Steps to contentment: Step 3 – Water

Welcome to week 3 in our study on contentment. Contentment in the biblical sense is peace with God and satisfaction in the circumstances where God has placed you.

If contentment is a lush garden, then being and staying content is a constant battle for turf. Gardening is not simply planting and enjoying. While those are aspects of a good garden, successful gardening requires constant nutrition.

Reading for this week: John 4:3-26; 39-42

In terms of gardening, the nutrition formula for growth is pretty basic: soil, sun, air, and water. And of those 4 basics, I really only have to take care of one – water. The sun, the soil, and the air are not necessarily in my department. So maintenance of my precious garden shouldn’t be that hard. Get a bucket or find the hose and water those plants. But like the woman at the well, it’s the continuous need to come back for water that can get monotonous and wearisome (v.15).

In the spring, my momentum is going. I am happy to finally be outdoors. I am motivated with visions of red tomatoes and full baskets of flowers. But then after awhile, I get a little bored and start skipping the only job I have – the watering.

Unfortunately, my inconsistent watering inevitably leads to fewer tomatoes. And it makes other vegetables – like my cucumbers and lettuce – taste bitter. My flowers are dried out. My herbs are limp and thirsty. And the life my garden had, slowly dies. There is nothing more devastating then coming to the end of a growing season only to realize I have wasted it.

That’s why I am very interested in installing a drip irrigation system. I have no idea how to do that, but with my handy husband and pinterest at my disposal, I think we can come up with something. Knowing my plants could continuously get exactly the right amount of water could make gardening so much easier and more productive.

Trying to maintain contentment or happiness on my own is like having to go out looking for water sources everyday. It may bring temporary contentment, but I need to keep going out for more to maintain that contentment. And when I can’t find a good source or I stop looking, I inevitably become dry and bitter and unproductive. Contentment is no longer within my reach.

That’s the amazing thing about what Jesus offers us through the Holy Spirit. It’s like a drip irrigation system for my soul. It is a truer, more consistent source of watering that I can tap into daily. And as Jesus told the woman at the well, with the water that Jesus offers, it’s like a spring welling up to eternal life, and I will never be thirsty again.

It’s time to water.

Step 3 in the pursuit of contentment: Water your garden by tapping into the only everlasting water source.

Dear Lord, I am constantly thirsty for something. But I spend a lot of valuable time looking for water from other sources. Help me to tap into Your everlasting water. Quench my thirst and bring me contentment. Amen.

This week, let’s read about those deep waters that God offers through His Spirit.

Day 2 – Psalm 1:1-3

Day 3 – Jeremiah 17:7-8

Day 4 – John 7:37-38

Day 5 – John 6:35-40

Read Full Post »

Steps to contentment: Step 2 – Protect

Welcome to week 2 in our study on contentment. Contentment in the biblical sense is peace with God and satisfaction in the circumstances where God has placed you.

Contentment is what we want, but we cannot have contentment without faith. If contentment is that lush, green, fruitful garden, then discontentment is anything that endangers the growth of the garden.

Reading for this week: Luke 10:38-42

Over the summer, the kids and I weeded our overgrown yard for about 20 minutes a day. Even though 20 minutes doesn’t clear much, I have noticed that over time, we have slowly begun to open up the landscape to allow for my husband’s green-thumb creativity. It’s as if the yard finally has some room to breathe.

However, a new problem has made an appearance. Deer. They walk around the yard like they own it, eating anything that looks good. My superbells are chewed down; my new pineberries (a strawberry cultivar that tastes like pineapple) look like thick blades of sporadic grass. As we continue to develop our garden, we now have to research deer resistant plants and build deer fencing around our new vegetable garden. We need to protect what’s growing.

Being content is also a constant battle for turf. The story for today is one of our first encounters with Mary and Martha, two friends of Jesus. Both women are serving Jesus in the story. One is sitting and listening. The other is prepping a meal. I can relate to both women. However, I struggle with this passage because Martha’s service gets a bad rap. When Jesus denies Martha’s plea for help in the kitchen, it seems unfair. My gut response is to say, “Do you know what it takes to serve 13 plus hungry men? Good luck feeding those guys.”

