Then the Bible talks of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit given for the building up of the Body of Christ, the greatest of which is the gift of love, which binds all things together.  Now there is also one more gift that God gives to His people, which is the gift to contentment.  I believe a person who is blessed with this gift must be a truly happy person.  It is truly a blessed thing to be just content with whatever we have in this world, or with the way that we look or with the things that happen in our lives.

The dictionary meaning of content is, “Contained within limits; hence, having the desires limited by that which one has; not disposed to repine or grumble; satisfied; contented; at rest.”

So a contented person will not complain or grumble with his lot in life. Just like the way Apostle Paul was, who said in his letter to the Philippians – “Not that I speak in respect of want: for I have learned, in whatsoever state I am, therewith to be content. I know both how to be abased, and I know how to abound: everywhere and in all things I am instructed both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.” (Philippians 4:11-13). The Apostle Paul truly had the gift of contentment, because after He received Jesus as His Lord and Saviour, he never complained about anything. Rather he would endure any difficulties and suffer whatever hardships, for the sake of Christ and for the Gospel, so that others may be saved. He was content just having Jesus in his life and doing the will of God. And he also advises us to be the same. He tells us to imitate or follow him, just as he imitated or followed Christ (1 Corinthians 11:1).

In His letter to Timothy, he tells him, “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.” (1Timothy 6:6-8). In Australia, and in the Western world, people have much more than food clothing and shelter. Yet we have the most discontented people living here, always seeking to get more and more, never ever satisfied. We have people who are always complaining, either about their jobs, or about government policies, or Churches or about their children or spouses and so on. Of course, there could be some genuine reasons for which people may want to complain and redress their grievances. I am not saying that we should not seek to redress any injustice being done in any area. However, many times people just tend to complain over anything. They just want a smooth, comfortable life without any troubles. They are just like how the Israelites behaved when they were led by Moses out of the land of Egypt, out of the land of bondage. They were just not ready to face the hardships along the way to the land of Canaan, the Promised Land. They complained at every instant even though they had seen God’s Mighty miracles and how he delivered them by sending plagues in the land of Egypt and parting the Red Sea for them to cross over. They complained when they ran out of water, and then God miraculously, provided water from the Rock. They complained that they had to eat the same food (manna) every day, even though God gave them Angels’ food. Their complaints were endless and because of that they failed to enter the Promised Land. They had to wander in the wilderness for forty years and die. Only their Children could enter. All this was because of their discontentment and their murmurings and their grumbling.

The Apostle Paul says in 1Corinthians 10:10 – “Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer.” This is with reference to the Israelites who murmured and complained against Moses and against God.

As Children of God we are told – “Do all things without murmurings (or complaining) and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world;” (Philippians 2:14,15)

Friends, there could be some genuine reasons for which a person may feel discontented. There could be discontentment in Church when the Word of God is not handled or proclaimed, as it should be, with grace and truth. There could be discontentment when people suffer because of wrong government policies, or in the work place because of harassment of employees. In such cases, we just commit all these matters in the Hands of the Lord who is in control of all situations, just as we are told in the Bible that we are not to be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and supplications with thanksgiving, we need to make our requests known to God, and he will give us the peace that surpasses all understanding and which will keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6,7). With the peace of God, contentment and rest, from all our striving and worries and anxieties, will come.

Beloved, let us be content with all the things that God has blessed us with. Let us realise, that in actual fact we really don’t deserve even the least of any of His blessing. As sinners, we only deserve the wrath of God. And if we are saved and have been born again, it is because of His great love toward us, in that Jesus bore the wrath of God for our sins. Dear friends we must be so much grateful for what God has done for us, in securing our redemption in paying the penalty for our sins. So, let us be content with whatever God gives us and not complain about things we don’t have, or things we think could be much better. Remember God is not partial. He is a just God, full of loving kindness and tender mercies. And He is altogether wise. It is just incomprehensible for our finite minds to know the ways of God. We just have to trust and obey Him as Children of their Heavenly Father. He will not give you any burden too hard to bear; neither will He put you to the test without giving you the strength to endure it. He disciplines us for our good. He knows what is best for us at any time. So don’t complain about your job, brooding all the time and wishing you had a better one. Whatever work you do, do it heartily as to the Lord, knowing that You are serving Him and in due course He may provide a better opening for You according to His will. Don’t complain about your spouse, thinking that he or she could be more understanding and gentle or loving or even better looking. Accept your spouse as a gift from God and be content. God will bring about changes for our good as we trust Him and His word, as all things work together for good to those who love God (Romans 8:28). Similarly accept your children as God’s gift and be patient with them. And finally accept one another, just as Christ has accepted us to the glory of God (Romans 15:7).

Beloved if you feel that you are not contented with what you have or with your lot in life, then ask God to bless you with the gift of contentment. Every good and perfect gift comes from God who is good. We receive gifts of love, joy, peace, and faith from His divine benevolence. Just as we ask God to fill us with His love or His joy or to increase our faith, we can ask God to help us to be content with what we have received or with our lot in life. Let us ask Him for contentment and the peace that accompanies it, so that our souls are always contented and at rest.

Dn Edwin D\'Mello

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