Jump Start # 3230

1 Timothy 6:6 Godliness is great gain when accompanied with contentment.”

Yesterday we introduced some thoughts about contentment. We looked at what contentment is not, some common myths about contentment. That’s all good, but we need to understand what contentment is and more so, how do we get to that in our lives. Unsettled, unhappy, unsatisfied, that’s the state when people are not content. And, looking at the opposite of those words, settled, happy and satisfied, that well describes what being content is. This is an attitude and a choice. It comes from within. This is why a jailed apostle can speak of being content. It’s not the external circumstances but the internal peace that comes from Christ that makes all the difference.

I’ve known people who rarely left the county that they were born in, had very little in their lives, but were the most thankful, joyous and generous people I have ever met. My grandparents were that way. Their home was small. His jobs were meager. But their hearts were as big as the world. They did what they could for others and for the kingdom. I never heard them complain. I never heard them say, “I wish we could travel.” But what I saw was a deep faith in the Lord and a contentment that they had been blessed. Here I am, in a big house, multiple cars, TVs, I travel, and I often think that they had something that I don’t.

So, how do we become content?

First, it begins with reshaping your thinking. Contentment is looking at life vertically, not horizontally. Content comes from realizing how good the Lord has been to you. You don’t look at others. You don’t see that others are more blessed and you are less blessed. Contentment is a heart condition. It’s not about how many gifts I receive, but how thankful I am. Satisfied or searching. Rested or restless.

Paul tells us in Philippians that he learned the secret. This is something that we are taught and we must embrace. It’s not natural. It doesn’t just happen. Our culture doesn’t support nor encourage this. You must want this. You look at the apostles. You look at the Lord. Then you look in the mirror. Little room to complain. No place to make demands.

Second, remembering the cross. The cornerstone of contentment is the cross. The cross makes us free. The cross brings us salvation. The cross restores our friendship with God. The cross makes Heaven more than a wish, but a reality. My worth, my net worth, is not a number that can be written on a piece of paper. I am a child of the King. I am a son of God. Heaven is my home. Dropping names of people, places and merchandise does not change who I am. Those are only tools and opportunities for which I shall be held accountable for. Physical things are like food, great for the moment, but it just doesn’t last.

What if you had a red nose like Rudolph? Do you have to be a hero to be content? Do you have to like everyone else before you can be content? The answer is “No.” You are made by God. Jesus died for you. Jesus came to the misfits, the broken and the rejected and the outcasts. Diseased. Social shunned. Ignored. Jesus saw value in everyone, even though others didn’t.

Third, if you never received another blessing the rest of your life, God has been good to you. In Acts 16 we find a bloodied and beaten apostle singing praises to God late at night. How could he do that? He was thankful. He was blessed. He was content. Paul helps us to understand this in Philippians four. There we are to think right (8), pray often (6), put worry on the curb (6), walk with the Lord (7) and allow God to protect you (7).

You may go through life with a red nose, or being the ugly duckling, or the klutz of the family. You may not save Christmas day, be the hero of the hour, or even fit in with everyone else. You may find that you have more in common with Zacchaeus than anyone else. But remember, the Lord came to his house.

Red noses, like Rudolph, some learn to live with it, even laughing at God’s sense of humor. Others, walk through life trying to hide it and deny it, being ashamed, making excuses, living miserably and wishing they could be like everyone else. Life is not a DVD in which we can fast forward through the parts that we do not like.

We are all blessed by the Lord and have been given a second chance. A child was reciting Ps 23 before his Bible class. He said, “The Lord is my shepherd and that’s all I need.”

Well said…well believed.

May these thoughts help us at this holiday season.

Roger

Jump Start # 2979

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.”

Contentment isn’t about money. Contentment is an attitude, a state of the mind, that one chooses. Some with no money are content. Others are unhappy and always talking about needing more. Some with a lot of money are content, while others are not. And, the subject of contentment transcends money to how one views life. Words I would connect with contentment would be peace, calm, restful, joyful. Jealousy is not in the makeup of contentment.

One area that we don’t mention much is being content with God’s way of doing things. Content with the church as God designed it and gave it a mission. So many are wanting the church to do more. Content with the purpose of the church—seek and save the lost and honor God. So many want the church involved in community social agendas. In a recent sermon I discussed this idea. Is the church established or is it evolving? I was amazed at how many books are on the market that are titled “Redefining the church,” “Reshaping the church,” Reinventing the church” or “Reorganizing the church.” Authoring these books are those who do not understand nor appreciate Biblical authority and have little patience for the way the church looks. Simply put, they are not content. In all of these books what’s missing is, “Return to the Biblical example.” No one wants to return, they want to change it.

