Two-minute read.
Have you ever thought that having plenty can test you spiritually as much as having little does?
During my long years of singleness, alone and dateless, I cried out to God with all my might. Questions poured from my soul: Why haven’t I met anyone? What’s wrong with me? What do I need to do?
On and on the pity party could go as I lifted my sorrows to the Savior.
But then I would meet someone.
And I forgot all about Jesus.
Without even going on the first date, I would have the wedding planned, knowing God had finally answered my prayers. I could stop obeying Scripture; the Lord would understand. I did it all for love.
And then the relationship would end.
Back to the pity party I would go.
Until I realized I needed God just as much, if not more, when things went well. Instead of forgetting the Savior when I met someone, I put Him at the center of the relationship. When I finally met Ron, my prayer became, “Help me represent You well to Him.” The Lord answered that prayer, and He remains the center of our marriage.
Living with enough means learning to cling to Christ not only in our struggles but also in our victories. We must learn contentment through our experiences, remaining content regardless of our circumstances. Having enough doesn’t mean we will never experience difficulties; it means we will remain stable despite them.
Paul learned to live faithfully at both ends of the spectrum, whether he had little or much. And he did so through Christ, who gave him the ability to do anything. We can experience the same contentment when we center our lives around Jesus.
When we have little, the devil can tempt us with fear, anxiety, or distrust. But when we have much, he will tempt us with self-sufficiency and forgetting our dependence on God. To find true contentment, we must learn, as Paul did, that circumstances don’t control our contentment.
We can live with enough because of Christ. No matter what our circumstances, Jesus gives us what we need to live with contentment. Through the Savior, we have the strength to remain faithful whatever comes our way.
Contentment comes when we learn to remain steady in Christ.
Journal Questions:
- What circumstance in your life is making it difficult for you to be content, and what would it look like to trust Christ in the middle of it?
- When you have plenty or when you have very little, what tends to determine your sense of security and peace?
- What are you facing right now that you need to surrender to Christ, trusting Him to give you the strength to walk through it?
Application:
Choose to trust Christ today, no matter what your circumstances.
