Financial Discipleship - the Bible on ContentmentНамуна

The word “content” is so seldom used in our world today. We have a lot of wants—a bigger house, a new phone, more clothes. The list goes on. There’s no room for contentment in our daily life. We have so much want, that our wants become muddled with our needs and eventually they both mean the same thing.

The apostle Paul laid the foundation for contentment by saying: “Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content. I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through Him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:11-13).

Our character should not be bound by our love of money. God never intended that heavy burden for us and He wants to free you of it! Because no amount of money in the world can give us the security that our heavenly Father can.

Living is more than the food we put in our body or what we clothe it with. Our nutrients, our shelter, our protection, our appetite… None of that is supplied by money. These needs are met by the Lord. And no matter what, as long as we trust and obey Him, as long as we seek Him, chase after Him, first and foremost, He will meet us right where we are with all these things (Matthew 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31).

What we need in life is our daily bread. Not just the bread we find in our kitchen, but the bread we receive from our Father. It’s the armor the Holy Spirit who lives within clothes us with. It protects us. It guides us. It supplies us. It fills us with all we need to walk with the Lord’s covering upon us in our going out and our coming in. Our daily bread guards us from the thoughts others try to feed us with. Those thoughts that tempt us to live a life of wanting more.

1 Timothy 6:8 empowers us to live a life of being constantly, fervently fed by the truth of the Holy Spirit, instead of the temptations of this world. The desire for gain, such as a higher salary or a fancy job title do not lead our lives (Luke 3:14). Our heart’s only desire isn’t anything this earth can supply. Our heart’s only desire is our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Contentment can now be a part of daily living because the Holy Spirit and not ambition, leads instead. And when we are content and walking a life of godliness (1 Timothy 6:6), that’s the moment we will see more gain in our life than any salary or title could ever give.

Contentment can now be a signature in our life because the Holy Spirit has decided that we have no want, as our needs have always been—and always will be—met. We are no longer of the world. We cannot see the world for what it is through our own eyes. We remain in it, standing strong and seeing clearly, because we envision contentment as the world we live in.

(excerpt taken from The Bible on Money, Compass-finances God's way, 2022)