack is a mindset.  And It comes from a deeply ingrained belief system that starts in our childhood.

Do any of these phrases sound familiar to you?

• “Money doesn’t grow on trees!”
• “Where are you going to get the money for that?”
• “We can’t afford it!”
• “It’s just not in the budget.”
• “Maybe someday.”

If you are at all like me you grew up hearing these and similar sayings that remind you that there is simply just not enough for you to get what you desire. In the book the 4 Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz describes how we humans are domesticated. A system of rewards and punishments are used to get us to believe and act like those in a position of authority want us to. When all else fails these authorities resort to using guilt and shame to get us to concede. For many of us, a sense of shame or guilt was used often to make us feel bad about even having a desire for something. “Stop being so selfish” “Don’t be greedy” “It’s better to give than receive” There are many scriptures that teach about the power of agreement

“If two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven.” – Matt 18:19-20

This is true when we agree in prayer but it is also true when we come into agreement with the beliefs of those domesticating us.  Once we enter into an agreement with the belief in lack we internalize it and it becomes our mindset.

The mindset of Lack is in our Vocabulary!

The mindset of lack is also embedded in our language.  After being domesticated we begin to fluently speak the language of lack and not-enoughness. For example, pay attention to how many times you use the word “want” in your daily conversations.

Did you know…

The original meaning of the word “want” is “extreme lack“? This is why David said in Psalm 23, “The Lord is My Shepherd. I shall not want” Lynne Twist in her book The Soul of Money shows how many ways lack and scarcity enter our thoughts and words,

“For me, and for many of us, our first waking thought of the day is ‘I didn’t get enough sleep.’  The next tone is ‘I don’t have enough time.’  Whether true or not, that thought of not enough occurs to us automatically before we even think to question or examine it.  We spend most of the hours and the days of our lives hearing, explaining, complaining, or worrying about what we don’t have enough of….Before we even sit up in bed, before our feet touch the floor, we’re already inadequate, already behind, already losing, already lacking something.”

Furthermore, we are constantly bombarded with programming by marketers to adopt and maintain a mindset of lack so we will feel a need to buy their products. We are taught that we are not popular, beautiful, wealthy, successful or powerful enough because we lack something.  If only we buy the right clothes, car, home, cosmetics, watch, etc. then we will be powerful, rich, attractive, successful, etc.

Why it matters…

The problem is that this target is always changing.  The phone that was a status symbol last year is now considered obsolete.  The home, car and clothing style are quickly outdated.  It is a race to a finish line that we never seem to cross! The sense of not having enough and, even worse, not being enough keeps many in a place of being a victim waiting for the missing link to be provided so they can move forward.  They have low self-worth and play much smaller than they know they could be.  Many of the women I coach have spent their entire life meeting the needs of others and have completely lost touch with their desires and their personal strength and power!

What to do…

Here are some tools and tips to replace the mindset of lack with a mindset of abundance and prosperity.

1. Awareness is the first step to transformation

   Pay attention to what you say throughout the day. Find common phrases that are based on a mindset of lack.  Write them down in your journal.  Then draw a red line through the sentence to train your brain this is not true.  Below the sentence write a new sentence that expresses abundance.

2. Study examples of abundance in scripture

In order to experience the abundant life God promised, we must break the mindset of lack.  I believe this is what God had to do with Abraham for him to have a mindset that could receive his promise. God had to get him to count the abundantly uncountable things in nature such as the stars and grains of sand.

3. Study the examples of abundance in nature

God is a God of abundance and overflow! Consider, for example, how many apple trees are in a single apple and how many orchards are in one apple tree!

4. Abundance Exercise – “There is Abundance”

   In the book, “The Gospel of Liberation” by Ishmael Tetteh I found a wonderful exercise. You pick common things found in nature such as air, water, sand, etc. and you say, “There is abundance.  There is abundance and there is an abundance of _________(e.g. water)”  Then you say many ways there is abundance.  g. “There is abundance of water as rivers, lakes, streams, and oceans” “There is abundance of water as moisture, in the air from the lungs of people and animals” “There is abundance of water in the fluid that surrounds a fetus” “There is abundance of water in the atmosphere, as rain, fog, and clouds” and so on…  It is a powerful exercise.  After you do it for two things in nature then do it for the thing you have had a mindset of lack around, e.g. money.

5. Abundance Affirmations

   Create affirmations around those things you have a mindset of lack. Some of my favorites are:

“I have time” My God shall supply all my needs according to His riches.     “I have enough”          My cup overflows, goodness and mercy follow me all the days of my life. “I AM enough”

Recommended: God Money & Me Discovery Course Prosper By Design Transformation & Coach Certification Program  (Includes Partner with God in Business 7 Day Experience) Praying YOU Prosper in ALL things! Brenda

About the author

Brenda Byers is the founder of www.prosperinallthings.com and has built multi-million dollar companies and sales teams. She has mentored leaders from many walks of life. Coaching the spectrum from single moms and budding entrepreneurs to founders of corporations. Her private coaching clients increase their income exponentially while learning to live their bliss and serve their communities.  She believes God is the business partner of choice. She shares cutting edge science and spiritual wisdom that will set you free and your business soaring. Brenda is a highly sought out inspirational speaker and corporate trainer at conferences and retreats. She recently released the Prosper by Design Coach Certification Program. A comprehensive, biblically-based, science-backed online and offline program to grow your faith, income, and influence! Develop confidence and a success mindset, hone your skills and experience lasting personal & business breakthrough. SCHEDULE with Brenda to see if coaching is right for you and take a FREE TOUR of the Prosper By Design Coaching Certification Program.