Contentment~

In this day and age, most people live their entire lives wanting more.  More money, more clothes, more cars, more of everything.  These people go in search of more hoping to eventually buy contentment.  What they do not realize is that contentment is not something that can be acquired by gaining more, but by being happy with less.  Adopting this kind of mentality brings peace.

Proverbs 17:1 "Better a dry crust with peace and quiet than a house full of feasting, with strife."

Philippians 4:11-12 "I am not saying this because I am in need, for 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."

We must know and trust that God will provide us with everything we need.  Not being content with what we have means that we are also not trusting that God will provide everything we need.  The desire to have more also directly correlates with coveteousness.

Psalm 49:12-13 "But man, despite his riches, does not endure; he is like the beasts that perish.  This is the fate of those who trust in themselves, and of their followers, who approve their sayings."

1 Timothy 6:6-9 "But godliness with contentment is great gain.  For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it.  But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.  People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many harmful and foolish desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction."

Proverbs 28:25-26 "A greedy man stirs up dissention, but he who trusts in the Lord will prosper.  He who trusts in himself is a fool, but he who walks in wisdom is kept safe."

So therefore, do not waste your life seeking more than God wills for you to attain.  Be content with what you have and thank God that you have as much as you already do, God Bless!

Laziness

Many people like to use the excuse, "I don't want to do that, I'm lazy" but is this really something we should be saying?  The Bible often warns about avoiding idleness and laziness.

Proverbs 10:4 "Lazy hands make a man poor, but diligent hands bring wealth"

Proverbs 12:24 "Diligent hands will rule, but laziness ends in slave labor"

Proverbs 20:4 "A sluggard does not plow in season; so at harvest time he looks but finds nothing"

There are literally dozens of verses much like these that tell us not to be lazy; it will only bring us poverty, slavery, and loss.  But not only are we to not be lazy, but we are to work hard and be busy with whatever we do.

Ecclesiastes 9:10 "Whatever your hands find to do, do it with all your might, for in the grave, where you are going, there is neither working nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom"  (this statement is implied to nonbelievers-hence the grave and not the kingdom of Heaven)

2 Thessalonians 3:10-12 "For even when we (the disciples)were with you, we gave you this rule: 'If a man will not work, he shall not eat.' We hear that some of you are idle.  They are not busy; they are busybodies.  Such people we command and urgeg in the Lord Jesus Christ to settle down and earn the bread they eat."

Even the disciples worked for what they earned, and we do need to work for all we get in this world.  Even though God will rovide us with all we need, we still need to put out effort for it and also thank Him for all he has provided us.

1 Corinthians 15:58 "Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm.  Let nothing move you.  Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain."

Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego (Daniel cahpter 3)

In Babylon, in the Plain of Dura, there was a King named Nebuchadnezzar, and one day he decided to build a HUGE golden idol of himself.  This idol was approximately 90 feet high and 9 feet wide.  When it was completed, he called everyone around to come and dedicate the image.  He also decreed that anytime any kind of music was heard, all of the people in the nation were to bow down and worship the golden image.  The King then threatened that anyone who did not worship the image would be thrown into a fiery furnace.  Most people proceeded to worship the image as they were ordered because they were afraid of otherwise dying.

But there were three Jews, Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego, who followed God and did not give in to the idolatry.  Other people noticed this behavior and they told the King.  The King was very upset and had the three Jews brought to him.  He asked them if it was true and he told them that if they did not worship his image, they would be cast into the furnace.  They still refused and assured the King that their God would save them from punishment.  This infuriated the King and he ordered the fire to be heated 7 times as hot as it originally was.

The three men were then bound up by strong guards and cast into the furnace; this furnace was so hot that the guards fell like ash, dead, on the floor.  But then the King looked into the furnace and was shocked; there were not three dead men burning in the furnace, there were four men, unbound, walking among the flames, and one was said to resemble the son of God.  The King called Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego to come out of the furnace and when they did, he was shocked.  They were not singed or burned, they didn't smell of smoke, the only thing on them that burned were the ropes that bound them.  With this the King cried, "Blessed be the God of Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego, who sent an angel and delivered them from harm."  And from then on, the King decreed that all were to worship the one true God. 

You see, it is not always easy to stand up for your belief in Christ, especially if you could lose you life for it.  But we need to be strong in our faith, and trust that God will protect us from harm in this world.  Our strength comes from God, but we must ask for it, and then use it for a good purpose.  These three men's single act of strength of faith wound up converting the King and many of the people of Babylon, we need to do the same. 

"Take this man to prison," the man heard Herod say,
And then four squads of soldiers came and carried him away.
Chained up between two watchmen, Peter tried to sleep,
But beyond the walls an endless prayer was lifting for his keep.
Then a light cut through the darkness of a lonely prison cell,
And the chains that bound the man of God just opened up and fell,
And running to his people before the break of day,
There was only one thing on his mind, only one thing to say:

Angels watching over me, every move I make,
Angels watching over me!
Angels watching over me, every step I take,
Angels watching over me!

God only knows the times my life was threatened just today.
A reckless car ran out of gas before it ran my way.
Near misses all around me, accidents unknown,
Though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home.
But I know they're all around me all day and through the night.
When the enemy is closing in, I know sometimes they fight
To keep my feet from falling, I'll never turn away.
If you're asking what's protecting me then you're gonna hear me say:

Got His angels watching over me, every move I make,
Angles watching over me!
Angels watching over me, every step I take,
Angels watching over me....

Angels watching over me....
Angels watching over me.

Got His angels watching over me, every move I make,
Angels watching over me!
Angels watching over me, every step I take,
Angels watching over me!

Angels watching over me,
Angels watching over me,
Angels watching over me,
Angels watching over me!

Though I never see with human eyes the hands that lead me home....

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