On Contentment: Paul and Spurgeon

 

"Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him."

1 Corinthians 7:17 

Lately, I have been pondering what it means to be content. 

In the last six months, I have left a job I loved, given birth, and then three months later left all our family, home, church family and the only country I have ever lived in to move to a new country for three years while my husband studies for ministry.

Now don't get me wrong. I love our life! I love our baby boy, who is the absolute light of my life (despite his entry into the world being a bit traumatic and leaving some physical and emotional wounds yet to be healed). I am fully supportive of my husband studying for ministry, and have been from the very start - we are very excited to see where the Lord continues to lead us.

Yet at the same time, I am homesick - for my old home, my friends and family, my church, even occasionally for my old job and the working life. The shift into stay-at-home motherhood is significant. 

As humans, we are easily tempted to discontentment. No matter to what extent your current life is what you always thought you wanted, there is always something that could be "better". I have been wrestling with this new life a lot, and it feels like I'm losing. 

Then this morning, in my daily (ish - let's be honest!) reading, I stumbled upon this passage, and this verse particularly struck me. (I say stumbled upon, of course we all known that was in fact Providence!)

"Only let each person lead the life that the Lord has assigned to him, and to which God has called him."

1 Corinthians 7:17 

If we break this verse down, we realise just how powerful it is. 

Note how Paul addresses "each person". This is a direction to every individual, not even a certain group of individuals, but each one person. While these words from Paul do apply to all of us, they apply to each of us personally. 

The word assigned is also important. 

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, assign can be defined as:

1. To allocate (a job or duty) to someone.
2. To designate or set (something) aside for a specific purpose.

God has not given us each a random life. Life is not a collection of happy (or unhappy) coincidences. My life is carefully chosen for me. What a joyous comfort!

Every action of God is purposeful. He does not withhold any good thing, and arranges all things for our good:

"And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose."

Romans 8:28

God's definition of good does not always fit what we consider to be our good, but we know and trust that it is our ultimate good that God has in mind.

In his sermon "On Contentment", Charles Spurgeon gives us this powerful quote, which has helped me many times to adjust my perspective on contentment:

"Had any other condition been better for you than what you are in, God would have put you there."

C H Spurgeon, On Contentment

These are powerful reminders that no matter our situation, God always has our eternal good in mind, and his plans are always better than our plans. 

Looking back, especially on the last few years, I can truly say I know that God has led and guided us as a family for our good and his glory. I know that in all this, we can continue to trust our present and future to him too. 

Suggestions for prayer:

• Adoration: Praise God for his sovereignty!
• Confession: Confess where we lack trust in Him and in His plan for us.
• Thanksgiving: Thank God that He is in control and has the best plan in mind for us. Thank Him for the way he has been faithful in our lives up to this point!
• Supplication: Ask God for help, patience, and contentment in whatever circumstances we are in. 

"Comparison is the thief of joy." 

Roosevelt

Thanks for reading!