Dear Friend,
We have heard that “the grass is always
greener on the other side of the street,” and that is often true. But as
someone once remarked, "so also is the water bill.” You and I have an
awful habit of comparing ourselves and what we have with those who have more.
As a result, we often miss the best God has for us because we fail to
appreciate the blessings we already have.
Paul discovered the secret to
contentment. He closes out his message to the Philippian church with the words:
"I have learned the secret of contentment.” He is saying, no matter what
my circumstances may be, whether I live under a bridge or dwell in a penthouse,
whether I am rich or poor, I have learned to be content. Paul possessed the
secret to contentment.
Unfortunately, in today’s
world when we are bombarded by ads of every variety that are always promising
comfort and convenience, happiness and contentment, we are tempted to think we
will also find that happiness in some product or some service. But these things
seldom bring happiness or contentment. Just ask some of the lottery winners
whose newfound wealth has brought them nothing but misery and discontentment.
We are too much like the guy
described in the following bit of doggerel:
“As a rule,
mans a fool
When it
cool, he wants it hot.
And when
it’s hot, he wants it cool.
Always
wanting what is not.”
Happiness comes from within and not
without. If there is a vacuum within your heart, Satan will steal in and
convince you that happiness is found in a credit card. However, like cotton
candy, our purchases may bring temporary pleasure, but soon after the purchase
we want something newer and bigger, which almost always means more money. As
someone said, “greed has a growling stomach.”
Paul tells us his secret to
contentment in Philippians 4:19, “My God will meet all your needs according to
his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.”.
Christ will meet all of our needs,
but never all our greed. God wants the best for us, but often we miss that best
because we fail to recognize the blessings we already possess.
An ancient Persian legend tells of
a wealthy man by the name of Al Haffed, who owned a large farm. One evening a
visitor related to him tales of fabulous amounts of diamonds that could be found
in other parts of the world, and of the great riches they could bring him. The
vision of all this wealth made him feel poor by comparison. So instead of
caring for his own prosperous farm, he sold it and went out to find these
treasures. But the search proved to be fruitless. Finally, penniless and in
despair, he committed suicide by jumping into the sea.
Meanwhile, the man who had
purchased his farm noticed one day the glint of an unusual stone in a shallow
stream on the property. He reached into the water and, to his amazement, he
pulled out a huge diamond. Later when working in his garden, he uncovered many
more valuable gems. Poor Al Haffed had spent his life traveling to distant
lands seeking jewels, when on the farm he had left behind were all the precious
stones his heart could have ever desired.
Security can never be found in a
safe deposit box. Jesus has taught us that a man’s life does not consist in the
abundance of his possessions (Luke 12:15), and He advised his disciples “to lay
up treasures for themselves in heaven rather than on earth” (Mt. 6:19f).
Let us never forget that
contentment never comes from the accumulation of things, but from the assurance
that “God will never leave us or forsake us”, and that’s a promise we can count
on.
Yours in faith,
Pastor Tom
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