"I know how to live on almost nothing or with everything. I have learned the secret of living in every situation, whether it is with a full stomach or empty, with plenty or little."
Philippians 4:12 NLT
The pessimist is never content, never satisfied. He or she looks at what's on offer and finds faults. They have a tendency to be negative about most things and mostly see doom and gloom. The optimist usually expects a favourable outcome from what they see. When they are tempted to be discontent, they overcome this with their positivity and see the bigger picture. The pessimist has a half-empty glass, the optimist, a half-full one. Which are you?
Paul was an optimist, he had everything and he had lived with nothing. He knew that whatever God wanted him to have, He would provide it for him. He was therefore content in all he had and did. When Paul was on his evangelistic journeys, if he needed money, he would receive what was given to him by his supporters or he would work as a tentmaker. He was never idle. If he needed it and it wasn't there, he would go and earn it. The secret for Paul was that, he drew on Christ's power for strength and supply.
What about you? Are you satisfied with what you have or, are you constantly longing for something better, rather like the 'Keeping up with the Jones'' syndrome? Some people go through life never being satisfied with anything. Lots of people have a glass that's half-full, they go out and work for what they want. If they see something special, perhaps they will save for it until they have enough. They know what they want and go for it. The half-empty crowd look at what they have and what they want and become depressed because they feel they will never be able to own this, go there or whatever they would like. They have a negative answer for any solution to better themselves and they plod along in despair. This can lead to envy, jealously and covetousness.
There is a kind of excitement in walking in faith with Jesus. He knows what we need, He also knows what we would like. With Jesus, our glass can always be half-full because, we know that He cares and wants the best for us. Therefore, we have to learn to be grateful and content with all we have. Paul learned the secret of living in every situation so, why not give it a try yourself.
God is not tight, in fact, He is very generous; He will bless us many times over but we need to be content in all that we have.
Copyright 2023 Grahame Howard.
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