The Lies of Scarcity Debunked By War
A Meditation by Rev. Cameron Trimble
“They all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces—twelve baskets full.” — Matthew 14:20
Listen carefully to the language circulating in public life right now. We are told that affordable healthcare is too expensive. We are told that Medicaid is full of waste, fraud, and abuse. We are told that social programs must be cut because the nation cannot afford them.
Yet at the same moment, the United States is spending $1 billion a day to fight a war in Iran.
Our leaders launch missiles that cost millions of dollars each without hesitation. They send troops into harm’s way. Congress approves billions of dollars for war almost overnight.
Isn’t it interesting that the language of scarcity disappears when it comes to attacking others?
No one asks whether the nation can afford the bombs. No one asks whether war is fiscally responsible. The money simply appears.
This contradiction reveals something important. The problem is not that resources are scarce. The problem is what we choose to value.
Every budget is a moral document. Budgets reveal what a society believes is worth protecting. When leaders claim we cannot afford medicine for children but easily find money for weapons, they reveal the hierarchy shaping their decisions: security for the powerful, and scarcity for the vulnerable.
Wars do not only advance national interests. They also generate enormous profit. Defense contractors and energy companies see their stock prices rise as conflict expands. Companies that manufacture weapons, fuel military systems, and rebuild destroyed infrastructure all benefit financially when war becomes the chosen path.
Scarcity is not just a story about limited resources. It is also a story that protects very specific interests.
Spiritual traditions have long warned about this distortion. The Hebrew prophets watched leaders accumulate wealth and military power while widows and workers struggled to survive. They named this imbalance not simply as poor policy but as an ethical failure. A society that neglects the vulnerable while expanding its machinery of violence has lost its way.
Jesus challenged this same logic. In the story of the feeding of the five thousand, people assume there is not enough. Not enough bread. Not enough fish. Not enough resources to care for everyone gathered.
But Jesus refuses that frame. Instead of accepting scarcity as the defining truth of the moment, he invites people to share what they have. Something shifts. Fear loosens its grip. The crowd begins to trust that caring for one another matters more than guarding what little they have.
The miracle is not magic. The miracle is what happens when people stop organizing their lives around fear.
Systems of power depend on the opposite story. They teach us to believe that compassion is unaffordable, that care must be rationed, that someone must inevitably be left behind.
But wisdom traditions across the world challenge that story. Economist E. F. Schumacher described “Buddhist economics” as an approach that seeks to maximize human well-being with minimal consumption. Many Indigenous traditions understand resources not as possessions but as gifts held in trust for the community. The African philosophy of Ujamaa speaks of familyhood—the conviction that wealth exists to sustain the whole community.
Different traditions, same wisdom.
A sacred economy does not begin with profit or military strength. It begins with the conviction that every person carries sacred worth and that the resources of the earth exist to sustain life.
What kind of world are we building when compassion is treated as an expense and violence is treated as an investment?
What kind of world might become possible if we refused that calculation?
We say we cannot afford to care for people.
But we never struggle to find money for war.
The issue has never been scarcity.
It has always been what we choose to value.
We are in this together,
Cameron
Reflection Questions
What does our national spending reveal about what we truly prioritize as a society?
Where do you notice the myth of scarcity shaping decisions in your own community or life?
What might change if we began measuring prosperity not by accumulation, but by how well we care for one another?
A Prayer for the Day
A Prayer for Moral Clarity
God of justice, When the world tells us there is not enough, open our eyes to the deeper truth. Protect us from the fear that hoards resources and the systems that profit from division. Give us the courage to imagine a society where care is not treated as a burden and compassion is not dismissed as naïve. Teach us to build communities where the measure of our success is the well-being of the most vulnerable among us. Amen.
Spiritual Practice
Noticing the Story of Scarcity
Today, pay attention to how often the language of scarcity appears around you. Notice when someone says, “We cannot afford that.”
Pause and ask yourself:
Who benefits from that story?
What resources are being protected?
Who is being asked to go without?
Then take one small step that contradicts the myth. Share something. Offer help. Extend generosity.
The sacred economy begins wherever people choose care over fear.
Upcoming Events That Might Be of Interest…
My team and I launched a new experiment we are calling “The Commons.” It’s an online space centered around communities of practice: groups of people who share a common concern, set of problems, or passion for a topic, and deepen their knowledge and expertise by interacting on an ongoing basis. At the moment, I am leading a book study on Brian McLaren’s book, Life After Doom, on Tuesdays. Join the community here.
March 17, 23, 31 and April 7, 2026, 7-8:30pm ET - Rev. Dr. Matthew Fox and I will be hosting another 4-part series on “Visions for the Common Good.” This series will include sessions with David Abram (cultural ecologist), Lynne Twist (global activist), Randy Woodley (Cherokee scholar and wisdom-keeper), and yours truly! All sessions are recorded, and you will get the link if you can’t make it. Learn more here.
March 26, 2026, 7–8:30pm ET – FREE WEBINAR - I’ll be joined by Ruth Dearnley, OBE, Founder and President of Stop the Traffik (London), for “Stop the Exploitation of Children: Disrupting Human Trafficking at Its Source.” As Board Chair of Stop the Traffik USA, this work is deeply personal to me. We cannot rescue our way out of trafficking; we must prevent exploitation by disrupting the systems and financial flows that profit from vulnerability—and congregations can play a powerful role in building community resilience. Ruth will share how technology and data are exposing trafficking networks globally, and how congregations can lead local awareness and prevention campaigns that reduce vulnerability and protect children. I hope you’ll join us. Learn more and register here.
March 28, 2026 - No Kings Protest! We are marching again. Mark your calendars and find the nearest protest site. Make your protest signs. Knit your red hats. Get your water bottles and sunscreen ready. We head back into the streets for peaceful protest on behalf of a more just world. I'll see you out there. Register here.
I drafted a Strategic Framework for Congregations as we move into the coming years of increased authoritarianism around the world. If interested, you can download it here.
Fun Things My Friends Are Up To…
I get to work with such amazing, creative people. This section is my way of celebrating them—no paid promotions, just joy in what they’re creating.
I wanted to share something from a colleague whose work I deeply respect. Jackie Sussman of InnerVision has spent decades working with people through a practice called Eidetic Imagery. On Sunday, March 15th (9am PST / 12pm EST · Online · $25), she’s offering a special Introduction to Eidetics session focused entirely on relationships. This isn’t talk therapy or communication strategy. It’s a direct experience of the images your mind holds about love, safety, belonging, and power, the ones that quietly shape every relationship you’re in, often without your awareness. I use eidetics in my coaching practice, and I can attest to it’s power as a methodology for self-discovery. If you want to learn more, register here.
I have just discovered the coolest group! The All We Can Save Project grew out of the powerful climate anthology All We Can Save and has become a growing network of people committed to climate courage and community leadership. Their work reminds us that responding to the climate crisis isn’t only about policy or technology; it’s also about cultivating the relationships, imagination, and moral courage needed to protect and restore the living world. Check them out here: https://www.allwecansave.earth/
If you are a leader or member of a congregation looking for consulting support in visioning, planning, hiring or staffing, please consider Convergence.