Content Whatever the Circumstances - Brother Lawrence

 Philippians 4:10-20 (NIV)

¹⁰ I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. ¹¹ I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. ¹² I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. ¹³ I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
 ¹⁴ Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles. ¹⁵ Moreover, as you Philippians know, in the early days of your acquaintance with the gospel, when I set out from Macedonia, not one church shared with me in the matter of giving and receiving, except you only; ¹⁶ for even when I was in Thessalonica, you sent me aid more than once when I was in need. ¹⁷ Not that I desire your gifts; what I desire is that more be credited to your account. ¹⁸ I have received full payment and have more than enough. I am amply supplied, now that I have received from Epaphroditus the gifts you sent. They are a fragrant offering, an acceptable sacrifice, pleasing to God. ¹⁹ And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.
 ²⁰ To our God and Father be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

One of the best examples of being content in all circumstances besides Paul is found in a book called "The Practice of the Presence of God" which is an assemblance of conversations and letters written by Brother Lawrence in the 1600's.  Brother Lawrence was a lay brother in the order of the Carmelites from 1640 until his death in 1691.  He was the monastery's cook for a great deal of that time.  He says:

"It matters not to me what I do, or what I suffer, so long as I abide lovingly untied to God's will--that is my whole business.

I am in the hands of God, and He has His own good purposes regarding me; therefore I trouble not myself for aught that man can do to me.  If I cannot serve God here, elsewhere I shall find a place wherein to serve Him.

The practice of the presence of God is the shortest and easiest way to attain to Christian perfection:  it is the form and life of virtue, it is the great preservative from sin.  The practice will become easy, if we have but courage and good will.

The whole world seems to me to be no longer real; all that my outward eyes behold pass like fantasies and dreams.  That which I see with the eyes of the soul is what alone I long for, and to be not yet in the possession of my heart's desire brings me to sorrow and a drooping of spirit.  On the one hand dazzled by the brightness of the Sun of Righteousness, the Scatterer of the shades of night, and, on the other, with eyes dimmed by my own sin, I feel at times as if I were beside myself.  And yet, I make it my ordinary business to abide in the presence of God with the humility of a useless, though a faithful servant."

This book is only 115 pages long and well worth reading.  I encourage you to pick up a copy and begin practicing the presence of God yourself until it becomes a habit!

Contentment

This is a recap of a sermon by Tom Holladay at Saddleback Church. To find the complete sermon and notes go to: http://www.saddleback.com/mc/m/45E0

"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:12-13 (NIV)

To learn the secret to contentment, we need only look to God's word. The operative word here is learn. We are not born content; we must learn to be content. Contentment is not taking the easy way out. It is learning an attitude of life that allows you to work hard and gain godly success without losing everything else in the process. Learning contentment is trusting God for much more than you ever thought you could.

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us..." Ephesians 3:20 (NIV)

The enemy of contentment is comparison. When we compare ourselves and what we have(or don't have) to others we find our joy draining away. We begin to allow what others have or their opinions of us to control our lives and our decisions. We need to learn to live in the joy that only God can give us. "Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap; they have no storeroom nor barn, and yet God feeds them; how much more valuable you are than the birds!" Luke 12:24 (NASB) And "Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; but I tell you, not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass in the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, how much more will He clothe you? You men of little faith!" Luke 12:27-28 (NASB)

"Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else..." Galations 6:4

Learn to be content with whatever you have, whether little or much. Always chasing after more leaves us exhausted and angry and is like chasing the wind, an endless and impossible task. We need to remind ourselves that life is not about things and having more can cloud our vision and cause us to turn away from God. Things cannot be trusted. Put your trust in God.

"I say it is better to be content with what little you have. Otherwise, you will always be struggling for more, and that is like chasing the wind." Ecclesiates 4:6 (NCV)

"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." 1 Timothy 6:6-8 (NIV)

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment." 1 Timothy 6:17 (NIV)

"Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD ?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God." Proverbs 30:8-9 (NIV)

Be careful about what you pursue. What are you chasing after? Are you chasing after power, fame, fortune, approval, a bigger house, a nicer car? All of these things will leave you feeling empty and unsatisfied. We ought to pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. We will only receive genuine contentment through our pursuit of God.

"For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness." 1 Timothy 6:10-11 (NIV)

"As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness." Psalm 17:15 (ESV)

We must rely on the strength that Christ gives us. We will never find contentment in wealth or a perfect life. These things are futile and empty. Our contentment is not found in our circumstances but rather in our relationship with Him. We can trust what He says. And if we trust what He says then we should also act on it. When you learn true contentment, you have a treasure which cannot be taken away from you.

