When I was growing up, my mom made the best chocolate-chip cookies. Warm, soft in the middle, just the right amount of chocolate, and slightly underbaked. In my mind, those cookies were a scarce resource. If anyone grabbed one before I did, that meant there was one fewer for me.

Those cookies actually weren’t scarce at all—my mom could make another batch at any time. But I didn’t live as if that were true. I lived as if what I had was all there was. That’s scarcity thinking.

Many of us learn that way of seeing the world early on. We carry it with us into adulthood, into our relationships, our finances, our politics, even our faith. We live in a culture that constantly tells us there isn’t enough—enough money, enough time, enough security, enough opportunity.

The gospel tells a different story. God’s vision for creation is not one of scarcity, but of abundance.

Consumer-driven economics in highly developed national economies reinforce this message, encouraging us to accumulate, compete, and protect what we have as if our well-being depends on it. Over time, scarcity thinking shapes our fears, narrows our imagination, and pulls us away from one another.

The gospel tells a different story. God’s vision for creation is not one of scarcity, but of abundance—life overflowing with possibility, generosity, and well-being for all. God’s creative abundance inspires this vision and invites us to embrace it.

At its heart lies a simple, yet profound, truth: All abundance originates with God, who gives generously for the benefit of all creation. When we embody this truth, we are liberated to become cocreators with God, sharing what we have so that life may flourish more fully for everyone.

All abundance originates with God, who gives generously for the benefit of all creation.

The vision of creative abundance does not ignore the suffering in our world. Many communities still lack clean water, safe homes, education, and basic health care. Our planet also suffers from human overconsumption and environmental degradation. These problems are serious and urgent. They show not just a lack of resources, but a failure to share what belongs to God and is meant for everyone’s well-being.

Scripture reminds us that true abundance is not measured by what we own, but by how we relate—to God, one another, and Earth.

This is why economic justice and climate justice belong together. The same systems that concentrate wealth and privilege also exploit land, water, and delicate—but life-giving—ecosystems. Those who already are poor or marginalized often are the first to suffer the effects of climate disruption.

Inspired counsel in Doctrine and Covenants 163 challenges us to awaken to suffering and truly become communities of Christ that embody a just and peaceful alternative. Caring for the poor and caring for Earth are not competing commitments; they are expressions of the same faithfulness.

The same systems that concentrate wealth and privilege also exploit land, water, and life-giving ecosystems.

Creative abundance challenges scarcity-driven systems by inviting us to imagine economic relationships shaped by generosity, restraint, and what is in the interest of the common good. It asks hard questions about excess and consumption and calls us toward simpler, more intentional, ways of living that are sustainable for Earth’s living systems.

The Enduring Principle of Grace and Generosity reminds us that God gives freely and abundantly, inviting us to mirror that generosity—not as a transaction, but as a transformation that reshapes how we live together in interdependent loving relationships.

Living this way requires a major shift in worldview. Scarcity shrinks our imagination and breeds fear and withdrawal. Abundance opens our hearts and minds to creativity, mutuality, and cooperation. The Apostle Paul reminded the Corinthians that God provides enough so that we may “abound in every good work.” Doctrine and Covenants 164 and 165 deepen this call, inviting us to live as a people shaped by oneness, equality, and shared responsibility in Christ.

God’s abundance is real, creation is sacred, and shared flourishing is possible when we live generously with and for one another.

Worldwide, congregations and small groups are finding impactful ways to serve—through hospitality, compassionate relief, online outreach, mental-health support, and creative expressions of discipleship. These are not acts of wealth, but imagination, grounded in a living faith that what we possess becomes sufficient when it is shared generously.

The vision of Zion—a world with no poor or oppressed—is not yet fully realized. God’s creative abundance invites us to participate courageously here and now. Each generous choice, each act of stewardship, each step toward justice moves us closer to the world God desires. Creative abundance ultimately is a way of living rooted in trust: trust that God provides enough, and that we are enough when we place what we have, no matter how small, into God’s generous flow for the good of all.

In a world shaped by fear of scarcity, the church is called to bear witness to a better story—God’s abundance is real, creation is sacred, and shared flourishing is possible when we live generously with and for one another.