The Secret to Contentment, Philippians 4:11b-13

"...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

     What is a circumstance but that which is going on around us, that which is going on in us or through us? Circumstances are temporary, not permanent. They can be good, or they can be bad; they can be delightful, or they can be unbearable. But Paul says he has learned the secret to being content no matter what his circumstance, despite his circumstance. It is a secret far too few have sought to learn, unfortunately.

     Oh, how often we take comfort and find solice in complaining and voicing our opinions! Let's face it: We enjoy murmuring and complaining, voicing our objections. We want others to hear us and take our side; we want someone to sympathize with us.
     When something doesn't quite go our way, when something takes us out of our comfort zone and pushes us into the unknown, the unusual, out of our little routine, it seems as though we can't resist but make a little comment here, a little comment there, making sure that those around us know that we are not pleased with our surroundings and our circumstances.

     But who are we complaining against? We are not just voicing aimless complaints, as we may subconsciously assume. Such a view stems from the notion that all of our circumstances happen purely by random chance, that there is no purpose to them, no rhyme or reason behind them. But scripture teaches us otherwise.

     The Bible clearly shows us that God created us for a purpose, that He works everything that happens in our lives together for our own best interests (meaning He is actively involved in our lives), and that He has a plan for our lives, for each day that we live, and that His plans were ordained and written in a book (solidified!) before we were even born. Our circumstances are anything but random chance!

     However, we must also take into consideration another very important factor in our circumstances aside from God's plans. First of all, as beings created in the likeness of God, we have free will. We are not robots, preprogrammed to do or say whatever God would have us to. If this were so, there would be no sin in the world. If this were so, a relationship with God would be meaningless, for it is only when love is a choice that it holds any value.
     Secondly, there is more than one plan for each of our lives. There is God's plan of ultimate good and blessing, and there is Satan's plan to destroy us and pull us down into the firey pits of hell with him and his minions. And just as God is active in working all things out for good in our lives, Satan is quite active in trying thwart all God's plans! The Bible tells us that Satan prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour (1 Peter 5:8). The key to this verse, however, is that he seeks whom he may devour. Satan can't just go around ripping us apart at his disgression; he is still under the ultimate authority of God. The book of Job shows us clearly how this truth plays out in life.

     Job chapter 2 tells us that one day the angels came to present themselves before God, including the fallen angels, or demons. The Lord asked Satan where he had come from, and Satan replied, "From roaming through the earth and going back and forth in it." The idea here, as Peter alludes to, is that he was looking throughout the earth for a challenge, someone to prey upon. God asks Satan if he had considered His righteous servant, Job.
     Satan scoffs at God's remark that Job is righteous, saying that Job served God only to receive blessings. Satan accuses Job of being in it only for his own interests, not because he really loved the Lord. Satan challenges God, saying that if God were to remove His hand of blessing, Job would surely curse God to His face. God says, "Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life."

     It is not that God wanted Job's life to be miserable, and certainly not that God wanted Job to become the prey of the enemy. Rather, God knew Job's heart and his love for God, and knew that Satan would be proven wrong and be publicy humiliated in front of the other rebelling angels. It would create unrest among God's enemies, turning them against each other. And Jesus said a house divided against itself will not stand. God allowed Job into the hands of the enemy in order that truth might prevail.
     We also see that God's soveriegn control was upon Job's life at all times; Satan could not do anything he desired to do to Job; God allowed him into Satan's hands with limitations: He could not take Job's life. In Matthew 10:29, Jesus tells us that not even a sparrow, at that time sold for half a penny, falls to the ground apart from the will of God. How much more is God looking after us and watching over our surroundings and circumstances? Everything that happens to us has to go through the filter of God's love before it ever reaches us.

     "Well," you say, "it sounds to me like you just laid all the blame for my bad circumstances on God!" That's right! And if God is letting you go through it-- it's for your own good! (Remember Romans 8:28!) For a minute, let's go back to Job's story...
     Satan was given permission, by God, to inflict pain upon Job, but with limitations. Throughout the majority of the book of Job we listen to Job's friends accuse him of gross iniquity, and we see Job writhing in agony, cursing the day he was born. But through it all, we also see momentary glimpses of revelation-- Through his pain, Job has revelation of God. And at the end of the book, God comes down and puts a stop to all the pain inflicted by Satan, corrects Job's friends and rebukes them for their foolish accusations, and restores to Job everything he had before, double! But we also see something astounding: Job declares, in chapter 42,

"I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted. You asked, 'Who is this that obscures my counsel without knowledge?' Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. You said, 'Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.' My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes."

     What happened to Job while he was in this time of pain and trial? He came to see that One whom he had only previously heard of. He was humbled, he came to despise himself and repent in dust and ashes. At the beginning of his story, and all through it, we see Job defending his righteousness. But after coming in contact with God, he is greatly humbled. In God's light he saw his sin, and he saw God's sovereignty over his life.
     And so too, when God allows us to go through trials, when he allows the enemy to meddle in our lives, it is for a great purpose! It may be that He is proving a point up in heaven, silencing the rebellion against Himself. It may also be that God is widdling away at the excess of our hearts, purifying us and cleansing us, causing us to have a right perspective of ourselves and Him. Or, it may be a combination of those things. But whatever the exact reason, we needn't worry, because we know that it's for good that we endure such things.
     So when we complain about our circumstances, we're really griping about what God is doing in our lives. He is molding us and shaping us, like a master potter, into the perfect vessel for His purposes, and all we can say is, "Ouch! You're squeezing too hard!" or "No! You're doing it wrong! That's not right!" We fail to see the end result or the bigger, grander picture of God's plans.

     But Paul had a different way of viewing things, thanks to the wonderful workings of the Holy Spirit in his heart. Though he was once a prideful and arrogant enemy of Christ, puffed up in vain glory and thinking himself righteous before God by his own efforts, he was knocked down on his face and blinded, broken and humbled upon seeing the Lord Jesus Christ. When Jesus called to him from above, Paul could only say, trembling in astonishment, "Lord, what do You want me to do?" Revelation of Christ cleansed him of pride and arrogance, and he submitted to the authority of God. (See Acts 9.)
     Knowing that God works all things for our good because of His exceeding love for us, Paul could live peacefully in any circumstance. He knew that whatever he was going through was for his own benefit, and that God had allowed him to be wherever he was in life.
     Paul could rejoice in times of blessing, but he could also rejoice in times of trial. He didn't rejoice in the trials themselves, but rather in the good effects he knew God was bringing about through the trials. He knew God was refining and purifying him, strenghtening his faith. Paul could rejoice even in persecution-- not in the pain itself, but in knowing that the very cause of his persecution was the likeness of Christ shining in him.

     We can spend our time trying to cheer ourselves up and lift our spirits with positive thinking, we can attempt to refocus our minds on the positive aspects of our trials rather than the negative. But try as we might, this can only get us so far. And like a barrel heading down a river toward a waterfall, we're bound to take a plunge! We are sinful and impure, sadly prone to being self-absorbed and wallowing in self-pity. This is where verse 13 of Philippians 4 comes into play:

"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."