#struggling with contentment

[podcast]http://www.revkwon.com/podcast/struggling-contentment.mp3[/podcast]

Welcome to a brand new series here at OHBC’s Redemption Ministries. We want to welcome you to a month long series where we talk about #struggling. I don’t know if you know what a hashtag is, but if you have Instagram, twitter, facebook, google plus, whatever social media you use there are these things called hashtags where you can put your post into a category that can then be searched like a key word. For example, #nyredemption on twitter. You can find all tweets that people posted that have #nyredemption. Or #coolshoes or #Amen. Etc, etc, etc. The hashtag that we’re particularly interested in this month is more of an un-hashtag. That’s right, I just made up a new word, #newword.

Let’s take a look at these awesome hashtags: All joking aside, there are five areas in life where Christians or Christ followers find themselves struggling in the 21^st century. The crazy part is, they don’t know it or if they do know it, they don’t hashtag it on social media. This morning we’re going to talk about #struggling with contentment–or more easily stated, “discontentment.” Never before have so many had so much and wanted so much more#

That’s the real trouble isn’t it? I’ve read recently that researchers found that half an hour of facebook makes you 33% more depressed and discontent, with the reason for that depression being “envy.” Wow. Isn’t that crazy? Check this out, when we measure ourselves with the number of likes and followers, life begins to suck. Just think about it. Everything we encounter on social media comes across as perfect–and it should, considering it’s just a giant highlight reel.  The more we compare, the less satisfied we are. We have cars, houses, purses, more shoes than zappos and we’re discontent with our material and financial wealth. Or or, maybe you’re not like that. Maybe you are one of those circumstantially discontent people so people post things on social media like their new job or promotion, or their new vacation picture, their new church picture, their new baby picture and you’re sitting in front of your computer in the dark, looking at these pictures. It’s like a point in life thing. Look at what the Bible says about this in James 3:14-15: ¹⁴ But if you are bitterly jealous and there is selfish ambition in your heart, don’t cover up the truth with boasting and lying. ¹⁵ For jealousy and selfishness are not God’s kind of wisdom. Such things are earthly, unspiritual, and demonic.

When we are discontent, it’s dumb and demonic and it’s not from God. Let me expose that idea here once and for all. If you’re struggling with contentment, then know that it is beneath you to be struggling with it. You are better than that. That’s right, you are better than that. So what if your hair style is from the early 90s? just call it retro. So what that you’re eating lean cuisine while people are eating at a nice restaurant–the food is equally microwaved. So what? People are working out at the gym, you’re single handedly bringing Hostess out of bankruptcy by eating that Twinkie. Life doesn’t suck just because you don’t have followers, it just means you’re living life instead of watching it scroll by. Look at how the Apostle Paul handed struggling with contentment.

Let’s go to Philippians 4:12-13. I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.  The secret is: doing everything through Christ who gives me strength. I want all of us to say that together, “I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” I live by this, I believe this. This is a truth bomb you can’t get anywhere else. I’m not talking about complaining here. Because I know we got some complainers in this room. I’ll tell you something about complaining as a freebie because I’m not talking about contentment in the sense of complaining, I’m talking about contentment as a way of being satisfied with your life. But if you’re a complainer, know that it’s ugly, it’s annoying and despite what people tell you, they really don’t want to hear your complaining, they just haven’t complained to you about it. Don’t complain. Now back to Philippians, sorry that had to be addressed. If you’re looking at this passage as it’s written, it’s saying that you’ll always battle with discontentment until you let Christ be all you need. The “secret” Paul is talking about is that REAL LIFE is 10% of what happens to you and 90% how you respond to it. It’s true. The question is how will you respond now that you know that you’ll always be discontent and that the only way to get over that is by allowing Christ who gives you strength be your everything? Write this down because we all need some motivation: By Christ’s strength, I can#You fill in the blank. If you’re discontent remember that your contentment comes by Christ’s strength, so you can stop being discontent. I want to give you three cans by Christ’s strength. By Christ’s strength, I can kill the comparisons.

Let’s read 2 Corinthians 10:12: I don’t dare to compare myself with those who praise themselves. I’m not that kind of person. They measure themselves by themselves. They compare themselves with themselves. When they do that, they are not wise. (2 Corinthians 10:12 NIRV)

You have no reason to compare yourself with anybody. When you stop comparing yourself to other people who are not you, then you become content with yourself—with how God made you. You need help doing that? Then take a break from social media, stay away from people who trigger those feelings. Maybe, more than that, you have to celebrate those people you’re comparing yourself to for being them and doing what they’re doing. Bless them. You’re constant comparisons may be imprisoning you into an imaginary struggle. Stop struggling with comparisons. The second thing you can do by Christ’s strength is cultivate the gratitude. For the despondent, every day brings trouble; for the happy heart, life is a continual feast. (Proverbs 15:15 NLT)

If you start acting happy then you will become more content. Your mom and dad are good, your life is good, even baseball will be good. The reason for that is because your contentment is contagious to the way you see the world around you. Why can’t we learn to be content when seven year olds with terminal cancer can learn how to be content with gratitude as opposed to having a horrible attitude when the waitress brings us the wrong type of cake? The third thing you can do with Christ’s strength: enjoy what you have. Have you ever realize that in your discontentment, you do all these things or get all this stuff and then you don’t really enjoy it? Yeah, I know you do because I do it too. But we need to enjoy what we have with all of Christ’s strength.

Look at Ecclesiastes 6:9– Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless—like chasing the wind. (Ecclesiastes 6:9 NLT) You’re tired of your car, your life is crazy, your house is too big, you don’t like your job, your church is too small, whatever it is, these are yours and you should enjoy it. Look at our Scripture passage which is also our memory passage: ”I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength.” (Phil 4:12b-13)  Through Christ’s strength you can#kill comparison#cultivate gratitude…enjoy what you have. Let’s pray.