What does the abundant life mean?

"I am come that they may have life, and have it abundantly." John 10:10

What exactly does that mean?

Does it have the same meaning as when coaches and new age success gurus talk of helping people to live abundantly, or when they point out the difference between an Abundance Mentality vs a Scarcity Mentality, or when abundance is mentioned in the same breath as prosperity, wealth, success and happiness?

I know a Christian life coach whose mission is "using practical coaching methods and biblically sound strategies" to teach her clients "learn how to create a life that draws prosperity, happiness, abundance, joy, peace and success to them".

When I Googled "scarcity mentality and abundance mentality", I found an abundance of articles on the subject, most of which exhort you and me to discard Scarcity thinking and embrace Abundance thinking. See for instance this wonderful piece by Dr Wayne Dyer (author of You'll See It When You Believe It - an intriguing title!) that suggests everything we need to eliminate scarcity in our world is already here, and that there is enough to go around.

I totally agree that we should focus on thanking God for what we already have, instead of harping on what we lack, or think we lack. It is also useful to maintain a right perspective by remembering, as Rick Warren likes to put it, that "life is not about you". God's ultimate goal for our lives on earth is not comfort, but character development. (Ch22, The Purpose Driven Life)

He goes on to write that "many Christians misinterpret Jesus' promise of the abundant life to mean perfect health, a comfortable lifestyle, constant happiness, full realization of your dreams, and instant relief from problems through faith and prayer...This self-absorbed perspective treats God as a genie who simply exists to serve you in your selfish pursuit of personal fulfilment. But God is not your servant...You exist for God's purposes, not vice versa."

So how does all this info translate into something coherent and meaningful that I can live by? Might it be possible that God's purpose is for me to live simply and meaningfully, with modest needs and modest expectations? Are my dreams of financial stability (and eventual financial abundance) in harmony with God's purposes, or the result of too much influence by secular humanistic philosophy? How will I know?

"If any of you lack wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." (James 1:5)