"I can do all things through Him who strengthens me." Philippians 4:13 (NASB)

"I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being..." Ephesians 3:16 (NIV)

Dear Lord, Please help us learn true contentment, the contentment which can only be found in You. Help us to trust in You and Your word and not in the trappings of this world which will only disappoint and leave us feeling empty.

Serenity

This prayer was given to me when I was a young girl by my paternal grandmother. It is one of the very few things that I ever received from her as she was quite poor and generally sent two dollars in a card for my birthday every year (which I always looked forward to eagerly). For years, I had the plaque propped on my dresser and only recently did I put it away in a box. (I intend to go in search of it very soon!) The Serenity Prayer is as follows:

God, grant me the serenity
To accept the things I cannot change;
Courage to change the things I can;
And wisdom to know the difference. by Reinhold Niebuhr

The definition of serenity is: the quality or state of being serene; calmness; tranquility. I find that accepting the things I cannot change is freeing, and allows me to move on. But I don't find freedom just because I accepted something, and I don't move on because I accepted it either. I accept it because I have a God who knows more than I do, because I can trust Him with all things and because "He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities--all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together." Colossians 1:15-17 (NASB) I can feel God's calmness and tranquility because I know He is in complete control. Now that does not mean that things will be perfect or even wonderful, but it does mean that I can trust that whatever happens, good or bad, it will be okay because He is in control.

One of my favorite verses, Romans 8:28 says, "And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose." This does not mean that everything will be "good"! Far from it! The Bible says, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33 (NIV) What it does mean is that God will use all the things that happen in our lives (both good and bad) for our good and the good of those around us, if, we love Him and are called according to His purpose. I try to stay focused on my part of the promise: loving Him and being called according to His purpose. Then I assume that He will be working all things (both good and bad) together for our ultimate good. The thing that sometimes frustrates us is that we can't always see that or figure out what our "good" is. That is where our trust in Him comes into play again. We trust Him that He does know and that that is all we need to know!

So I have accepted the things that I cannot change because God can be trusted and He is in control. The next part of that prayer says that I should change the things I can and ask for the courage to do so. The one thing I can definitely change with God's help and His courage is my own behavior and incorrect attitudes. I have many choices and I can make "good" choices or "bad" ones. The decision is up to me... I can choose to do the "right" thing or my "own" thing. God's word says, "For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7 You see, when His power and strength rest in us, we can discipline ourselves to make good choices and to do the right thing. He also says in Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (KJV) Joshua 1:9 says, "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go." (ESV) God will give us the courage we need and we can be assured that He will be with us along the way, wherever we go. In the Old Testament, God says to be strong and courageous in 13 verses that are fairly close together. He says it 4 times in Joshua chapter 1 alone! I think he wanted Joshua to get the message, don't you? God wanted Joshua to know that this should be his attitude and that the Lord, Himself, would be with him and would give him the strength that he needed to do what the Lord had asked of him. He will also give us the strength that we need to do what He has asked of us.

The last part of this prayer asks for the "wisdom" to know the difference between the things we cannot change and should accept, and the things we can change and should act upon. The important thing to ask for is "wisdom". "But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind." James 1:5-6 (NASB) "Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom." Psalm 51:6 (NASB)

"My son, if you will receive my sayings, and treasure my commandments within you, make your ear attentive to wisdom, incline your heart to understanding; for if you cry for discernment, lift your voice for understanding; if you seek her as silver, and search for her as for hidden treasures; then you will discern the fear of the Lord, and discover the knowledge of God. For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity, guarding the paths of justice, and He preserves the way of His godly ones. Then you will discern righteousness and justice and equity and every good course, for wisdom will enter your heart, and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul..." Proverbs 2:1-10 (NASB)

"How much better to get wisdom than gold!To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver." Proverbs 16:16 (ESV) We need to pursue wisdom and understanding and that is found in God's truth. We should invest our time in His word so that we might gain the knowledge of Him so that we might walk as He walked. "The one who says, 'I have come to know Him,' and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him; but whoever keeps His word, in him the love of God has truly been perfected. By this we know that we are in Him: the one who says he abides in Him ought himself to walk in the same manner as He walked." 1 John 2:4-6 (NASB)

Dear Lord, Grant me Your peace so I can be content even when things don't go the way I think they should. Grant me Your peace when I realize that I can't change something. Give me courage, Lord, to do what You have asked me to do, when You have asked me to do it. Help me to be transformed into Your image by the renewing of my mind through Your Word. And grant me the wisdom and understanding that can only come from You.