Philippians 4:11-13 “Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” This episode talks about how important it is to be content with what we have. Music:"Adding the Sun" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Being Content With What I Have
Philippians 4:11-13 “Not that I am referring to being in need; for I have learned to be content with whatever I have. I know what it is to have little, and I know what it is to have plenty. In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.”
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all learned this invaluable lesson? Paul said that he has learned to be content with whatever he has. If we could all learn this there would be so much less fighting in the world today. It seems like a lot of fighting begins when someone has something and someone else wants it. It can be a material thing, like oil, food, water, or it can be something else like power, fame, or good fortune. When we see others with these we have a tendency to get jealous and to want what others have. Some people feel as though they deserve to take what others have and so they try to take what they want.
Can you imagine a world in which we are all content with what we have? I think it is hard in this country because we have access to so much and the American dream seems to be wanting more and more. Climbing that ladder of success no matter what it means for you personally or to your relationships. It seems that there are few people in this country that are content with what they have. I think social media makes it even harder to be content with what you have because everyone is always posting photos about their new car, or their vacation, or their house, or whatever exciting new thing just happened to them. Back in the day, if your neighbor got a new car you would see it outside their house, but you wouldn’t be reading about it online. You probably wouldn’t see everyone’s photos of their vacations all the time. It would just be if you happened to be at their house when they got their film developed.
However, with digital cameras and phones in everyone’s hands all the time, we tend to document our lives and live more publicly than we used to. This is not necessarily a bad thing as I am very happy that I get to keep in touch with my friends from all over the world. I like that I can spend 30 minutes on social media and catch up on most major events in my friends lives. As opposed to having to email, snail mail, or call all of them. Technology has been a life saver in many instances. Especially when we couldn’t leave our houses. My family had many zoom calls during that time and it was great to be able to see everyone's faces.
As much as technology can be a life saver it can also be a major source of envy for many people. It can be hard when you are going through a particularly hard season of parenting and all you see on social media are these posts that make it seem like everyone else seems to be superstar parents. Maybe you have been struggling with health and yet everyone you look at online seems to be so healthy and it appears to come so naturally to them. Maybe you just lost your job. I know this is a very real possibility for many people these days with all that is going on. It is hard if you lost your job not to be jealous of those that have jobs and are posting about their jobs.
One way you can tell that people are not content with what they have is when you hear them complaining all the time. When you are content with what you have you don’t do a lot of complaining. You are happy with the way things are and you are grateful for what you do have. The definition of being content is being in a state of peaceful happiness. This does not mean that you never strive for more, but it does mean that you are happy with what you have at the moment. One thing we can do that could help us be more content is to focus on the things we do have instead of the things we don’t have. It can be easy to get stuck in a rut thinking about all the things that we want and yet don’t have yet. However, if we shifted that focus to thinking about all the things that God has blessed us with then we would be much more content. We may even be grateful. I think being grateful is one of the keys to being content.
You may be complaining about something that you have at the same time that someone else is begging God to have that thing. For instance, you may be complaining because your hair is too thick, too think, too long or too short all the while someone who is going through chemo therapy is praying for God to give them hair again. You may be complaining because your car is older than you would like and someone else is praying for a car so that they can get to work. You may be complaining because your spouse or your children are driving you crazy. Meanwhile, there are so many out there that are still struggling to find a spouse or to have children. When we think about what we have in this manner it makes it much easier to be content with what we have.
I have heard stories of people from other countries that have far less available to them than we do and yet they are completely content and grateful for all that they do have. I have heard of people going on mission trips to other countries and they bring candy for the children. It is not a lot of candy, but they said the children are so excited just for one piece of candy. I have also heard that they bring pens and paper and the children are so excited. I don’t think my children would be excited if I gave them a pen and paper. These are things we take for granted. Think about how much time and anguish we would save ourselves if we could be content with what the good Lord has given us. If we could view everything we have as a gift from the Lord.
In this verse St. Paul says, “In any and all circumstances I have learned the secret of being well-fed and of going hungry, of having plenty and of being in need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” What is this secret that St. Paul found? He found that he can do all things through Christ who strengthens him. When we rely on the Lord He will give us the strength we need to get through any circumstance. Whether we are hungry or not, whether we have all we think we need, or not. When Jesus Christ is by our side, we will be strengthened to face the circumstances, no matter what they might be. St. Paul knew this, and he is sharing it with all of us.
Dear Heavenly Father, I ask you to bless all those listening to this episode today. Lord, help us to be like St. Paul and to be content with what we have. Help us to not be envious of what others have. Help us to appreciate and be grateful for the things you have given us. If we strive for more let us do so with a gracious and humble heart. Let us not complain but instead shift our focus to gratitude. We are grateful Lord, help us to show you. We love you Lord, you are awesome and we ask all of this in accordance with your will and in Jesus’ holy name, Amen.
Thank you so much for joining me on this journey to walk boldly with Jesus. I look forward to spending time with you again on Monday. Have a blessed weekend!