Gratitude and Contentment.
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
In our fast paced society where we are constantly striving to attain more and fulfill the demands of our hectic lives, there is hardly any time for any spiritual introspection. Words like “contentment” have almost become an afterthought these days because of the assumption that to be content is to be complacent and passive. But this is not what contentment is really all about. As a child of God, contentment for me is a perpetual state of gratitude knowing that the Supreme Being, God Himself, is on my side. It is knowing that my self-worth is based primarily on God's love (which does not change) and not on the fleeting views of other people or how much I have accomplished. This is very comforting considering how society often builds people up just to tear them down based on whether or not they are meeting the current criteria for “success”.
We do not earn God’s love the way we earn affection and rewards from people in a meritocracy. God’s love is what it is because God is loving by nature. Our "love" pales in comparison to His, so much so that we often project our negative feelings for some people unto God because we have been disappointed by people who claim to "love" us.
No, God does not tolerate sin, but out of His love for humanity He handled our sin problem at the cross through the gift of His Son, Jesus. With this in mind, I remain grateful for the following reasons:
1) Even when I am going through extreme challenges, I know that God’s feelings for me have not changed. People may not forgive me, but God does, people may have unrealistic and unattainable standards for me, but God does not. Through His grace, I am accepted and loved and empowered to be me. There is nothing I can do to make God love me any more, and there is nothing I can do to make Him love me any less. I am not really free to be who I really am until this fact really sinks in.
2) I can go to God in prayer at any time without fear that I am unclean. In Old Testament times, people had to go through all kinds of meticulous rituals and sacrifices to just to be considered clean in God's eyes even before making a request. But because we live by a new covenant/agreement, our righteousness is a free gift available in-Jesus, so I can boldly yet humbly go to God at any time and any place.
3) I know that God always has a bigger plan than what my eyes can see. Sometimes, I get extremely frustrated when life does not go the way that I want it to. In times past, I have found myself crying, pleading and jumping through all kinds of hoops just to get God to answer my prayers the way I wanted them answered. But in the grand scheme of things, the universe does not revolve around my agenda, but God’s, and He knows what is best as all things were created for His glory.
4) I am content because I have been granted every spiritual blessing that I need for my life’s purpose in Jesus (see Ephesians 1:3). Because of this, I need not worry that my life is somehow insufficient.
5) I am grateful because I am a child of God, and that is an honor that is eternally worth saying thank you for. I did not earn this right as a child of God - and no one could earn it no matter how hard they tried - so I cannot lose it based on performance. This is a liberating fact in a world filled with so much insecurity.
6) Even though I know that sometimes circumstances are overwhelming and I get filled with anxiety, ultimately God has never met a challenge that He cannot handle, and just because He sometimes does not handle it the way I want to does not mean He is no longer in control.
Coming next month: An essay on "success" and why I almost abandoned Christianity.
Stephen O. Akinduro
“Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus.” 1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18
In our fast paced society where we are constantly striving to attain more and fulfill the demands of our hectic lives, there is hardly any time for any spiritual introspection. Words like “contentment” have almost become an afterthought these days because of the assumption that to be content is to be complacent and passive. But this is not what contentment is really all about. As a child of God, contentment for me is a perpetual state of gratitude knowing that the Supreme Being, God Himself, is on my side. It is knowing that my self-worth is based primarily on God's love (which does not change) and not on the fleeting views of other people or how much I have accomplished. This is very comforting considering how society often builds people up just to tear them down based on whether or not they are meeting the current criteria for “success”.
We do not earn God’s love the way we earn affection and rewards from people in a meritocracy. God’s love is what it is because God is loving by nature. Our "love" pales in comparison to His, so much so that we often project our negative feelings for some people unto God because we have been disappointed by people who claim to "love" us.
No, God does not tolerate sin, but out of His love for humanity He handled our sin problem at the cross through the gift of His Son, Jesus. With this in mind, I remain grateful for the following reasons:
1) Even when I am going through extreme challenges, I know that God’s feelings for me have not changed. People may not forgive me, but God does, people may have unrealistic and unattainable standards for me, but God does not. Through His grace, I am accepted and loved and empowered to be me. There is nothing I can do to make God love me any more, and there is nothing I can do to make Him love me any less. I am not really free to be who I really am until this fact really sinks in.
2) I can go to God in prayer at any time without fear that I am unclean. In Old Testament times, people had to go through all kinds of meticulous rituals and sacrifices to just to be considered clean in God's eyes even before making a request. But because we live by a new covenant/agreement, our righteousness is a free gift available in-Jesus, so I can boldly yet humbly go to God at any time and any place.
3) I know that God always has a bigger plan than what my eyes can see. Sometimes, I get extremely frustrated when life does not go the way that I want it to. In times past, I have found myself crying, pleading and jumping through all kinds of hoops just to get God to answer my prayers the way I wanted them answered. But in the grand scheme of things, the universe does not revolve around my agenda, but God’s, and He knows what is best as all things were created for His glory.
4) I am content because I have been granted every spiritual blessing that I need for my life’s purpose in Jesus (see Ephesians 1:3). Because of this, I need not worry that my life is somehow insufficient.
5) I am grateful because I am a child of God, and that is an honor that is eternally worth saying thank you for. I did not earn this right as a child of God - and no one could earn it no matter how hard they tried - so I cannot lose it based on performance. This is a liberating fact in a world filled with so much insecurity.
6) Even though I know that sometimes circumstances are overwhelming and I get filled with anxiety, ultimately God has never met a challenge that He cannot handle, and just because He sometimes does not handle it the way I want to does not mean He is no longer in control.
Coming next month: An essay on "success" and why I almost abandoned Christianity.
Stephen O. Akinduro
posted by Stephen O. | 8:51 AM
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