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"Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you."
(Hebrews 13:5)
Many wise Christians throughout the ages have had valuable reflections on the topic of contentment. Today, I want to share with you some of my favorite quotes from men and women I admire on the topic of contentment as we finish up our contemplations on the topic for the week.
"You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you." - Augustine of Hippo
Contentment isn't just a nice idea or a bonus in the Christian life. We were created to be content in Jesus. He is meant to fully satisfy us. Therefore, when we search for contentment elsewhere, we are actually acting outside of the Lord's intentions for us.
"Discontent keeps a man from enjoying what he possesses. A drop of vinegar will sour a whole glass of wine." - Thomas Watson
This is some good practical wisdom. The drive for what God does not want for you stops you from enjoying what God does want for you. I may even propose that it stops us from truly enjoying God since our gaze is fixed on that which we don't have instead of the Giver of what we do have.
"You say, 'If I had a little more, I should be very satisfied.' You make a mistake. If you are not content with what you have, you would not be satisfied if it were doubled." - Charles Spurgeon
Such a statement must come from experience, and I think it is an experience we have all had at one time or another. We believe the lie that with just a little more, we could be happy. With just a little more, we could then be content. But such thinking is a trap that only compounds over time. For that "little more" ever extends a little further and further away with each gain. Some of the wealthiest men I know are the most unhappy, with their sites set on what they have yet to achieve instead of enjoying what God has given them. Break free from the trap of forever wanting more by, as Augustine said, resting in Christ.
"The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One." - Hudson Taylor
What could we ever attain that is better than God Himself? There is nothing we could strive for that is more supremely satisfying than knowing God.
"The secret is Christ in me, not me in a different set of circumstances." - Elisabeth Elliot
As we discovered yesterday, contentment comes from union with Christ, because Christ Himself is all we need! In Him we can endure anything and see any circumstances as fitting because we trust the Lord's purpose in it all. This truth destroys the mentality of "if only", e.g. "If only I didn't have this diagnosis", "If only I had that job", "If only I had this much money", "If only I looked like her", "If only I had some influence”, etc. God has you where He wants you. All you need in Christ.
"Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." (Hebrews 13:5)
If the Lord is with us, what more could we really ask for? What more could we need?
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