Last night my pastor gave a message on discontentment. The message was very good, but what really caught my attention was a short prayer at the bottom of the handout. I don't have it with me right now, but it went something like this:
Lord, give me the grace to:
Take what you give
Accept what you withold
and relinquish what you take.
It caught my attention because it presented two very simple concepts. First, the person who prayed it clearly understood that he didn't know what was best for him. That is not an easy truth to swallow. I usually think I know what is good for me but this is really a ridiculous idea. I have never met anyone who didn't want something that was not good for them. Not that it was necessarily bad, just not good for them. This is especially evident with kids, but it is no less real with adults, it's just more subtle.
The second thing I saw was that the person who prayed this clearly understood that God did know what was best for Him and that He would not withold it. Psalm 84:11 “For the LORD God is a sun and shield: the LORD will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.”
These two concepts drove home very clearly to me what it really means to be content. Contentment does not come from having everything you want; it comes when you realize that you have everything that is good for you. It reminded me of a song we sang at camp this summer. Sometimes when I think I need something more than what I have, God brings this song to mind to remind me “There's only one thing you really need to be happy in this life, and I've already given it to you. It will never be taken away so be content with that and trust me for the rest.” I don't remember who wrote it, but it was from the Wilds.
My Father's Love
This world's wealth and riches can be bought and sold
But I posses a treasure far greater than gold,
'Twas a gift passed down to me from heaven above,
'Twas the gift of my Father's love.
And my Father's love is strong and true
Always believing, always seeing me through
So no matter what happens in His grand design,
I'll be fine with my Father's love.
Safe and secure now in his alone
I find at last my place of worth as one of his own,
And I don't need anything this world has to give,
'Cause I live with my Father's love.
And my Father's love is strong and true
Always believing, always seeing me through
So no matter what happens in His grand design,
I'll be fine, I have my Father's love.
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