In his book, Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, Jeremiah
Burroughs defines contentment this way: “Christian contentment is
that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to
and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition” (The Puritan preachers of the 17th century had a way
of capturing profound concepts in single sentences!). It’s a great definition
that highlights the fact that contentment brings about peace in every
situation… all while trusting and submitting to God in the process.
We often don’t view discontentment as a sin, but when we
look more closely, it is a lack of trust in who God is and that His plan is best
in bringing about His greatest glory for our greatest good (becoming more like
Christ!). William Barcley said, "When
we grumble, we don’t believe that God is in control, and we question his
ability to make good on his promises. At the root, then, is a lack of faith.
Our discontent questions God’s sovereignty, shows our failure to submit to his
lordship, and is worthy of God’s punishment. Grumbling is great sin.” He continues, "Not only is discontent
a great sin, but it also is at the root of much sin in our lives. It clearly is
at the root of covetousness. A coveting spirit is a discontented spirit because
it desires what God has not given to us. If we want to win the battle against a
sinful, coveting spirit, then we must study contentment."
Discontentment is also failing to believe that God is the
only One who can truly satisfy. Singles often struggle in this area because
their focus is on the wrong things. Having a spouse, a higher paying job,
owning a home, the freedom to have sex within marriage, close friends, etc…
none of these things can truly satisfy because God did not create them to. In
Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis said,
“God made us: invented us as a man invents an engine, A
car is made to run on petrol, and it would not run properly on anything else.
Now God designed the human machine to run on Himself. He Himself is the fuel
our spirits were designed to burn, or the food our spirits were designed to
feed on. There is no other. That is why it is just no good asking God to make
us happy in our own way without bothering about religion. God cannot give us a
happiness and peace apart from Himself, because it is not there. There is no
such thing.”
When we pursue the things listed above more than God, we
make them out to be idols, only making us more discontent. And when those
things get taken away, we find ourselves without hope.
In Philippians 4:11-12, Paul talks about how he learned to
be content in every situation. This is one of the keys to learning to be
content… contentment isn’t about a situation or circumstance, but about how one
views that situation or circumstance. This is such an encouraging passage
because it tells us that we can be content right here where we are at no matter
what. Can you imagine if it said, “contentment can only be found by having
enough money, or by being married, or by having friends who will love you at
all times”? Contentment isn’t something that can only be attained outside of
your control, but an attitude of submission through yielding to God’s plan for
your life. Burroughs says, “The contentment of a man or woman who is rightly
content does not come so much from outward arguments or from any outward help,
as from the disposition of their own hearts. The disposition of their own
hearts causes and brings forth this gracious contentment rather than any
external thing.”
There are many encouraging passages that talk about
contentment, but we will close with James 1:2-4 that says, “Consider it pure
joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because
you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let
perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not
lacking anything.”
Another key to contentment is being thankful in everything,
believing that God is big enough to bring good out of the situation. Along with
so many principles of God, contentment can be mysterious because His ways are
not logical to our finite minds. Burroughs says, “This is the mystery of
contentment, not so much by removing the evil, as by metamorphosing the evil,
by changing the evil into good.” Has God
ever taken a difficult circumstance in your life to bring about good? Don’t you
think that He is powerful enough to do that again with whatever it is you are
facing right now?
Sure, it can be difficult to be content as a single, but God
is greater and He created us to be satisfied with Himself, the Author and
Creator of life, who loves us and truly does have a plan and purpose in
everything!
~AF
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