Contentment

Contentment

I have a confession to make to you. I have been out of sorts for the past couple of days.

I know that may not seem like much of a confession to you. But to a deeply Christian woman, out of sorts is a dangerous place to be. Why? Because when I am out of sorts, Satan has a field day.

You see, Satan loves discontent. When we have a discontented spirit, we are susceptible to all manner of his fiery arrows. Anger, frustration, depression, and self-doubt are among his favorite weapons…anything from annoyances to downright lies. For instance, have you ever thought “maybe I’m pursuing this dream of (insert your dream here) because it’s what I want – maybe it wasn’t God I heard calling me to it, just my own selfish want.”? Or maybe you just have this barely perceptible (or blaring) thought in the back of your mind that you really only want success in a certain area for your own gain, not God’s? Or that God doesn’t want you to get any gain/satisfaction/security from your calling, only further His plan? Or maybe that you have nothing to offer of significance, your life is just wake, work, eat, sleep, repeat.

 

Let me be the first (or the hundredth) to assure you, these thoughts are not from God. Satan is the original expert at making half-truth sound like truth, instead of the lie that it really is. Picture him, all wide-eyed (fake) innocence, in the garden asking Eve, “Did God really say you can’t eat from ANY tree in the garden?” An exaggeration that encourages Eve to reply with an exaggeration of her own…”No, but He DID say we can’t eat from this tree, or even touch it, or we will surely die!”

Sometimes, I’m a little more like Eve than I am comfortable with. I hear Satan twisting God’s good and beneficial truth to make me discontent with all the blessings I have been given. For instance, God’s Word tells me that, while He does not intend me to worship money, He does want me to prosper. Satan tries to convince me that God has no intention of blessing me with good things. Picture him now, still wide-eyed and (fake) innocent, asking me, “Did God really say you can’t serve him and be successful?” To my shame, I sometimes believe this. When I am not focused on Truth.

When I am discontent.

Too many times we expect that if we serve God without focusing on our own needs or desires, that our own needs and desires will not get met.

Let me tell you, beloved of the Lord, nothing could be further from the Truth!

I recently completed a wonderful 23-day devotional by Pastor Rick Warren (rickwarren.org) entitled “What on Earth Am I Here For?” The whole thing was eye-opening, but one particular part grabbed me and hasn’t let go.

He writes:

God has given each of us a unique emotional heartbeat that races when we think about the subjects, activities, or circumstances that interest us. We instinctively care about some things and not about others. These are clues to where you should be serving.

I know…this is a post about contentment, not serving. But I believe the to are inextricably connected. Did you catch the key words here? God has given.

God created you. God made you unique. God has given you your talents and passions! How, then, can we not be fulfilled in our needs and desires if we are serving God using our unique talents and passions? God wants us to serve Him, and He wants us to be content and fulfilled doing so! That’s why he gave us that unique “emotional heartbeat”…so that when we serve Him, we are happy, too!

But wait! There’s more! (Sorry…I couldn’t resist).

Can’t we be generally happy, but have days we are discontent, too?

Sure. We can. We do. But it’s not God’s desire for us! The glitch is that we are ‘generally happy’ and not joy-filled.

We need what Paul had when he wrote to the Philippians:

“…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. I have learned the secret to being content in any and every situation…”

I want what Paul’s got! How do I get some of that?!

Well, here is where we apply TRUTH to combat Satan’s lies. Jesus is the Way, the TRUTH, and the Life…He is also The WORD of God. So, where else do we turn for Truth, but to the Word!

Paul’s answer to the question of where we find contentment is a verse we probably all know very well:

”I can do all things through Him who gives me strength.”

 

But beyond that, when the Word says this, it doesn’t just leave us hanging on how to access this strength. It also says, “The joy of the Lord is your strength!”

 

 

To receive His strength, and thus contentment in any situation, we have to know Him; and to know Him, we must know the Word. The more we know, the more we understand the whole Truth, and how it works to enrich our lives fulfill us and bring joy to our souls…making us truly content.

 

Who Am I?

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Who Am I?

Let me ask you a question. It’s a question I’ve asked myself a lot over the past couple of years. Do you believe the promises you’ve learned, or have read, or are just being introduced to?

Do you really believe them?

