"But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that."
1 Timothy 6:6-8
From time to time something somebody writes so accurately conveys one of my core principles that I just have to pass it along. I read Matt's weekly blog often because he is such a source authority on Biblical Stewardship and he not only educates me and convicts me, he also reaffirms me. I could write something very similar to this particular one, but since he says it so well, enjoy it and apply it and hopefully make some changes in your perspective or practice on the basis of the truth of it. With a very grateful heart, Pastor Fred
Every day of our lives, we are the unwitting recipients of countless messages designed to foster discontentment. They're very effective at making us believe we need something more. In fact, according to one study, more than 60 percent of us always have something in mind that we look forward to buying. That's what makes the following words seem so out of synch with our daily experience. "But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." 1 Timothy 6:6-8
What? Content with only food and clothing? Why, that's downright un-American! Or so it seems. But do you know what else it is? It's liberating.
A couple of years ago, my wife and I decided to give away one of our cars. It needed a cost prohibitive repair, so we gave it to a ministry that fixes cars and then gives them to needy families. The car had 165,000 miles on it and a number of dents. It had been hit a couple of times while parked in our former neighborhood in Chicago. A tree branch even fell on it once, denting the roof. Because of its high mileage, we never bothered to fix the dents. When I was working in corporate America, I would drive into the parking lot of my office building and pass lots of new cars. Driving that old car gave me frequent opportunities to practice contentment, and there were definitely days when I needed extra practice!
What helped the most was reminding myself that having a paid-off car gave us the financial freedom to build savings targeted toward being able to leave my corporate job one day to write and speak full-time. The more I dwelled on that benefit, the more thankful I felt. In the process, I saw firsthand that gratitude drives contentment and serves as a powerful antidote to our culture's constant encouragement to want something more.
Instead of always having something in mind that we look forward to buying, what if we always had something in mind that we were thankful for? What are you thankful for? And if you really want to challenge yourself, think of something you own that you're eager to replace. Try to find something about that to be thankful for. What comes to mind?
P.S. If you want or need more Good Stewardship info you can sign up for Matt's email publication at... matt@mattaboutmoney.com
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