29 Jul 2011
I Timothy 6:6
I Timothy 6:6: “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”
This is a hard truth to live by but it’s very rewarding. It’s easy to think “Well, I’ll be content after I get everything that I want”, but it doesn’t work that way. God wants us to be content in whatever state we’re in. Things may be going our way, or life might be a terrible disaster. Our lives may be a blessing or we may be burdened by many troubles. If we can learn to be content regardless of our situation then we are blessed indeed. In that contentment there is great peace.
The key to remember is that God is more than able to change our situation. After all, God is the one that allows trials to come into our lives. He can end them whenever He wants. Yes, there are times when we do things that make our lives more difficult than they have to be, but God is in control and He is watching over us. Have we considered the possibility that we are where we are because God is working out a greater plan? Joseph spent years as a slave and then more years as a prisoner because God had a plan to save millions of lives. The Bible tells us that all things work together for good for those who love God. God wants us to be content with our situation and to simply trust Him. He is working out a greater plan that we can’t see, and He wants us to be content with the part that He has set aside for us.
Riches come and go; fortunes are easily lost, and you can’t take your wealth with you. But godliness, with contentment, is great gain. That is what we should be pursuing – the act of being content.