Building Project

The new year has come upon us and with it the invitation, for many, to make a fresh start in some area of personal enhancement. This often takes the form of New Year’s resolutions. Of the ten most common New Year’s Resolutions losing weight is the perennial number one. It should perhaps be awarded “Emeritus” status so it can be removed from the list to make room for something else. But fully half concern money in some way. That is, to get more money, get a better job, save more, stay within a budget, etc. It is popularly understood that some resolutions (“be a better person”) are greatly aided by others (“get more money”). Since many believers also participate in this ritual here is something to consider as we do: Make sure that your character is free from the love of money, being content with what you have; for He Himself has said, "I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU," so that we confidently say, "THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?" (Heb 13:5-6)

Contentment is the state of mind and heart where one’s desires are satisfied with what God has provided. It is a choice we make as the natural outgrowth of humility and a trust in God’s promise to provide for our needs. Puritan Jeremiah Burroughs said, “Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet, gracious frame of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition.”

No compilation of popular New Year’s Resolutions that I have ever seen has included any reference to contentment, yet this virtue infuses all other goals and accomplishments with joy, meaning and satisfaction. Just as importantly, contentment makes the pursuit of a goal as valuable as its attainment and is why the Calvary Bible Church “building program” is more than just a construction project. Contentment makes the time, energy and money invested in the process an act of trust in the Lord who has promised never to desert or forsake us. Contentment is not an excuse for sloth, nor is it a reason to conflate indolence with trust in God. The Bible extols industry, honesty, excellence, and diligence in all our endeavors. Thus contentment is displayed through diligence and doing one’s best, then trusting God for the result. This is the message of the Hebrews passage: believers always and eternally have the Creator of the Universe as their employer and provider. It is sad to say that many Christians find such reassurance of scant comfort.

Unfortunately, this has always been the case and is the reason that Paul wrote to Timothy to remind those in his flock that “godliness with contentment is great gain.”

This, then, is the key to contentment. To believe and act on what the Father and Son have promised and to which the Law, prophets and apostles testify; that God is the one who provides strength and sustenance for those who trust Him to do so.