 

Painting by He Qi

There are two problems with Martha’s service, though. The first, Luke says, “Martha was distracted.” And the second, Jesus says, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion and it will not be taken from her.” I love the firmness of Jesus’s response. It will not be taken from her. He is protecting Mary. But he is also protecting Martha from the dangerous assumption that service to God is more important than time with God.

Contentment is only possible with time with God. You can work and work and work in your garden, but if you haven’t spent time protecting it, if you haven’t spent time with the Master Gardener, you will never experience your garden of contentment.

In your pursuit of contentment, you need that valuable time with Him. And that time needs to be protected. Protected from distraction. Protected from worry. Protected from anxiety. And even protected from service. The kind of service that distracts from the very One who is to be served.

Step 2 in the pursuit of contentment: Protect your garden by spending time with the Master Gardener.

Dear Lord, I forget to spend time with You. Please forgive me. Never let my service to You replace spending time with You. Help me to encourage others to spend time with You. Grow my garden of contentment. Amen.

This week, let’s read about the blessings of spending time with God. As you read Day 2 – Psalm 23, take confidence in the fact that when the Lord is your shepherd, when you focus on Him, you realize that you have everything you need. And when you know you have everything you need, that is the beginning of contentment.

Day 2 – Psalm 23

Day 3 – Psalm 37:3-7

Day 4 – Ephesians 3:14-21

Day 5 – Matthew 6:19-21; 25-33

Read Full Post »

Steps to Contentment: Step 1 – Weed

A friend of mine asked if I could write on the subject of contentment. (I do take requests!) So for the next few weeks, we will study the steps to contentment through the eyes of scripture.

Reading for this week: Luke 8:4-15

We recently bought our first home. As garden and landscaping enthusiasts, my husband and I have big plans to turn our overgrown yard into a small, botanical oasis. While there is a lot of potential, the yard has been neglected for years.

Think of contentment as lush, green, fruitful landscaping. Contentment is peace with God and satisfaction in the circumstances where God has placed you. Contentment is what we want, but before we can even begin to draw up the landscaping plans, we have an unbelievable amount of rocks, thorns, thistle bushes, and weeds to deal with.

In the Parable of the Sower (Luke 8), there are four basic responses to God: reject, forget, become distracted, or believe. Only in the last response lies the path to contentment. But even though I am a believer, I struggle with being content.

When I look more closely at the third response – becoming distracted – I see my problem. “They are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature” (Luke 8:14).

In other words, I wholeheartedly believe God and his love for me, but sometimes I mistakenly equate being content with experiencing the good life. I base contentment on whether or not I feel that life is good. And if the good life is endangered, missing, or lacking, if it is without health or without riches or without excitement, if it becomes monotonous, unforgiving, or difficult, I panic. In my distraction and worry, the threatening thorns, weeds, and rocks begin to take hold once again and jeopardize not only the growth of my garden, but also the very life of the garden.

So how do we grow our gardens? The last verse of our reading gives us a landscaping plan. “As for that in the good soil, they are those who hearing the word, hold fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.” Hear the word, hold fast to God, and grow your garden with patience.

Step 1 in the pursuit of contentment: Weed out distraction by holding fast to God, your master gardener.

Dear Lord, Focus my heart and mind on You. Make me hold fast to You so I am not distracted by the cares of this world. Make me content in all circumstances. Amen.

Continue reading these well-known passages about contentment this week.

