“…godliness with contentment is great gain” (1 Timothy 6:6).
“I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation” (Philippians 4:12b), wrote Paul, the apostle of Jesus Christ, from a prison cell in 60 A.D. Did he know something which we desperately need to learn today? Or should we say that Paul had succumbed to the fatalism of life and had simply resigned himself to what he could not change?
There are, of course, some things which can be changed. A plastic surgeon may take the wrinkles out of your face, but he cannot take the wrinkles out of your soul. If I am discontent because a nail has worked its way through my shoe, I ought to remove the nail and eliminate the source of discontentment. But most of what creates discontentment involves situations which cannot be changed: other people, our environment, and often our health.
What was the secret of Paul’s contentment? Is it a concept that is transferable, which we can learn today? Frankly, there is a secret, and it can be learned today. There are steps to contentment which will produce the same deep tranquility which Paul enjoyed, even in our present century.
Guideline #1: Paul believed in the essential goodness of God, our heavenly Father; and accepting this premise, you take the first step on the path to contentment. Can you accept the fact that the essential nature of God, the Father, is that of goodness, and that His design for His children includes fulfillment and happiness? Shortly before his untimely death, Paul Little, then the head of an organization known as Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, wrote an article saying that the bottom line of theology is the goodness of God. When I first read that I was skeptical, but as you study Scripture carefully, you will come to conclude that he was right. If there were no God, no heaven or hell, no right or wrong, I would still advocate the same principles of living, because I am convinced these timeless guidelines found in Scripture are the only keys to real happiness and fulfillment.
Guideline #2: Paul believed that what happens is of concern to our heavenly Father. Read what Jesus said in Matthew 6 about a sparrow falling to the ground and the very hairs of your head being numbered, and you, too, will agree with Paul.
Guideline #3: Paul accepted the circumstances of life, events and things which he could not change, as an indication of the will of God for his life. Paul made this point repeatedly as he wrote to friends scattered throughout Asia minor. His imprisonment was not the result of bad luck; it was the purpose of God – so believed Paul – to give him the opportunity to go before kings and rulers. Make a note of what Paul says in Romans 8:28 and Ephesians 1:11.
Guideline #4: Paul believed that God had a personal will for his life, and yielding his own will to the will of God, he found contentment in difficult times. It is here that the issue of control comes into the picture. Lacking control over our health, or our wealth, over our careers or our environment, we become dissatisfied and discontent with our lot in life.
What Paul learned through difficult times, you can learn today, friend. Contentment is the inner attitude of the soul that realizes God cares and is in control of the circumstances of my life. Trust Him to work out what you can’t change. He will, you know. Try it. It still works today.
Resource reading: Philippians 4.
