1 Timothy 6:6-8 IBS

Monday August 11^th, 2014

1 Timothy 6:6-8 “Now godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. And having food and clothing, with these we shall be content.”

            Contentment…satisfaction…serenity. All meaning the same thing, but where do you seek contentment; where do you feel a full joy and fulfillment? Only the Lord is where full contentment comes from. I tend to become jealous of others, especially when it comes to clothes or hair. Hebrews 13:5 says, “Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” There are so many pretty girls here with such great styles and I get jealous of their clothes. I know it’s a pretty minor, silly thing, but even in that I am not pleasing the Lord. I am allowing materialism to take the place of my Heavenly Father. I am blessed to even have articles of clothing in the first place. And just as this verse says, we are not going to bring anything with us into heaven, so why even have a second thought of something as silly as clothing?

            This brings me to something called inheritance. Where are you placing your inheritance? In earthly things or in the Lord? Psalm 16:5 says, “O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot.” Overall, of course I place my inheritance in the Lord. I don’t need earthly things, but even the fact of having that jealous thought causes me to place my inheritance elsewhere. This place, earth, is not my home, it is a temporary home…a house is a better word for that, but heaven is where my home is. So, why seek things of this world and material items when that all just withers away? I am going to have a mansion in heaven, I will be right there with God, so I need to be seeking things He wants me to accomplish in His name. I want to proudly wear crowns for the Lord in heaven; to show off God. I want to be told I was a good and faithful servant simply because I am blessed to serve such a King. Who am I to even be discontent with my clothes or be jealous because someone has different hair than mine (that I obviously like)? If I’m jealous of someone else, even as small as someone’s hair I am basically disgracing God’s creation, because He created me. So I need to be content in ALL things.

Application: Even with the smallest of discontentment, I am not looking to the Lord. So in order to keep my eyes fixed entirely on Him, I will write my discontentment on a piece of paper, pray over it, and rip it up, giving it to the Lord.