Day 2 – Philippians 4:11-13

Day 3 – 1 Timothy 6:6-12

Day 4 – Hebrews 13:5-6

Day 5 – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-24

Read Full Post »

The Power to Save: A six-week study on the powers of Jesus: Week 3

“Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. They were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.” ~Psalm 107:28-30

Reading for today: Mark 4:35-41

Jesus Calms the Storm by Laura James

Jesus Calms the Storm is one of the first accounts to describe Jesus’ power over nature. I love the trifold symmetry of this story. First, the story is framed by the great storm, followed by the great calm. Next, Jesus rebukes the wind and waves, but he also rebukes the disciples’ lack of faith. And what begins as the disciples’ fear of the elements, is finally replaced with their fear of the Lord. Meanwhile, unchanging Jesus runs centerline right through the story.

As we have discussed in weeks 1 and 2, Jesus has full power over disease and evil spirits. And while extremely popular with the crowds, attracting a huge following, he is still thought of as a miracle worker, not the Son of God. Not the Messiah. Not the Lord of all.

This split second miracle in a fisher’s boat, strikes a new kind of fear in the hearts of Jesus’ disciples. Jesus power is unreal. He can no longer be safely kept under the category of miracle worker or healer. “Who is this,” they ask, “that nature obeys him?” His power is mind-blowing and therefore, potentially dangerous.

Yet as we have studied thus far, Jesus’ power, his unconceivable power, seems to be revealed in those don’t-you-care-that-we-are-perishing moments of our distress. Rest assure, that as we add more powers to Jesus’ resume, know that he absolutely cares for you. And as we continue to study Jesus’ specific powers, keep that very notion at the heart of it. You are loved. And there is no fear in love.

Dear Jesus, You have power over nature. Still the storms. Rebuke the wind and the sea. Deliver us and bring us safely home. Amen.

Further reading for this week:

Day 2 – Psalm 107:28-30

Day 3 – Matthew 21:18-22

Day 4 – Matthew 14:22-33

Day 5 – Luke 5:1-11; John 21:1-12

 

Read Full Post »

Why Christmas is so important: Week 3

Reading for today: Luke 2:4-14 (Click on the passage to read online.)

“Glory to God in the highest, and earth peace among those whom he is pleased!” ~ Luke 2:14

“And on earth peace, good will to all, and to all a good night!” or something like that. Peace on earth. All disagreements, conflicts, and war suspended for a still and silent night. Peace on earth, the whole world quieting their souls to hold hands and get along. That’s what Christmas is all about. Right?

We have come to think of the angels’ declaration of peace on earth as a coveted earthly condition, one where self-contentment reigns and war and sadness is vanquished. A peace that we try to drum up for ourselves every 25^th of December, using all of our Christmas spirit.

Yet, peace from Jesus is not simply a happy feeling, or getting along with our neighbors, or the solution to war. Peace, as defined by scripture, is the result of a connection – or re-connection with God. And this brand of peace runs right alongside turmoil and struggle, it is not necessarily an antidote for it. Although harmony with ourselves or the people and things around us may occasionally be a wonderful outcome, it isn’t a guarantee.

The Prince of Peace was sent first and foremost to address the deep, deep disconnection between God and us. This disconnection is the root of all struggles and turmoil, both inside our hearts and in the world around us. Jesus came so that we might finally be reconciled to God. So that we could have peace with God. God’s peace is at work in us to fill us, to bless us, to guard us, and to use us to continue to reconcile the world to himself. And that reuniting peace, is not finished yet.

Why is Christmas so important? It is the day God sent his peace offering to earth. Jesus was born to rejoin us to God. When we through faith in the Prince of Peace are rejoined with our Creator, we have peace. Peace is reconciliation. Peace is justification.

Peace is also the assurance and hope that Jesus will come once again and his peace will this time completely flood our existence, consuming the struggles, the turmoil, and the darkness. On that day, peace will be our new existence, both inside and out.

Dear God, Thank you for Christmas, the day you redefined peace. Please give us your peace. Amen.

This week, spend some time understanding God’s definition of peace. (Click on the passages to read online.)

Day 2: Isaiah 26:3-4, 53:5

Day 3: Romans 5:1-5

Day 4: John 14:27, 16:33

Day 5: Psalm 46

Read Full Post »