Contentment

Just came back fr SYFC retreat! tis morn our area coordinator taught us a v beneficial lesson.

In Philippians 4:11-13, the apostle n missionary Paul wrote,
"..for i hav learned to be content watever the circumstances. i know wat it is to be in need, n i know wat it is to hav plenty. i hav learned the secret of being content in any n every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. i can do everything thru Him who gives me strength."

If any of us look at the world ard us n pay attention, we will realise tt discontentment comes to both the rich n the poor. So then, how can we be content? The verse above tells us tt contentment doesnt come to us when we were born, we have to LEARN it. Our mind must be conditioned not to focus on the material things on tis earth but rather on eternal things tt will outlast tis life.

In 1 Timonthy 6:6-10, Paul again wrote,
"But godliness wif contentment is great gain. for we brought nothing into the world, n we can take nothing out of it. but if we hav food n clothing, we will be content wif tt. ppl who want to get rich fall into temptations n a trap n into many foolish n harmful desires tt plunge men into ruin n destruction. for the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. some ppl, eager for money, hav wandered fr the faith n pierced themselves wif many griefs."

Nowadays, there r some parents in S'pore who go on cruises to gamble. they will leave their children in the childcare room n gamble till as atrociously late as midnight then go n collect them. in their greed, they have neglected their role as parents. i wonder how much worse tis problem will become now tt the government has decided to set up casinos locally. the churches have written letters to the government in protest but the decision is still up to the government finally. tis is one case whereby greed can cause problems. if we read the evening newspaper, we often will see reports of families declaring bankruptcy due to wrong decisions made in greed, or ppl being murdered n robbed by others who r heavily in debts. perhaps we wont be affected by greed to such an extent, but i think in the least we will be discontent wif wat we have more often than not.

So wat is the secret to being content? if u look at Philippians 4:11-13 above, Paul says tt the secret to being content is to have faith in the fact tt we "can do everything thru Him who gives strength". Him refers to none other than jesus christ. whether we're rich or poor in the future, we must condition our mind to focus on things eternal in order to be content. we can spent our lives in pursuit of wealth n success, but they wont last beyond tis life. instead, we shd use tis life to work out our salvation n to do the things god purposed for us to do. when we put our trust in god, we will realise tt god sustains us n provides for our basic needs in watever our circumstances.