“I complained that I had no shoes until I met a man who had no feet’.–Arabic Proverb”
Does this not remind us of ourselves? We keep craving for more and more, in spite of all that we own and possess. Everything that we run after, loses its gloss of novelty after a while and we are left dissatisfied again.
How often do we complain about small and big things in our life? We take things for granted and do not ever think about the various gifts we have received. Life and nature has given us so much, that we often fail to value these beautiful gifts.
We tend to complain about our food not being tasty, the clothing that is not trendy or the shelter that is not ultra modern.
Think about the millions who go empty stomach every night and are ready to eat anything that can help them survive until the next day. Be aware that are millions out in the cold winter or the harsh sun without adequate clothing.Think about the more-than-billion homeless people .
Cherish all the gifts given. Everything and everyone around us, our family, friends, means of conveyance and communication, ability to walk, speak, think and see. Each of this is a great gift of life and is meant to be acknowledged and cherished.
So each time we feel the boredom and dissatisfaction creeping in, it would do us well to look around for someone who has less than us or are less fortunate. Wonder how they can remain happy, carefree and contented with the little they have…!
When there is nothing for us to own or possess, the whole world becomes ours and we are left free to enjoy everything. Contentment, then, starts living inside of us!
Philippians 4:12 of the Bible tells us:
….I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation…
Paul’s writing is about being contented in all situations. Do everything through Christ Jesus and we can certainly be content. It’s all about being joyful, satisfied and steadfast when Life gets hard and circumstances before us seem impossible to tide over. But then, every difficult situation can be overcome by one who has faith that Christ is working through him.
The actual verses run …
Verse 12: I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.
Paul says he ‘learned’ the secret of being content in all situations. He wasn’t just born with the ability to shrug off everything that came his way, always being satisfied.
What would it feel like,to go through life being content in “any and every situation?” Well, if Paul was able to learn the secret, then, so can we.
Verse 13: I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.
Paul learned that his satisfaction, or fulfillment, or sufficiency, could not be consistently found in the material things around him. But ‘in Christ’ he could enjoy peace and purpose at all times. If our contentment is anchored to money, jobs, cars, health, relationships, and so on – anything except Christ – then, we are in for a rough time
Wherever we are in life right now, there certainly must be things around us that give us reason to be discontent. According to the ways of this world, that’s just a natural feeling and we just need to “do what you have to do” to make ourselves happy. Yet, we remain unhappy.
In Christ, There Is Peace – Right Now.
We just have to learn this same challenging lesson that Paul learned – to get our eyes off ourselves and our external circumstances, and instead look up to Christ. In Him, we can do all things. In Him, we will find contentment. Forever. He will never let us down.
PRAYER:
To all those loved ones, who are constantly looking for and searching for Peace and Contentment in everything, seek for the blessings from the Lord that you be content in Him who is Peace Himself.
Dear Lord, Bless me with the contentment needed to be happy with all that I have and to work hard for those things I really need. Never let me blame anyone else when I feel dissatisfied. I still have a lot to learn. Help me look up to you, Lord. I want to learn to be content in every situation. I want to be content in You. In Your Name. Amen.
God bless you with His Peace and Love.