Pages

10/03/18 - 1Tim 6


Oct 3, 2018

But godliness with contentment is great gain.  1Tim 6:6

Having peace with God in your soul and spirit is a happier life than seeking power or money.

One of the least valued character qualities today is contentment.   Our culture values ‘discontent’.

Athletes are discontent with playing well, they want a championship.

Students (and parents) are discontent with ‘Bs’, they expect straight ‘As’.

Spouses don’t like their current marriage and dump it for a new one.

CEOs fudge the numbers to look better and gain more market share.

Even pastors want bigger churches.

(Note: It’s not all of them – but many hunger for improvement and remain discontent.)


Wanting to improve is not a bad thing, until it becomes the primary thing.  God is not looking for anything to become a god over Him.  When we lack contentment, it turns the target into an idol. 

You can see that today in all of those things.  Ethic & moral lines are crossed in sports so people can have an extra edge.  Many businesses and CEOs violate wise standards to gain temporary success.  Some politicians are not satisfied with the place they have been elected to, they want more power. 

Discontent can drive us to improve, but can also lead us to compromise.  When we lack contentment, we often create an idol in our lives that takes over.  Sooner or later, it will do more damage than help.

Paul tells Timothy that contentment creates the greatest gain.  If we maintain pursuit of godliness and trust God’s timing, we’ll not only live more joy-filled lives, we’ll also find lasting results.  God likes blessing us, He just wants lasting blessing.  God likes seeing us improve, He just wants lasting improvement.  God celebrates our victories, but prefers lasting impact.  You don’t find lasting results by living with discontentment, you find it by living in a spirit of contentment.

Contentment is a simple practice (simple, not easy):  Be thankful for what you have!  Be thankful for the skills you have, the money you have, the family you have, the marriage you have, the career you have, the ministry you have, the life you have.  Start with an attitude of gratitude.  Let God continue to grow you, but you remain thankful.

Go for the lasting results – by remaining content in the current ones.

No comments:

Post a Comment