The secret of contentment

Back in January I got to write a series of posts for LICC digging into the book of Philippians.

It’s an incredibly rich book, and you could quite easily spend weeks and weeks on each chapter, but I only had four weeks, so I had to narrow my focus right down and pick up on just one of the themes. Of course, I chose contentment.

In chapter 4 of this most joyful book/letter, Paul tells his friends in Philippi that he has learned the secret of being content in all circumstances. Many of us are starting to look forward to ‘when enough people have been vaccinated’ and ‘when we’re allowed to go to restaurants again’ or ‘when everything is back to normal again’, then we can start to find our equilibrium and be happy.

Paul knew that true joy and flourishing aren’t dependent on our circumstances. Throughout the book of Philippians we can see some little insights into what the secret of contentment was that Paul had learned.

Here is a taster of each post, and the links to read them on the LICC website. Which one or ones speaks to you the most just now?

1. The Secret of Contentment: Live for Christ

“First off, Paul addresses what we are living for. This is the top priority, the foundation on which everything else in life is built. If we get this wrong, we can expect to find weaknesses and wobbles higher up.”

What does Paul say is the most important thing in life? Click here to find out.

2. The Secret of Contentment: Live Like Christ

“One sure sign of a discontented person is their tendency to grumble. I’m sure you know people for whom every bus journey, every supermarket visit, every email from their boss is a cause to moan, complain, and see the worst.”

What is the root of our complaining, and how can we overcome it and live the kind of grumble-free life that Jesus modelled? Read more…

3. The Secret of Contentment: Grow in Christ

“‘Self care’ is all very well, and God does command us to find rhythms of rest in our lives, but there comes a point when we start to think, ‘There must be more than this.’ And there is.

“Paul reminds us that alongside the seen reality, there is a deeper, higher, richer one. We will never find true contentment until we lift our eyes and recalibrate our lives around the eternal purposes of God instead of our own, very limited, temporal ones.”

Find some top tips from Paul on how to do this practically in this post.

4. The Secret of Contentment: Rejoice in Christ

“Contentment isn’t something we have to hope we might be given, or something that would blossom in our lives if only we received or achieved all the things we’re longing for.

“Rather, it is something we can learn, something we can actively pursue.”

To read about the last of Paul’s lessons in how to be content whatever our circumstances, click here.

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