Enough (adjective): occurring in such quantity, quality, or scope as to fully meet demands, needs or expectations
I recently watched the movie “The Greatest Showman” and was inspired by the performance of the song “Never Enough” – sung by Loren Allred (but acted by Rebecca Ferguson).
Although emotionally moving, I found the song a bit tricky to understand. As the expressive cry of “Never Enough” was repeated frequently and desperately, I first took the meaning to be nothing is ever enough in life. Somewhat of a despairing message about how we always want more, we’re never content with what we have, that nothing is ever enough to truly please us. But then I went back and listened again, and found the key to the meaning exists in the line just before the refrain: “Cause darling without you…”
So the song is NOT about wanting more stuff, more fame, more success. Rather, it’s about prioritizing people over things!
It is meant to remind us that our relationships don’t just add to the meaning to life, they are the meaning of life.
That no “thing” can replace the love of another person.
About this same time, I was in conversation with a group of women, and the topic of “enough” came up (totally unrelated to the song!). This is how God works in my life when He gives me a One Word Faith word 😊
Our discussion went into answering the question: What is enough?
Enough of what, you might ask. Really, enough of anything….
What is enough affection? Enough social interaction? Enough exercise? Enough work? Enough play? Enough flavor? Enough success? Enough food? Enough trouble?
Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34
And who decides when it’s enough?
Enough is defined by each person in each situation. Enough food is different for me than my 16-year-old son. Enough sleep is different for me than my husband. What is enough social interaction for an extrovert? Perhaps a three-hour party with many people and a lot of talking. But for an introvert, perhaps one hour at a quiet coffee shop with two friends with light conversation is enough.
This adjective can be yelled “That’s Enough!” when a parent is on a verge of a meltdown from their children’s antics. Jesus even used this with his disciples when he found them fast asleep:
Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough!” Mark 14:41
When ‘enough’ is used in an exclamation like this, the person is really saying it’s TOO MUCH, the line has been crossed.
Enough can be whispered in a sense of great contentment, such as after a delicious meal, “I’ve had enough, couldn’t eat another bite.” Enough exists on a scale that differs for each of us, and it’s the measurement point where the scale tips from not enough to too much.
ENOUGH is the “just right” spot. That place Paul writes about in Philippians.
I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philippians 4:12
The concept of “enough” is demonstrated in the children’s story about Goldilocks and the three bears. Goldilocks found a chair that was too small, one that was too big, and one that was just right. Enough.
The old idiom about the camel carrying a heavy load also explains the idea of enough. A camel can carry a little more, a little more, and then one “straw” tips the scale to too much.
The straw that breaks the camel’s back is the one that takes him beyond enough.
“Enough said.” This is a regularly used exclamation as well. Again, it represents a tipping point – not leaving things unsaid, but not saying too much.
In some areas, I can be very attuned to that tipping point, and in other areas, my enough scale is completely BROKEN! In those cases, I need someone else, some external tool or power to tell me or show me when I’ve had enough.
Parents struggle with questions about enough:
- Have I done enough?
- Am I loving them enough?
- Do I give enough?
Then we tend to overcompensate these fears with too much. Too much stuff, activities, food, protection, praise. Too much emphasis on the flesh and not enough on the Spirit. All this “help” we’re trying to give our children is skewing their “enough scales”; keeping them from creating their own measurements of enough.
And then we see people everyone asking the question: “Am I enough?” Or thinking the statement “I’m not enough.”
What is really being pondered in this line of thinking? Am I good enough? Smart enough? Pretty enough? Rich enough? Tall enough? Kind enough? Funny enough?
Enough for what?
Enough for whom?
To win a beauty pageant?
To retire in comfort?
To win at Jeopardy?
To be drafted into the NBA?
To be a stand-up comedian?
It’s easy to use the question “Am I enough?” as a means to measure personal worth. But that’s a fruitless exercise!
My worth is determined by being a child of God. Worth doesn’t exist on a scale of “enoughness”.
I am worthy because He is.
Am I enough? He is enough! Apostle Paul had a conversation with God that he tells us about in 2 Corinthians. The Lord’s response to him?
My grace is enough; it’s all you need. 2 Corinthians 12:9 MSG
His grace is sufficient. It’s the same lesson that goes back to Old Testament times, when the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years. God provided their daily bread (manna) in exactly ENOUGH quantities each day, not too little to leave anyone hungry, but not so much to create leftovers.
Am I recognizing His sufficiency every day? Just like the Israelites couldn’t store up the manna, I cannot store up His Grace each day. His Grace is meant to be accepted, received, one day at a time. If I thought I could “store it up”, I’d head right into the devil’s trap of thinking I could do life on my own for a day or two or week. If I attempt to “store up” instead of accepting “enough”, I am showing a lack of trust in my God!
Perhaps if I keep my mind heart and mind focused on His Sufficiency, I can even stop asking, “Am I enough?”
For all our “earthly” things, we each determine “enough” for ourselves. But let’s be clear on one thing: God’s Grace is Enough for each of us! (Feel free to take a few minutes and sing about this with Chris Tomlin: Your Grace is Enough.)
This doesn’t mean His grace is the SAME for each of us – in amount or quality or frequency – it just means that it’s enough. And that God decides what’s enough for me. And enough for you. We need only trust in Him.
No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them—the ransom for a life is costly, no payment is ever enough. Psalms 49:7-8
I can’t ever do enough, be enough, give enough to earn salvation. Christ is the only sufficient price, and he’s paid it in the shedding of His blood. “Enough” is an irrelevant measurement when it comes to redemption.
Salvation is accessed by acknowledging Christ was enough.
Enough said.