Still Searching

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find;

knock and the door will be opened to you. Matthew 7:7

Interestingly, in my search over the last few days regaurding contentment, I have not been able to find a whole heck of a lot in the Bible about being content. In some versions of the Bible, there are as many as 3 refrences to that word. In others, there are none. So, I am moving on to the next step in my journey toward this elusive thing without much to go on besides an internal need to find a place of peace... and that, to me, would involve being content.  All the while, I realize that as a human I will always have disconcerting times in my life. Always. As a Christian, I believe, I am called to a life of dying to myself... which I cannot imagine ever being content about.  That brings me to my point of contention.  I cannot figure out how to reconcile this desire to be content with my deep seeded beliefs that I have explored before on my blog...

I am reminded of some thoughts from a Bible study that I recently did...

*God did not save us to make us happy in the temporal sense - He saved us to "redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a people that are his very own, eager to do what is good." (Titus 2:14) To choose a pathway of holiness will sometimes require sacrificing our personal comfort and convienience. But any sacrifice that we make is temporary, and cannot be compared with the joy and fullfillment we will gain in eternity. Only through seeking to be holy can we ever expect true happiness.

*What matters most to Him is that every created being reflect His glory. His agenda is to do whatever is necessary to conform us to His image. Some of the problems that cause us to chafe the most are actually instruments He has designed to fulfill His ultimate purpose in our life. How foolish and shortsighted it is to reject or resist problems that may be the very means He has designed to mold us into the image of his Son.

*Suffering takes on a whole different perspective when we realize that it is an essential tool in the hand of God to conform us to the image of Jesus. The process of sanctification takes place as we embrace our suffering, rather than running from it or resenting it.

*All suffering is purposeful and intentional. Gos has a specific objective in mind for our suffering. He knows exactly the intensity and duration that are needed to fullfill His purposes. He will not allow our suffering to last any longer or to be any more severe than is necessary to accomplish His will.

*Once we agree with God that we exist for His pleasure and glory, we can accept whatever comes into our lives as part of His sovereign will and purpose. We will not resent the "hard things", but will embrace them as friends, sovereignly designed by God to make us like Jesus and to bring glory to Himself.

My lack of contentment is not about things or status... I have dealt with those issues in the past, and I am okay (most of the time) with being okay with the "things" that I have or do not have... and may never have. My lack of contentment has more to do with nontangable things that I do not have... that others around me have... and sometimes even take for granted. 

I know! I know! We all have something that we are dealing with at every given moment. Really, I know!  And I know that I am blessed in many, many ways.  Really, I do!  But at least for me, the fact that parts of my life are great do not nullify that some parts are not.  I also know that some people that are dealing with a turbulant life seem to live with much more peace and acceptance of it than I do. They are what I would call content.  That is what I long to be.

So, here I am... asking, searching, & knocking and praying that that miracle of peace and contentment would become a constant part of my life.

But godliness with contentment is great gain. 1 Timothy 6:6