The Joy and Contentment of Life
Posted By Joe on August 12, 2009
I've read at least a half dozen books on finding your perfect career or even what you were born to do. In fact, just this past Friday I attended a class at a local community college called "What were you born to do?" I enjoyed the class and I'm eager to dig into the workbook.
On Monday, I went to the bookstore and bought a new book called "Get the Job You Want Even When No One's Hiring," by Ford R. Myers. So far, I like it a lot. Today I will be going through one of the many exercises he has called "Your Ideal Workday."
I've been doing this type of searching for over two and a half years. Some might say that I have to be over-analyzing it all if I've been doing it for that long. However, I suppose I look at from Socrates' standpoint:
The unexamined life is not worth living.
Now, this is a Christian blog and I'm not necessarily putting man's wisdom above God's. Surely the Bible says the same when David says:
Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way. --Psalm 139:23-24.
"My anxious thoughts." Boy, is that me lately.
This whole season in my life has showed me my own covetousness and worries about "stuff." It's all junk! It's all going to rot away. Why am I worried about "stuff?" I ran across a blog post today at Truth Matters, called "The Emptiness of the American Dream." It was a re-posting from Shepherd's Fellowship. I don't want to re-post it here in it's entirety, rather I would like to point out the highlights from Ecclesiastes as I feel they are appropriate for this time in my life (and maybe yours).
King Solomon was the richest and wisest man of his day. You may recall the story. God came to him in a dream and told him that He would give him anything he wanted. Solomon asked for wisdom. God rewarded his humility by granting him wisdom and all the worldly riches he could handle because he did not ask for riches. (1 Kings 3:3-15.)
However, God gave Solomon a few provisions for the granting of his desire.
If you walk in My ways, keeping My statutes and commandments, as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days." --1 Kings 3:14.
Unfortunately, like all fallen and sinful men, Solomon used his great wealth and power to try to find fulfillment. He forgot that his fulfillment, joy, and contentment are found in God alone. His mistakes included trying to find joy and contentment with:
- Pleasure (Ecclesiastes 2:1-3)
- Hard work (Ecclesiastes 2:4–6)
- Material possessions (Ecclesiastes 2:7–8)
- Popularity and prestige (Ecclesiastes 2:9–10)
- His own wisdom (Ecclesiastes 2:12–14)
But remember, God did grant Solomon great wisdom. So although he he experienced "much grief, and increasing knowledge result[ed] in increasing pain," (Ecclesiastes 1:18), Solomon discovered the secret to joy and contentment in this life, this side of heaven.
There is nothing better for a man than to eat and drink and tell himself that his labor is good. This also I have seen that it is from the hand of God. For who can eat and who can have enjoyment without Him? For to a person who is good in His sight He has given wisdom and knowledge and joy, while to the sinner He has given the task of gathering and collecting so that he may give to one who is good in God's sight. This too is vanity and striving after wind. --Ecclesiastes 2:24-26.
God has given to each of us the gift of enjoying this life while living in obedience to Him. That is the the secret to joy and contentment in this life. Our lives will have ups and downs (Ecclesiastes 3:4), but through it all, we can be made whole through the love of God.
No matter what gets stripped away, there is something that no one can take away and that's God's love for you and I.
"Therefore you too have grief now; but I will see you again, and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you." --John 16:22.
Jesus here is speaking of His Second Coming. That is the believer's Blessed Hope (Titus 2:13). That's where we can rest and find that joy and contentment no matter what our circumstances may be here.
May He Increase!
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Good thought, Joe.
This life surely is a roller coaster ride. But like St. Paul we can be content in abundance or in want.
Well, we can try, anyway.
God bless you, my friend. Hang tough. "This too shall pass."
Thank you, Steve.
We are really being put through the ringer and our faith is being tested like no other time. Probably the hardest lesson for me to learn is that the longer we are Christians, the more trials we will face. It makes sense. What good is our faith if our trials are minimal and the same all the time?
All I want out of this is to be His witness to His goodness. I want to learn from this situation and sing of the goodness of the Lord!
"Pseudo faith always arranges a way out to serve in case God fails it. Real faith knows only one way and gladly allows itself to be stripped of any second way or makeshift substitutes. For true faith, it is either God or total collapse. And not since Adam first stood up on the earth has God failed a single man or woman who trusted him."
A. W. Tozer, "True Faith Brings Committal," In The Root of the Righteous, pages 49-50.
Brother Ike,
Only God could have found the perfect words to speak through you. You have given me a perfect verse for the time we are going through right now. I need to print this one out and hang it up somewhere.
Thank you, brother.
[...] He Increase: “The Joy and Contentment of Life” by Joe [...]
[...] Isn't that what it is really all about anyway? Why would I want to find a higher paying job that takes me away from my family for 40+ hours a week? Seriously. For what? So I have more money to spend? No thanks. Look, I just want enough so my family is not going hungry. My contentment is not going to be found in earthly riches! [...]