Now, under the surface lies two deadly spirits.

First, is the spirit that believes what we read about in the Bible doesn’t work today. That’s why everything needs to be redone. Do it over. Do it better. The first century world isn’t our world, so daycares, schools, social programs, the wholeness of man and the wellness of man ought to be emphasized. Missions that have nothing to do with preaching and teaching, are a major part of these redesigned and restructured churches. Bike missions. Cooking missions. Education missions. You won’t find those in the Bible, but restructured, redefined, and repurposed and repackaged, the modern church doesn’t look like what you read in the Bible. Worship becomes a show. Doctrine is out. Sin is not mentioned. Hell has evaporated. The leadership of the church looks more like a boardroom of a corporation than shepherds in the fields of Judea.

Second, is the spirit that is not satisfied nor content with what God has given to us. We don’t like it. It’s not enough. We want the church doing more than what God said. And when people are not satisfied, happy or content, they’ll change things to get where they want to be. When a person isn’t happy with the house they live in, he will move. When a person isn’t satisfied with the car he drives, off to the dealership he will go to find a better car. And, when writers, leaders and preachers are not happy with the church the way God made it, they will seek to “redefine it, reshape it, restructure it, reinvent it, or simply, reboot it.”

Content with what God has built and content with what God has given to us. God’s way worked. The N.T. proves that. Lives were changed, the kingdom grew and the impact changed the world. It worked then. It will work today. It is working today. The kingdom is growing. Lives are being changed. And, it’s being done the same ole’ way as always, preaching and teaching the saving message of Jesus Christ. “Go into all the world and preach,” is what the Lord told the apostles to do. And, when we settle on that, we find that works.

I wonder if there is another cause behind all of this “rewriting” of the church. Could it be that it’s easier to change the church than to change their ways? Rather than being what God wants me to be, I redefine what God wants. I take passages out of context, I add layers of psychology and modern issues and suddenly the church becomes more social than spiritual. It is changed to serve me rather than honor God. It becomes shaped around what I like rather than what God has delivered. It appeals to my emotions rather than to my soul. With that worship becomes an event that I am a spectator, just like a ballgame or a movie. Rather than participating and giving, which makes worship a verb, as it is in the N.T., worship entertains me. It better be good or I will go somewhere else or worse, I will just not come at all. The stakes are high. The pressure is great. Each week, the “show” must be better. Old timers used to say, “If you lure them in with hotdogs, you’ll have to give them hamburgers to keep them.” A consumer mentality is developed and a consumer mentality must be kept to sustain the crowds. And, in all of this, God is pushed to the background. What does God want? Why is it that God built the church and shaped worship the way He did? Does any of that matter today?

Content. We find in the longest Psalm, “Oh how I love your law.” For that writer, the law was the Law of Moses. No Gospels. No Philippians. No prophets. It was Leviticus. It was Numbers. That’s the Law that he had in mind. And, he LOVED it. He was satisfied with it. He was content with it. He wasn’t trying to rewrite it. He wasn’t wanting to change it. He was happy with what God had provided.

Maybe it’s time we stopped dancing with wolves, flirting with the devil and tiptoeing through weeds of error and get back to the Bible and change our hearts and ways. Be content with what God has established. Be happy with what God has built. Toss those “reshaping” books in the trash and open up your Bible. Take a deep and long look at what God has done for you. He does not owe us salvation. He does not have to accept us. We were the ones who messed up, not God. He could have left us on our own to figure out what to do. He blesses us daily. He hears our prayers. And, yet, with all of that, some what to change what God has given to us. Shame on that type of thinking. Back to the Bible is where we need to be headed.

Tell me the old, old story…

Roger

Jump Start # 1776

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.”

  Contentment—being content. This word is most times used in reference to money. Be content with your wages is what John the prophet preached. Paul would say that he was content in whatever circumstances he was in, whether in humble means or in prosperity. Paul told Timothy, that with food and covering, he was content. The Hebrews were told to make sure that their character was free from the love of money, being content with what you have.

