Have you ever gone through a season when life seemed absolutely unbearable? Have you ever become impatient with God, because He was moving way too slow. Could it be that you are just simply disenchanted with the way your life is going right now? If your answer is yes to any of these questions, today I would like to visit with you briefly about what it means to be content.
When you go to your dictionary and look up the word content, you may see the following as a definition; in a state of peaceful happiness, satisfied with a certain level of achievement, and not wishing for more, a state of satisfaction.
In Philippians 4:11 Paul says I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances, a little bit later in 4:13 He says that; I can do all things through Him who gives me strength. After thinking about this, I have personally come to the conclusion, that Paul’s contentment was based not only on his trust in God but in his trust in God’s character. He had experienced God’s faithfulness through numerous circumstances, and he had seen the heart of God throughout His journey.
Being content is not always easy. But if we just think back, and reflect on all of the times that God has been faithful to us in the past through the hard times, it helps us to remain hopeful for our future. Contentment, in my opinion, can be simple, trusting while you are waiting. Trusting that when the time is right, God will change your set of circumstances, and if He chooses not to, you are still trusting that He will only do what is best for you. Either way, trusting God is the real source of contentment and inner peace. As you spend more and more time with God, you will grow to trust Him more and more.
Today, I want to encourage you to seek His face daily. Choose peace and contentment over stress and worry. Remember, you can do all things through Christ who strengthens you, and that means even going through the hard stuff.
11 I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. 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.
2 Corinthians 12:9-10
9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong
Hebrews 13:5
5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
“Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”[a]
1 Timothy 6:6-10
6 But godliness with contentment is great gain. 7 For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. 8 But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. 9 Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
Romans 15:13
13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Psalm 62:5-8
5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.
6 Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.
7 My salvation and my honor depend on God[a]; he is my mighty rock, my refuge.
8 Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.
