What Actually Matters: Contentment

I’m on what I believe to be a journey toward deeper spiritual maturity. A journey that includes a lot of piecing things together, not for information but for transformation. Much of what I’ve learned about how to be a Christian are like tabs on an internet browser—a lot of tabs are open but not all of the tabs matter. I’m zeroing in on what matters which, in turn, means not only closing tabs but connecting dots.

The one thing that matters the most in my mind is this: “...that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4). This is the one thing above all things—to be with God both in this life and the next. And one reality that keeps me there is contentment.

How do we achieve contentment? We adjust our lives in such a way that our focus is on three things: generosity, discipline, and power.

Generosity

When Paul wrote to the Philippian church, Paul was in prison. Epaphroditus has been sent by his church to visit with Paul and to bring him money from the church. The church didn't always have money to give, but they wanted to support Paul. So, whenever they had money, they would give and they would give generously. To give generously does not require wealth. It requires sacrifice and selflessness because to give generously is to give more than the person actually needs.

Paul is extremely grateful and he expresses this gratitude: “And my God will supply every need of yours. According to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19 ESV). Paul believes that what he has been given is the result of the goodness of God and it blesses him thoroughly.

When we recognize the generous gifts of others, we recognize that they have been given in order to help us through our distress. We're reminded that God is good and his ability to provide for us happens in many different ways. We respond to this generosity with gratitude. When we are still long enough to thank God we are where he is. This is contentment.

Discipline

Paul made a choice that required discipline.

In verse 11 Paul admits he didn't just wake up content one morning. He learned to be content. Which is to say that he’d been through situations where he did want what his neighbor had. He’d been through situations where he was not satisfied with the “daily bread” Jesus teachings the disciples to pray for.

It takes maturity to learn from our experiences and to get to this point where we are able to exercise the discipline that says, “I will not covet. I see that thing that looks beautiful. I see that way of being that somebody else seems to display. But I’m not going to covet.” This is contentment.

Power

This power is not one that we have manufactured all on our own. It is Christ who is the source of that power. And I use the word power because when you are strengthened by somebody else, you are given power by that person.

God has given Paul the power that he needs in order to be the person that he is. Often in his writings, Paul talks about what it is to be in Christ. In 2 Corinthians, he writes that when we are in Christ, we become new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17).

And so it's helpful to think about this verse 13, as being not only through Christ but the result of being in Christ. He gives us power to do the things and be the person he has called us to.

Christ is not simply handing off power to us. When we are in Christ, we have this constant supply similarly to a baby in the uterus of its mother who is nourishing her body well. I can do all things when I'm in Christ, because when I'm in the power source, I have that direct supply. That's where Paul was, right where God was.

But How?

Paul became this way because he was a follower of Jesus, Jesus was an example of being willing to accept the generosity of others. And he was an example of being satisfied with what he had. And Jesus was an example of spending so much time with the Father that he had the strength to be all the Father needed him to be.

So we, too, can step into a space of receiving the generosity of others, practicing the discipline of not coveting, and staying connected to the Lord's power. And did you know that you can’t be this way and be selfish? Struggling with selfishness? Grow in contentment.

Because ultimately it's about transformation, a transformation that comes when we are in Christ Jesus and become that new creation.