With all those references, it’s easy to assume that contentment deals only with finances. But it doesn’t. Contentment is a state of the mind. It’s a choice a person makes. The idea of content brings images of satisfaction, peace, calm, happiness. The opposite, “discontent,” is the idea of unsettled, stirring, not happy, bothered, wanting to be somewhere else. Paul’s use of this word illustrates that contentment is a state of the mind and has nothing to do with how many things one has. A person in a little house can be more content than a person in a large house. It’s not the size of the house that brings contentment, but the choices of the heart.

But contentment involves more than money. It’s a state of the heart. Here are a couple of areas that we don’t usually think about contentment, but they fit.

First, the words of the Lord. God’s way. There seems to be some who are not settled, not happy, not content with the way God’s word is written. They want some wiggle room to make adjustments. They want permission to update, redefine and change things. While still holding the hand of the Lord, they want to not be so strict on divorce as Jesus was. They want to believe that a person can be married and divorced multiple times and for whatever reasons, and if they still love the Lord, that’s ok. The bottom line is that they are not content with what Jesus said. You’d be surprised how many do not even know what He said on this subject. Do you? Look it up and read.

Moderns are not content with women sitting in the pew. They want her behind the pulpit. While still trying to hold the hand of Jesus, they want to restructure the organization of God’s church. They use words like culture to justify the demands of change. They are not content.

Some are not content with the shepherding role of leadership. They want a model that looks more like our federal government. They want layers of leaders and administrators. They want to tie all the churches together in a massive organization that looks like business. They are not content with the way God designed things. They believe their way is more efficient, more involved and keeps better track of things. What they fail to realize is that God’s system of organization works and it’s what He wants. When all churches are tied together and linked tightly through a hierarchy, it’s easy for the whole system to tumble and fall apart. Error in one part will poison the whole group. We see that in the study of church history. God’s way is for congregations to be independent and autonomous. Laodicea was lukewarm, Revelation tells us. Ephesus, lost their first love. Philadelphia was not affected by either one of those things. Tied together, like some would have it, and all of them would have been poisoned and ruined. God’s way works.

Content with God’s way. Content with the word of God being powerful enough to convert a person. Content with God’s way of reaching the lost. Content with God’s way of strengthening souls. Content with God’s way for a church to raise money. It works. When a person is not content, they will look for ways  to change.

A second area where some today are not content is in the home. They are looking for something else. They are looking for something different. Some want to restructure and redefine the home. It doesn’t have to be mom, dad and the kids, they are saying. It can be mom, mom and kids. Or, dad, dad and kids. Or kids and no parents. Changing, changing, changing. Not happy with God’s structure. Not content with what God has given us. This mixed up thinking leads to many broken homes, confused people and more dissatisfaction. It was just a moment ago that the cry on the streets was to accept homosexuals and same sex marriages. Now, the cry is to accept transgenders. Boys are girls and girls are boys. No one knows which bathroom to use and no one knows who they are. The moderns have always turned to change as the theme of the month. Accept them. What’s going on? There is a lack of contentment running in the streets. As soon as all the public bathrooms are changed, the moderns will move on to something else. Someone will be screaming that he has the right to marry his dog. Folks will march. They will clog the streets with protest signs and demand for fairness. The weak society will cave in. You’ll have modern preachers marrying dogs to people. Next, will come, people who claim that they are a dog trapped in a human body, or humans trapped in a dog’s body. So, we’ll have to have more marches about that one. We’ll have to allow people to live in kennels, because they are dogs. Dogs will be allowed to go to school. All of this is crazy. Where is all of this coming from? Not being content.

Contentment is a choice. It effects how we see ourselves and others. In the sermon on the mount, Jesus said to be “perfect” as your Heavenly Father is perfect. Balancing that statement with the rest of the Bible, which we must always do, we know Jesus is not talking about being sinless. John said in his first letter, that if we say we have no sin we are a liar. Be perfect is not sinless. It means something else. It means complete or whole. Lacking nothing. In Christ, we are whole. In Christ, we are complete. In Christ, we are perfect. And, what drives that, is the spirit of contentment. I am content in Christ.

It seems that folks love to be miserable. Instead of counting their blessings, they count what they don’t have. They see what they missed rather than what they were given. That feeds discontentment.

God is good to us. God is generous. God loves us. God gives to us. God wants us to be with Him. What more does a person need? What can possibly top that?