Now let me give you a painfully honest answer. For me, it was no. I thought I did. I grew up with Jesus in church. I was taught well, had wonderful, believing parents. They taught me the Bible, taught me prayer, taught me Jesus loves me – not just the song, but the fact. I believed it…and I didn’t. I always believed Jesus loves me in the broad sense that He loves everyone. I always believed I am saved and will go to Heaven when I die. I think what I really thought was that, while He loves us and wants us all to go to Heaven, my life wasn’t “big” enough to bother Him. And when I say big, I suppose I mean important. And because of my spiritual immaturity, I missed a very important Truth.

Jesus. Loves. Me.

Jesus LOVES me!

Jesus loves ME!

Personally, unequivocally, deeply, joyously! The promises in His Word, from His heart, are for ME!

And they are for YOU. He loves you the very same way.  

Recently, I have been asking questions. Questions I technically know the answers to. I know the “Sunday School answers,” as a dear friend of mine calls them.

Yes, I am important to God. Yes, I am called to do His work. Yes, He loves me. Yes, He will lead me and be beside me. These things are all definitely, thankfully, wonderfully true!

But doubt is a sneaky thing. You can doubt without even realizing it’s doubt! Satan loves to use doubt – very often in the form of feelings of inadequacy – to steal our joy and our purpose. Especially, it seems, when you’ve actually found a purpose you feel God calling you to.

I don’t doubt God. That is, I have never doubted His Sovereignty, His Power, or His saving Grace. I believe every word of the Bible is true.

Don’t I? I mean, I’ve seen so much of it in action. I witnessed miracle after miracle when my husband was diagnosed with cancer. I witnessed a deep change in his heart and actions as a result of the work of the Holy Spirit, after some severe temptations and misleading from Satan that nearly destroyed us in the summer following that. There have been some very major spiritual battles won in our lives over the past couple of years. That is all God. His love, His Grace, His power, His promises in action.

But what about when we doubt ourselves? I have done a lot of that in my life. So many of us do, in so many ways. We compare ourselves to others – are we as smart/attractive/successful as others. Are we as far along in our walk with Jesus?

I did this a lot when I was younger. I compared myself to my sister, the pretty, smart, outgoing one, whom I looked up to growing up. And to my brother as he became a grown man, the strong, protective, outspoken one, sure in his beliefs and willing to defend them. I, on the other hand, was the more emotionally sensitive one, who struggled for grades past middle school, rarely got asked out on dates, felt like I lived behind a mask of acne, and took refuge in books.

I have finally come to understand that there is no comparison, because we are all exactly who God made us to be. David said:

I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well.

Psalm 139:14

Notice there is no period separating the two thoughts. There is only a break in the sentence, an elaboration on the first thought…”You made me, Lord – and everything You make is wonderful!”

He made you. And everything He makes is wonderful! Not the same. Not “the things you make to look like this or to be like this are really awesome, God.” Everything. Uniquely and beautifully wonderful.

Sometimes we compare ourselves to ourselves…to what we think we ought to be. Or what we think we ought to be in order for God to use us.

Who am I?

I believe this is a question on the minds of so many of us who would like to be used mightily by God. I also believe it is a tactic of Satan to deter us from following the desire to move out of our comfort zone, to try something risky, to be bold for God.

This is also the heart of the questions I have recently begun to ask. There are many…all of them really. Who do I think I am to try to tell others what I think they need to know, to think I’m “righteous” enough to try to set an example for others? What do I know, anyway? When am I going to find time, or see some results of my efforts? Where do I begin, or go from here? Why do I think I’m good enough at this blogging thing for anyone to even want to read it? How do I get it to where people can see it? How do I know I’m doing it right? How does an unknown small-town girl like me come to think she can make a difference?

The “Sunday School answer” here is, “I am a child of God!” Another beautiful Truth I do not doubt or mean to detract from in any way!

But again, doubt is a sneaky tool of a sneaky adversary.

I am a child of God…but I’m no leader like Moses. I’m no soldier/poet/king like King David, or pure like Mary, or have the grit and courage of Paul. I’m no Billy Graham, or Mother Theresa, or (you fill in the blank).

Guess what? Neither were they. Like so many other great people, not one of these spiritual icons was anyone special – worldly speaking – when they were chosen to lead others, to be examples, to answer God’s call. To obey. You probably already know their stories.

Moses was the son of a slave in such dire conditions that he was put in a river to save his life.

King David was the youngest of many brothers, a shepherd (which was not an especially lofty position!), and so unlikely to be chosen his father didn’t even call him in from the fields when the prophet came to choose the next king! By all accounts, at the time he was a skinny dreamer, not even old enough to join the armies or big enough to fit armor.

