Flourishing
...a community where everyone has what they need
Psalm 144:12-14
Then our sons will be like plants,
well-nurtured in their youth,
and our daughters like the strong pillars
that stand at the corners of the palace.
with every kind of provision;
our sheep will be in the thousands
and the tens of thousands in our fields.
Our chieftains will be firmly established;
there will be no exile, no cry of distress in the streets.
What would the world be like if we all imagined a flourishing community around us? Not one where a single person or a group of people hoards everything but one where each individual has what they need.
Psalm 144 reveals a picture of a strong community. A place where there's no cries of distress in the streets. The psalmist doesn't focus on one individual's success but instead on the wellbeing of all.
Our culture often tells us to do the opposite. Care for the individual first, the collective needs later. How have we strayed from the perspective the psalmist had? How might we get back to it?
What is one practice you could begin today that would help you regularly remember and work toward this concept of a community where everyone has what they need?