Be Content - by Wendy Pointer

Being content, being satisfied, is something we are not very good at in general these days. We are bombarded daily, sometimes continually, by messages from the world telling us we need to have MORE! To be a Success we must have bigger, better, MORE of every material thing. The world tells us we should be striving for this Success. Even if you can resist these messages, these temptations from the world to strive for more material wealth, we can still be caught by its message in a more subtle way. We can so easily make this dissatisfaction with our lot enter into our prayers; “Father give me…”, “Lord bless me with….”, “God you know my need”.
Wait isn’t that what we are instructed to do? Take everything to God in prayer? What about the Lord’s Prayer, our example of how to pray and what to pray for? Doesn’t that say “Give us this day our daily bread”? Aren’t we therefore supposed to be asking God to give us the things we want?
Well what exactly did Jesus mean by daily bread? There is the spiritual bread to sustain us daily in His service, and we would be correct to pray for that of course. But does it mean material things? Jesus spoke of the clothing compared to the flowers of the fields, so surely he meant material things? If he did, then asking for our daily bread is not asking for much is it? Can we stretch the point so far as to suggest this means asking God to bless us with a new car, a new flat screen TV, or other fripperies of the world? And if God doesn’t provides all these things we think we ‘need’ can we remain satisfied or content? I would suggest not, and not being content we strive by our own strength to obtain them rather than trusting God to provide for us.
Our satisfaction, our contentment is from being not from having. Being God’s Children; Being Saved by God’s Grace; Being joint heirs with Christ of Eternal Life. While it is also appropriate to thank God for what we have, it is equally if not more appropriate to be thankful for what we are. We are chosen by God, since before the beginning of the world, to receive His Grace. What could be more marvellous than that?


Friday, June 3, 2011