Mary was a teenage girl from the least respected town in Israel.

Paul was the most murderous opposer of Jesus and his ministry and Truth.

Before you start to think “Well, these are examples from the Bible, they’re supposed to be against-the-odds examples,” remember that:

Billy Graham was one of four children raised on a dairy farm in the south, who came to preach to more people than any other person in history – in HISTORY! – not even counting his books and broadcast audiences!

Mother Teresa was from Skopje, Macedonia and was raised from an early age by a poor, single mother after her father died. She became known as one of the greatest humanitarians of the 20^th century, and was sainted.

So…who am I?

I am nobody, really, in this world. A loved daughter of Christian parents in small town Indiana. In earthly terms, a relative nobody from a little-respected town.

But, it doesn’t matter who I am.

It’s not about who I am. It’s not about who you are. Or who Moses was. Or David, Mary, Paul, Billy, or Mother Teresa.

It’s about God. It’s about His promises. It’s about what He has called us to. All of us. Anyone willing to listen and obey.

Who do I think I am?

God calls us:

A kingdom of priests (Exodus 19:6)

A chosen people, a royal priesthood…that we may declare the praises of Him who called us out of darkness into His marvelous light. (1 Peter 2:9)

He calls us to:

Devote ourselves to the public reading of the Scriptures, to preaching, and to teaching. (1 Timothy 4:13)

Preach the word…correct, rebuke, and encourage. (2 Timothy 4:2)

Let the message of Christ dwell among [us] richly as we teach and admonish one another with wisdom through the Word. (Colossians 3:16)

How?

“This is what the Lord your God says – your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am the Lord your God, who teaches you…who directs you in the way you should go.’” (Isaiah 48:17)

“Your ears will hear a voice behind you saying, ‘this is the way, walk in it.” (Isaiah 30:21)

“…you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth.” (Acts1:8)

It’s not about me. It’s not about you. When we doubt ourselves, we doubt God. Because whatever is accomplished for Him, and for His kingdom, is accomplished by Him…we need only to submit, to listen, and to obey.

Who am I?

I am a chosen person, royal priest, obedient follower, Spirit-filled joyfully submitted child of God!

Who are you?

 

James 2:17 – “…faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”

 

 

Enough

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I’m a list maker. Grocery list, to do list, spring gardening list, needs list…I tend to motivate myself by checking off completed items on the lists.

Today, I sit on my couch, coffee in hand, endeavoring to begin a list of things I need as spring approaches. Things I need for my house. Things I need for my yard, my garden, my pets...I am trying to make a new budget, but the list could go on and on. Then a thought occurs to me, and I am convicted. When did all the abundance I have become “not enough”?

When did Jesus become “not enough”?

 

So instead, I begin to create a list of things I don’t need. I don’t need new carpet; the area rug looks nice and is covering the majority of the room just fine. I don’t need new paint for the spare bedroom wall; it’s not pretty but it’s not hurting anything, either – I only store things in there anyway. I don’t need new curtains; the ones I have are dated, but they’re in good shape and perform the job they’re meant for.

You get the idea. If I truly look at my life humbly, I have more than I ever needed. No, I am not rich according to earthly standards (I just recently realized our income is considered “poverty level”!) But, because of Jesus’ abundant provision, we live in abundance!

I’m not even talking miracles here, though I have seen more than my share of “everyday” miracles – the gifts of Jesus received from willing human hands. No, I’m talking the things we tend to take for granted in everyday life. Do we realize that we have so much that so many others are in desperate need of? I admit, most days I have to answer “no.” But today, thanks to the Lord’s conviction on my heart, I humbly realize how rich I am.

I have a home. No, it’s not fancy, chic, or expensive. It is solid, safe, warm, and has history and character. I have a yard, a garden, and even a back deck I have long wanted. My garden provides me food and saves me money. While some are living without shelter of any kind, I have a home that would seem like a palace to them.

I have food. The Lord graciously gave me life in a country and in circumstances where food has not been an issue. Even during times of struggle, I have never been hungry. In a culture where obesity is a major health problem, we often fail to recognize as abundance the easy availability of such a basic part of our lives.

I have an actual bed to sleep on, and furniture to sit on. Sure, the furniture is mismatched, but it’s also comfortable and feels like home. I am not sitting, eating, or sleeping on the cold ground, on cement sidewalks, or in dirt, as so many around the world are.

