Contentment

 

“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.” - Philippians 4:11-12, NIV

 

It’s not easy to define the term ‘contentment.’ But one definition I found online gives it a try: “Contentment is an emotional state of satisfaction that can be seen as a mental state drawn from being at ease in one's situation, body and mind.”

 

Personally, I know that contentment is one of the virtues that God continues to struggle to inculcate in me. In our world that is obsessed with ‘success’ and the so-called ‘good life,’ there is simply too much pressure, which makes it very difficult to live a life of contentment.

 

We are left in shock when a ‘tycoon’ engages in ugly fights with a poor widow and orphans over a tiny plot of land.  We get horrified when people who earn zillions of millions of shillings every month start jostling for a few iron sheets meant for the poorest of the poor.  It all comes down to contentment or the lack of it.

 

In our meditation today, the apostle Paul declares, “I am not in need at all for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstance.” But was Paul actually in need? Yes he was, definitely. He needed money to do his missionary work, sometimes lasting years at a time.

 

Of course he needed clothes; he needed money to pay the bills; he needed shelter and transport – all the things we are desperate to have. Indeed, he had to engage in tent-making sometimes in order to make ends meet.

 

However, he says; “[I am not desperate to get money from you] for I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.” 

Mark the key words: “I have learned the secret of being content.” That shows that contentment is a life skill, a discipline, an attitude that anyone can learn. If you want the real secret to a godly life, there it is.

 

So you mean we shouldn’t have ambition, someone might ask? Of course sometimes it becomes tricky trying to balance ambition and contentment. 

Paul attempted to answer that question in 1Timothy 6:6-8: Godliness with contentment is more profitable than ambition for we were born naked and we shall leave it empty handed.

 

Then in Hebrews 13:5, we are urged to “keep your life free from love of money, and to be content with what you have.” Mark the key words “free from,” which implies that lack of financial contentment could easily turn into a form of bondage.

 

To what extent is the virtue of contentment being instilled and inculcated in your life? We have an opportunity to choose to continue being anxious participants in the so-called ‘rat race’ or to espouse the secret of contentment and godliness.

 

Prayer:

Almighty God, thank you because you promised never to forsake me. Help me to learn the secret of contentment and to make it part of my daily life. For the glory of your Name, Amen.

 

Thy Word

 ‘Thy Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path.’ (Psalm 119:105)

 

Just over ten years ago, I received a small gift the size of a golf ball. Instead of using batteries, you simply turn a small handle on this tiny torch and it gives a bright light.

 

Ten years down the road, this little torch is one of my most important possessions. It has a permanent place under my bed where I can easily reach it. I don’t know how many times it has saved my feet from knocks in the dark.

 

Then in 2014, I bought a second hand car from someone. For the first two days, it was perfect but only just until I had to drive it in the night after an event. Lo and behold; the car almost had nothing to call head lights; I mean a pair of candles would shine brighter. It was a nightmare driving the car home, accompanied by a few rude comments from other road users, and rightly so. 

 

Think of it; how would life be without light? We’ve all had our unpleasant experiences in the dark. That’s why almost everyone has a flashlight app on their phone, which comes in handy almost on a daily basis.

 

In our meditation verse today, the Psalmist acknowledges God’s Word as a ‘flashlight’ for his feet and as ‘head lights’ to show him the road ahead. 

 

In life we need both. I mean when some chap knocks your car from the back and then hurls insults at you for being a ‘poor driver,’ you need the ‘flashlight’ of the Word to guide your ‘feet’ on to how to deal with that annoying situation.

 

When you need know which career to pursue or you want to know the best way to raise your children, it’s a ‘light for my path’ situation for which you need God’s wisdom to guide you as you make those long-term decisions.

 

 

In Philippians 2:15, Paul reminds the Church that we are “in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom you shine as lights in the world” and hence admonishes us to “hold forth the Word of life” (verse 16). How would this world be like if every Christian did this faithfully?

 

I believe there is a connection between what Paul is saying and Psalm 119:105. It’s only when we allow the Word of God to guide our feet and our paths that we can shine and give light in this dark and crooked world (Mat. 5:14)

 

Prayer:

May Your Word guide my steps and my path, O Great Jehovah! Today Lord Jesus, help me shine for your glory in everything I do and say, Amen.