My wife and I recently had a wonderful opportunity to go on
a double date with some good friends. Our
It was one of those nights that God wanted to teach me a
lesson. It started at the restaurant
when I ordered a half chicken for an entrée, “We are all out of our chicken
sir”, replied the waiter. I was really
looking forward to chicken, but no problem, surely they would have the chicken
wrap I wanted since it was a different type of chicken. So I ordered, and to my satisfaction, the
waiter took my order down and apologized again for not having the half chicken
I wanted. Seconds later the waiter
emerged from the kitchen and came to our table, “Sir, I know I told you we had
the chicken wrap but I was just informed that we are all out of that too.” Ok, no problem, default to the cheeseburger.
After we finished the meal, we headed to the movies where I
was looking forward to some sugar drenched candy. After buying the tickets, my wife left me the
privilege of picking out the candy. I
got her M&M’s and ordered myself skittles. “Sir, I am sorry, we are all out
of skittles.” replied the young man behind the counter. Three
times, one night, wow, no chicken, no chicken wrap, and now no skittles. This just wasn’t my night. I got a good laugh out of it, but later it
got me thinking. Both of these venues had
plenty to offer me, but it was hard to be content with what they had to offer
when I only focused on what they didn’t have.
What is contentment?
Contentment is a feeling of peaceful satisfaction. That is not a feeling easily arrived at in a
world that constantly lets us down. In Philippians 4, Paul shows us that it is
possible to be content in every situation in.
Verse 11-12 “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I
have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought
low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned
the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need.”
What did Paul learn?
How did a man who faced hunger, persecution, loneliness, rejection, and
need find peaceful satisfaction In the midst of life threatening challenges?
Well let’s back up just a hair and find out. Verses 6-7 says, “do not be anxious about
anything, (contentment cannot be found in a spirit of anxiety, there is nothing
peaceful about being anxious, therefore for you to be content, anxiety must be
absent) but in everything (all
situations, even when they have no chicken or skittles) by prayer and
supplication with thanksgiving (thanksgiving focuses on what you have and not
what you do not have) let your requests be made known to God. (We can lay our
requests before the Lord but only when those requests are buffered by us
already seeing and be thankful for what we do have. In fact, if we remain focused on what we
have, our requests become very minimal, if anything at all. If we find ourselves praying long prayers
about our needs and wants, we have probably wandered from a peaceful satisfaction
to an anxious state that is looking for relief) 7 And the peace of God (contentment), which
surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ
Jesus.”
You can truly be content in all circumstances. But it requires that you first be thankful
for what you do have and not focus on what you don’t have. Then, true contentment in life can begin to
be found. Even in those life changing
circumstances like a cancer diagnosis or job demotion, or death of a child. In the toughest moments of life, we can look
to what we have, ask for what we need, and have contentment in the situation.