I have running water, a working shower, and indoor plumbing. There are people in this world without even these basics, while in addition to these I also have a stove, refrigerator, microwave oven, coffee maker…luxuries to so many!

I have family and friends, without whom all of the “enough” would be meaningless.

Most importantly, I have Jesus, who gives me life and sustains it. Who gave up His glory, majesty, and the unimaginable abundance of heaven to spend a lifetime here on Earth. Who, on Earth, gave up any earthly comfort and traded His life for an excruciating, unimaginably horrible death, having nothing and totally alone. For me.

For you.

If we have nothing else, this alone – Jesus alone – IS enough.

Friends…we are abundantly rich!

So, how do we learn to live in such abundance? Let’s look at what Jesus says.

In John 10, Jesus tells us “The thief (Satan) comes only to steal, to kill, and to destroy. But I have come that they might have life, and have it abundantly.”  (Italics mine).

The key is to recognize the abundance we have been given as abundance. Not only that, but also to refuse to let Satan steal our abundance. But how do we do that?

How Satan Steals our Abundance

To refuse to let Satan, steal, kill, and destroy our abundance, we must recognize the ways in which he does so.

Satan does not want us to be satisfied, much less feeling blessed, with what we have. He will always bring our attention to what we don’t have in order to distract us from the abundance we do have. His goal is to make us feel deprived, to keep us wanting more. If we are always thinking about the things we don’t have, it’s difficult to recognize and feel satisfied in the abundance we do have. Satan knows that a Christian who is satisfied is focused on the one thing he least wants us to be. Jesus.

So, Satan will distract us with greed, envy, and covetousness. We have things, but we want nicer things, or more, or different, or newer…you get the idea. Most of us can think of something this applies to in our lives, my desire for better looking curtains, or more cushion in my budget for example.

 

Every year people crowd stores on Black Friday pushing for a bigger t.v., the next model of smart phone, the latest video games or electronics…The list could go on and on. I imagine Satan rubbing his hands in glee as he watches the barrage of commercial advertisements constantly blaring at us about all the things we “need” that will inevitably make our lives “better”. If we listen long enough, it’s very easy to become unsatisfied with the things we do have.

The truth is, even without any of the things we have, when we have Jesus, we have enough!

You might be reading this post and thinking, “that’s easy for you to say, you have these things.”

But let me briefly tell you a story. Last year at this time, I was sitting in a hospital room with my husband who had just undergone surgery for cancer, had consequently become severely dehydrated, and nearly died. Due to illness, I had been unable to work for several months before this, and was now unable to because of my husband’s illness. We had just found out that, because of the cancer and our uncertainty of when his disability would start, our landlord was petitioning the court for our immediate removal from our home. We were broke, and for all intents and purposes, homeless, depending on family to house us until we would have a place of our own. We were now unable to pay our current bills. We lost our car. Of course there is much more to our story…but the point is that it was here, in this period of having nothing, that I learned by trusting Him, by letting Him be my “enough,” I was for the first time truly satisfied with whatever life did or did not supply me. And when I did come to that point of total submission and said (and meant) “Jesus, You are all I really need,” in the middle of having nothing, Jesus began to provide.

In Matthew 6, Jesus commands us “Do not worry about these things…but seek first His kingdom and His righteousness,” and immediately also PROMISES us, “and all these things will be added to you as well.”

Let me tell you, both from what the Bible tells us and from experience and reliance on this promise, that seeking His kingdom and righteous begins with a submitted heart. One that says, “Here I am, I’m all yours. If this is where you want me right now, I trust you enough to get me through, give me all I need, and to use this for my good as well as the good of others.”

And the rest of my story? Jesus didn’t only provide what I was relying on Him for…he provided abundantly! I now have a home with no mortgage. A van was gifted to us by a member of our church. Our utility bills were generously covered by a fund in University Hospital earmarked for help in just such situations as ours. My husband got his disability…and it covered all of his medical bills (which were over $800,000 – talk about a gift from God!), chemo, and now continues to cover his medications. He cannot work and is still dealing with some complications of the surgery that removed his cancer, but he has monthly income that helps pay our bills. I am working again and, with God’s direction, will continue to pursue my dream of reaching people, and maybe even earning an income, with my writing.

Yes, I may be conventionally “poor” by our culture’s standards, but in Jesus, I have abundantly “enough”!

 

“And my God will meet all your needs according to the

riches of His glory in Christ Jesus.”

Phillipians 4:19