Is there anything about yourself that you wish you could change? For as long as time, humans have tried to lose weight, get in shape, alter their bodies, learn new skills, and drop bad habits. We try to change jobs, change homes, and change relationships.
Some of us are very dissatisfied with aspects of our lives. Pastors included. When I was in India for the month of March 2023, I lost ten pounds. Now it’s back. I know what I need to do shed that weight, and I want to shed that weight, but putting in the work and self-discipline to get there…I don’t know that I want to do that.
Others of us are largely satisfied. As Christians we are called to be content. Paul writes in Philippians 4:11–13, “I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.”
Contentment is a very good thing. Perhaps contentment is a rare thing in a world that plays on our innate sense of discontent.
Our inner discontent is sometimes referred to as “the empty self,” the “God-shaped” hole,” that deep longing for fulfillment. When we try to fill that hole with anything other than God, we find that the hole is a bottomless pit. Only the infinite God can fill what is bottomless.
So we struggle with discontent. God told the Israelites who were on their Exodus journey to the Promised Land of Canaan that when he brought them to that land, they would find a land flowing with milk and honey. It was an abundant land. God also warned the Israelites of the danger of believing that their abilities and the bounty of the Promised Land were the source of contentment. See Deuteronomy 8:10–18, and especially verses 17–18, “You may say to yourself, ‘My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.” Or as the prophet Hosea once said, “When I fed them, they were satisfied; when they were satisfied, they became proud; then they forgot me.” (Hosea 13:6)
In other words, be content, but don’t be. Be satisfied, but don’t be. We can and should be content, as Paul wrote in Philippians 4, but we should always want to change to become more like Jesus.
How does a person change? Sometimes it feels very difficult, doesn’t it? If you’ve been battling a bad habit, struggling with a broken relationship, and doing so for years, it can feel impossible to change.
You’re not alone. What you are experiencing in that struggle is part and parcel of the human condition. That’s why I’m looking forward to our final study in the 1stThessalonians series. It’s all about how God is at work helping us change. Take a look for yourself by reading 1 Thessalonians 5:23–28, and then I look forward to talking about it further next week.
Photo by Erik Mclean on Unsplash
Engaging Scripture 