“I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty.” – Philippians 4:11-12, NIV

Someone once put me on the spot to explain the term ‘contentment.’ Hard paper!

But for us to really understand what contentment means, we have to put it side by side with its opposite – covetousness.

Covetousness has little to do with what you actually own; rather, it is a state of mind that makes you believe that what you have is not enough and thus desire to have more including what is not yours.

Covetousness manifests in an intense desire to obtain what is unlawful or forbidden.

It is the source of envy and greed – the strong desire for more money or possessions than one needs. 

Covetousness is to make material possessions the focus of one’s life.

It is to enrich oneself at the expense of others; to oppress and use others for one’s own selfish ends.

It is the desire to live for self-pleasure, which manifests in unwillingness to give because one believes that what remains would not be enough.

Evidently, in a world that is driven by the desire to ‘show success,’ it is extremely difficult for many of us to live a life of contentment.

Why would a so-called ‘tycoon’ engage in an ugly public fight with a poor widow and orphans over a tiny piece of land?

Why would public officials who earn zillions of Shillings every month start jostling for a few iron sheets meant for the poorest of the poor?

The rampant embezzlement and misappropriation of resources, sadly even in the Church, comes down to one thing – contentment or the lack of it!

As children of God, we have a choice either to continue being covetous participants in a pointless ‘rat race’ or to embrace the secret of godly contentment, which is “great gain.”

In our meditation today, the apostle Paul declares; “I have learned to be content whatever circumstance I am in.”

But was Paul actually a needy man? Of course he needed money to do his missionary work, sometimes being away on the mission field for years at a time.

He needed clothes, money to pay the bills, transport and a roof over his head – all the things we all need.

Indeed, sometimes he had to engage in tent-making in order to make ends meet.

Even then, he says, “I know what it means to have money on me and I know what it means to be broke.”

Either state didn’t make any difference in his attitude and mental state, which he attributed to “learning the secret of being content.”

That implies that contentment is indeed a life skill, a discipline, an attitude that anyone can learn.

If there is something that our world desperately needs today, it is a ‘lesson in contentment.’

Does it mean that we shouldn’t have ambition to be prosperous?

The Bible has an answer to that question in 1Timothy 6:6-8: Godliness with contentment is more profitable than ambition for we were born naked and we shall surely leave the world empty-handed.

Hebrews 13:5 adds; “Keep your life free from the love of money, and be content with what you have.”

To what extent has contentment been a learning experience for you?

As children of God, we have a choice either to continue being covetous participants in a pointless ‘rat race’ or to embrace the secret of godly contentment, which is “great gain.”

Prayer:

Almighty God, You promised never to leave me nor forsake me. Help me to continue learning to be content and to be a blessing to the nations. For the glory of your Name, Amen!