Roger

Jump Start # 1449

1 Timothy 6:6 “But godliness actually is a means of great gain when accompanied by contentment.”

Contentment—that’s a wonderful world and a better place to be. Throughout the New Testament, God leads His people to the life of contentment. To be content is to be at peace. It brings the thought of calm within one’s heart and soul. The person who is not content, is stirring. He’s restless. He’s not at ease.

I love the story about a commercial fisherman who was sitting by his boat near the end of a day, just looking out over the water. A tourist, who happened to be a businessman, walked up to the fisherman and asked him if that was his boat. He replied it was. “Why, then,” said the businessman, “are you not out on the water catching more fish? It’s still daylight.” The fisherman softly asked, “Why?” The businessman was infuriated. “Why,” he yelled. “You can catch more fish. Then you could hire more helpers. Then you could buy more boats. Then you could be successful.” The fisherman said, “then what?” The businessman said, “well, then you could sit back and take things easy.” The fisherman looked over the water and said, “I though I already was.”

Contentment is something that is hard to grasp. When it comes to stuff, money, size of TV screens, new cars, square footage in a house, it’s hard to be content. The crazy world we live in drives and pushes us and tells us you need more. You need the latest I—whatever, I-phone, I-pad, I-gadget. Commercials drive that thought into us. Parents battle that with their kids. They get the “Gimmes” every time they go to the store. Gimme this and gimme that and some will put up a big fuss and create a storm if they don’t get it and get it right now.

However, there are areas in life that we ought never to be contented with. That’s the struggle with this principle. Some things I must learn to be patient and content and other areas I should never be content. The problem often is that we get these mixed up and find ourselves in quite a mess.

Here are some things that we ought never to be content with:

• A lost soul. This is especially true when it’s a dear friend or a family member. They chose not to know the Lord. They seem happy to live without eternity in their sights. We can’t settle for that. We just can’t let them go. We continue to send the hounds of Heaven after them. We continue to pray. We continue to talk to them. We continue to share things. We continue to let your light shine before them. We continue… We are never content to let them be lost. Never.

• The condition of a congregation. Far too many are content with staleness, indifference and complacency of a church. They are satisfied with just the way things are. They are happy if things remain as they are. If there is little growth, little movement, few plans they don’t seem to be concerned about that. Who will be the next leaders? They are content with things as they are and do not give that any thought. We ought never to be content in this area. Sheep need to be led to develop, grow and become mighty in the Lord. Tired preachers preaching tired sermons to a tired congregation is a sure recipe for nothing. And some are just content with nothing. Shame on us for that.

• Our relationship with the Lord and our depth of knowledge is not something that we ought to be content with. We ought to long for that deeper and closer relationship with God. We ought to hunger for righteousness. We must never get to the point where we no longer yearn for the Lord. This uneasiness within us will push us to read the Bible more. It will make us lower the nets in our minds to find deeper meanings and deeper insights. Our character will become stronger, purer and more righteous as we do this. We must never be satisfied with where we are with the Lord.

• We ought never to be content with this world. We are traveling through enemy territory. We must always keep both eyes open. We cannot be satisfied with this. We must be careful that we do not like things so well here that we lose our taste for Heaven. We must not become friends of the world, as James warns. This world is going an opposite direction than we are. This world defines success, happiness, life, death, marriage in ways that God does not. Satisfied here? Never. We don’t fit in here. We don’t belong here. We need to be some where else. We need to be in Heaven. We must never stop nor quit until we are there.

Contentment is hard. Most of us struggle with that. There’s nothing wrong with stuff. There’s nothing wrong with bigger and newer things. The farmer in Luke 12 who longed to tear down his barns and build bigger ones, wasn’t in trouble for that thought. There’s nothing wrong with bigger barns, bigger houses, bigger cars. His problem and our problem lies in that we feel that those things will bring peace, satisfy our soul, and exclude the need for God. The farmer in Luke never mentioned God. He talked about himself often. He didn’t include God in his plans. He thought he had the future by the tail. He didn’t.

No, it’s not having stuff, it’s whether or not the stuff has us. That’s where contentment comes in. Our stuff can pull us from God. Our stuff can turn us into real monsters, who are stuck up, conceited and blind to the needs of others. Stuff itself doesn’t do that, but it’s what’s in us or not in us that does that. A poor man can have as many of these issues as a rich man.

Content—at peace, calm with in, settled, satisfied—in some areas yes. In other areas, especially spiritually, never.

I hope this helps. It’s something we have to work on all the time.

Roger